I’m officially worried about the futures of two key characters on Chicago Med as we head into the final stretch of season 11 episodes, and I’m certain I am not alone.
While Chicago Med has not yet been renewed for season 12, a renewal is expected, and that renewal could very well come with some casting shakeups. It’s become a growing trend within the One Chicago franchise for there to be a few cast departures, with each One Chicago show bidding farewell to at least one key member of its cast this season.
Now that we’re heading into the final episodes of the season, we’re entering the stretch of the season when potential exit storylines begin to come into play. The episodes ahead of the finale are often used to build towards the departures of key characters from the show, with the episodes in the later parts of the season often laying the groundwork with subtle hints that could foreshadow an exit.
Sometimes, these moments don’t lead to an exit, but other times they do, which is why the show’s decision to introduce potential exit storylines for Charles and Frost in episode 15 certainly has given fans reason for concern.
Charles could choose to leave Med to take a teaching position
The first major exit storyline introduced in Chicago Med season 11, episode 15, “The Cost of Living,” came in the closing moments of the episode via a conversation between Charles and his friend Howie.
Howie came to see Charles to share some major personal news. It turns out that Howie has decided to step away from his position at Porter University. Not only is Howie walking away from his job, but he wanted Charles to fill the vacancy at the school!
“No, they’re okay actually, because I already found the best possible replacement,” Howie replied when Charles asked how the school took the news. That’s when he noted how the med students who had worked with Charles are still raving about their time working alongside him, and Charles clearly has a knack for mentoring.
As Howie pointed out, Charles keeps talking about what’s coming next and finding something new, and teaching could be that for him. Charles quips about not being able to just leave Gaffney and Howie points out that he must have some sort of protégé who’s ready to take the reins. “I don’t know about that,” Charles utters as he looks across the room to where Theo is standing and speaking with one of the nurses.
The conversation ends with Charles promising Howie he’ll think about the offer as Howie notes he’s already passed his name along to the provost and told him Charles was very interested.
The storyline seems to suggest that perhaps Charles will be taking a step back from Gaffney after all these years in order to move on to the next chapter in his life. With Theo having been introduced, there is a natural line to be drawn that the writers introduced the character to succeed Charles. It also feels like we’ve been building towards Charles walking away from the ED for some time, with this storyline being the closest we’ve come to an actual storyline being set up.
Given that Charles is one of the few original characters on the show, we hope that he’s not leaving but there is a reality this storyline was introduced to tee up his exit.
Frost is returning to acting, but will one guest spot be enough?
The other exit storyline that came into play was via Frost’s arc in the episode. In the episode, Frost learns that his father does not have MS but rather has a mass on his spinal cord. Without treatment, the mass will continue to grow and could be fatal.
With Goodwin’s help, Frost tries to get his dad into a clinical trial, which will help him get the treatment he needs. The problem is that the trial is only for patients who have been recently diagnosed, and Frost’s dad found out about the mass a year ago. His denial of not accepting the diagnosis prevents him from getting into the trial, which means the only way he can get the medication is off-label, and insurance won’t cover the cost of the medication. And this isn’t a cheap medication; it’ll cost $30k a month.
Knowing that his parents cannot afford the medication, as they’re already in debt, Frost calls up his former co-star Ian to ask about the Nick of Time reboot and tells his friend he’s in.
Now, we know that Frost is only agreeing to the role to make the money to help pay for his dad’s treatment, and we know that when Ian first approached Frost, it was about a guest spot. However, given the cost of his dad’s medication, we have to wonder, could this turn into something bigger and might Frost end up putting his career as a doctor on hold to return to acting to keep a more steady flow of cash coming to support his parents?
We’re going to have to wait to find out, but it’s a real fear we now have, as it could very easily grow into an exit storyline for the character.