It seems a new chief could soon be entering the picture over at Firehouse 51 when Chicago Fire returns this fall.
Casting is currently underway for a male stand-in to match an actor portraying a fire chief in an upcoming episode of Chicago Fire season 15, indicating that the series is about to introduce a new firehouse chief—the question is how they will enter the mix and what role they might play in the season.
Given that a stand-in is being cast for this new chief, it seems to reason that they'll play a sizable role, as stand-ins are often only brought in for principal members of the cast. Based on the description given for the stand-in, this does seem to be a new character and not a chief we’ve previously met, as the character description does not align with any of the past chiefs.
The casting call is looking for a Caucasian male in his 40s to 60s between 5'11" and 6'1" with a medium-to-large build and light brown or reddish hair. This description does not match any formerly introduced chiefs, which suggests that someone new is about to enter the mix and shake things up.
Through the early years of Chicago Fire, there were a lot of comings and goings, but the one constant was always Chief Boden. Boden was the glue that kept 51 together from the beginning and was a core part of the show’s DNA up until his exit in season 12. After Boden left 51 to become the new deputy commissioner of the Chicago Fire Department, Chief Pascal was brought in to oversee the firehouse and held the position for a brief stint before his dismissal from the CFD late in season 14 for conduct unbecoming.
Following Pascal’s exit, the show introduced Chief Hopkins as the newest chief of 51, and his arrival quickly ruffled feathers. Hopkins had it out for Severide from the moment he arrived, and he nearly cost Severide his career. He’d eventually see the error in his ways and vacate 51 in the penultimate episode of season 14, returning to his old office at Firehouse 20.
While 51 has always had an in-house chief, the expectation has been that this would change in season 15 with Severide acting as the highest-ranking officer after his promotion to captain. This is still likely the case, but the introduction of a new chief does make us wonder if there was more restructuring in the CFD that is about to lead to new leadership at 51. It would make sense given Van Meter had made a comment shortly after Hopkins’ arrival about 51 falling outside his jurisdiction, hinting that perhaps with his exit the show could bring in a new chief to oversee 51.
We don’t see this chief setting up shop in 51, but it will be interesting to see how a new chief could shake things up and what role they might end up playing in the season. If Severide has indeed accepted the captain promotion and turned down the job at OFI, we imagine the show’s writers are going to want to give fans the chance to actually see Severide in a leadership role and explore how this changes his dynamics within the firehouse.
Hopefully, if a new chief is assigned to 51, they won’t ruffle feathers in the way Hopkins did as we’re not sure if we can take watching Severide and the entire team at 51 be forced to deal with another difficult leader.
Chicago Fire season 15 premieres Wednesday, October 7 at 9/8c on NBC.
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