Chicago Fire's Jake Lockett gets promoted to series regular in season 13

Chicago Fire fans rejoice. Things were looking kind of hairy for Sam Carver during the season 12 finale. The character was placed on furlough, and he got into a fight with Violet Mikami (Hanako Greensmith) after a season of romance. It had us all worried that we'd seen the last of the unique character.

Thankfully, he's coming back. In fact, he's poised to play a bigger role than ever in Chicago Fire season 13. Jake Lockett, the man who plays Carver, has been promoted to series regular, which means the character will have plenty of time to repair his relationship with Violet.

Jake Lockett was previously credited as recurring

TV Line confirmed the promotion on August 2. Lockett has been credited as a recurring player during the last two seasons of Chicago Fire, even if his presence made him feel like he was more involved. It has been clear, from a storytelling perspective, that the Fire writers are angling to have Carver be a bigger presence within the firehouse.

He's effectively been posed as Severide 2.0, with the same unpredictability and courage. Carver's burgeoning romance with Violet also feels pulled from the Stellaride playbook. It's not a criticism so much as a way to keep the show going strong. Sam Carver is a natural choice for successor, and the promotion to series regular only supports this theory.

Lockett has been spotted on the Chicago Fire set

To be fair, fans who have been tuned in to Jake Lockett's social media knew that he would be coming back for season 13. Former Fire star Alberto Rosende took a video of Lockett and Joe Minoso on a golf course in June with the caption:

"When you and your buddy are enjoying a game of golf and then remember you're on rival firehouse apparatuses on TV."

There was also the set photo that was recently posted by Daniel Kyri on the set of Chicago Fire's new season. It saw Lockett and his onscreen love interest, Hanako Greensmith, in costume, as Carver and Violet. Carver is crucial to season 13, and we're eager to see where things go.