Chicago PD honors Carl Weathers with tribute (Dedication Explained)

Carl Weathers is an iconic figure in pop culture. He played Apollo Creed in the Rocky franchise, and had supporting roles in classic films like Predator (1987) and Happy Gilmore (1996). He continued to thrive into the 21st century, which is what makes his passing at the age of 76 so sad.

Variety broke the news regarding Weathers' death, though a specific cause has yet to be revealed. It's a testament to his onscreen charisma that Weathers could be known as so many different characters to different audiences, and One Chicago fans know this to be true, as they spent years enjoying his performance as Mark Jefferies.

As a way of celebrating Weathers, the fourth episode of Chicago PD season 11 was dedicated to the late actor as a way to honor the former One Chicago actor who shares a strong connection to Chicago PD.

Weathers made his One Chicago debut on PD

Weathers made his One Chicago debut in the third season of Chicago PD. His character, Jefferies, is a hard-nosed state attorney who oversees the defense for Kim Burgess (Marina Squerciati), who gets charged with the shooting of an unarmed teenager.

Jefferies must have left an impressive on the show and its producers, because the character was brought back for more episodes of Chicago PD in season 4, AND a couple episodes of Chicago Fire season 5. Within the span of two years, Jefferies became a vital part of the franchise despite not even being a main cast member.

Related: Who does Carl Weathers play on One Chicago?

That changed, of course, when Chicago Justice premiered. Weathers was brought on full time to reprise his character, and Jefferies wound up being one of the highlights of the short-lived spinoff. Unfortunately, Jefferies was never seen or heard from again after Chicago Justice was canceled.

Weathers led the lone season of Chicago Justice

At least, as far as One Chicago was concerned. Jefferies actually made one more TV appearance, and it was in a 2018 episode of Law & Order: SVU. The character was brought in to help Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) and company work a case involving a teenager and her estranged mother.

Chicago Med may seem like the odd man out in some ways, as Jefferies never made his way over to Gaffney Medical Center, but Carl Weathers actually managed to leave his mark on the medical drama in a different way. The actor put on the directing hat for a pair of Med episodes: "Some Things Are Worth the Risk" in season 6, and "We All Know What They Say About Assumptions" in season 8.

One Chicago Center was fortunate enough to interview Weathers ahead of "Some Things Are Worth the Risk", and the actor made it clear that he enjoyed working within the framework and visual style of the franchise.

You can check out the full interview below: