Chicago Med had a lot to cover in its season 10 winter premiere. It has to resolve the confusion over Dr. Dean Archer (Steven Weber), and whether he was leaving the show. It also had to assure viewers that Dr. Sharon Goodwin (S Epatha Merkerson) was going to survive her near fatal stabbing.
The episode "No Love Lost" managed to do both, but it also found time to sneak in a reference to a character we did not see coming. Goodwin was thrilled to see former Gaffney employee Dr. Sarah Reese (Rachel DiPillo), and the latter's return led Goodwin to make a joke about Will Halstead (Nick Gehlfuss).
Dr. Goodwin mentioned Halstead by name
Dr. Goodwin asked those in the room whether Dr. Halstead would be the next familiar face she saw after surgery proved successful. The camera even lingered on Dr. Daniel Charles (Oliver Platt) looking surprised, as though Halstead was really going to enter the scene at any moment. He didn't of course, but the name drop did lead to some fan discussion as to whether the character would ever reappear in the Windy City.
Nick Gehlfuss spoke about the possibility of returning to Chicago Med shortly after he decided to leave in season 8. The actor told Variety that he would be more than willing to make a cameo if he felt the story provided a valid reason for his character.
"We were all in agreement on that, thankfully, as I talked with Dick and the writers,” Gehlfuss said. "Whenever it makes sense again for important moments, I’d love to don the white lab coat once again." The actor did make it clear, however, that he'd taken the character of Dr. Halstead as far as possible, and wanted to avoid a situation in which him sticking around was doing a disservice to his arc.
Nick Gehlfuss is willing to return in the future
"It was a difficult decision, but ultimately, I felt I’d taken Dr. Halstead as far as I can go with him," the actor added. "I think that comes down to a creative part of you, or the energy or spirit you have that you’re either built for a very long time with one person or not." As fun as it would be to see Halstead back at Gaffney Medical Center, we're inclined to agree with Gehlfuss' gut here.
Will Halstead had a perfect sendoff, and it did feel as though the character was reaching a breaking point. He was running the risk of regressing in order to stay "interesting," instead of growing in a way that natural. He left at the right time, and bringing him back so soon would risk undoing that excellent call. That said, the shout out was appreciated!