When word first broke that Dermot Mulroney would be leaving Chicago Fire, his exit was described as being a hiatus rather than a permanent exit from the show. However, that might not have been the case, and this is beginning to look like another instance of smoke and mirrors, where the truth isn’t quite what it first seemed. Walk with me now.
Back in May 2024, it was announced that Eamonn Walker was exiting Chicago Fire as a series regular after 12 seasons playing Chief Boden on the series. When Walker’s exit was announced, it was widely reported that Walker was expected to be returning in a recurring capacity moving forward. This gave fans hope that, while Boden would no longer appear in every episode, the character would remain a part of the show in a limited capacity. Sadly, that has not been the case.
Since Walker’s exit as a series regular was announced, we’ve only seen him back for one episode as Boden, with that episode airing late in season 13. That’s far from what we’d describe as being a recurring capacity.
Fast forward to today. When news of Mulroney’s “hiatus” was revealed, it was indicated that “he may return,” but his return was never actually guaranteed. It was reported that scripts were being finalized for the remaining episodes of the season and that a return was possible with the specifics left quite vague. At the time, it seemed like there wasn’t much information simply as the situation was still developing; however, given how the show has written Pascal out, it seems that this will evolve into a permanent exit rather than simply a “hiatus.” If that ends up being the case, we’re honestly okay with that.
Chief Pascal isn’t needed on Chicago Fire if the show intends to make Severide captain
At first, it was hard to imagine Chicago Fire without Pascal, as his exit came at a time when it felt as though the character had finally started to hit his stride at Firehouse 51. However, after watching the show’s sendoff episode, the truth is that they gave his character a perfect exit storyline that felt quite final and also was used as the catalyst for Severide to finally take a major step in his own career within the CFD.
In Chicago Fire season 14, episode 14, we learned that Chief Pascal had been relieved of his duties within the CFD. We then spent the episode watching Pascal say his goodbyes to the leaders at 51, bestowing some final words of wisdom and encouragement to each on his way out the door. It was a beautifully written episode that ended with Pascal leaving Severide his office and encouraging him to take the captain’s exam as Pascal prepared to leave town to accept a job in Phoenix.
Watching the episode, it felt much more final than a hiatus goodbye sending a character away for just a few episodes, and it also made Pascal’s return unnecessary.
Pascal leaving Severide his office at 51 and encouraging him to finally take the captain’s exam felt like a real passing of the baton moment, and thankfully, Severide is running with that baton. Following Pascal’s exit, Severide has decided to push himself and actually pursue the captain’s rank. Episode 15 saw Severide taking the shift off to study for the exam, proving he’s committed to taking this next step within the CFD and episode 16 will see him fighting to prove he’s ready to become captain when 51’s new chief, Chief Hopkins, makes it clear that he doesn’t believe Severide is ready for the job.
It’s clear that this is a storyline that will be featured heavily in the closing episodes of the season as Severide works to pursue the rank of captain so that he can oversee the day-to-day operations at 51. By taking Severide on this journey, the endgame fans want to see if Severide achieves his goal and becomes the new head of the firehouse. If the writers see this storyline through, which I believe they will, there really isn’t a point to bringing Pascal back into the mix.
Pascal’s return would essentially make the Severide story pointless.
If Pascal were to return to the CFD, it would make sense he would once again be operating out of Firehouse 51, which would put him back in charge and essentially mean the only change for Severide would be in title. As much as we’d love to see more of Pascal, we’d rather see Severide get the chance to lead 51 on a full-time basis as its captain, and it’s a natural progression for a character who has been on the show since the very beginning.
And therein lies the reason it looks like Mulroney’s exit is not just some temporary hiatus. There would be no point in introducing this storyline if the plan was to bring Pascal back by the season’s end, which seems to suggest this hiatus was, in fact, an exit for Mulroney.