Will Taylor Kinney return for Chicago Fire season 13? (He'd better after the season 12 ending)

After Taylor Kinney’s abrupt absence at the end of Chicago Fire season 11, there is no doubt that we worry he’ll disappear again. What’s it looking like for Chicago Fire season 13?

Cast exits are normal, especially in a long-running series. However, shows tries to keep the biggest stars in for as long as possible. If they are going to leave, there’s an attempt to space out the biggest stars leaving to help bring in fresh blood for the fans.

There’s also usually a sign based on storylines at the end of the season whether a character will stay or go. After the way Chicago Fire season 12 ended, we need to see Kinney return as Kelly Severide.

Severide’s family is going to play a bigger role in Chicago Fire S13

The end of season 12 brought out Damon’s secret. Of course, there were a lot of concerns that Damon would be a secret love child. While Severide was known for sleeping with a few women here and there, it was always clear that he took sexual health seriously. We always got a sense that he would use protection.

So, the idea of a secret love child didn’t make much sense. But TV shows like to bring in these soapy storylines for drama. Instead, the show opted to bring back Severide’s family another way. Jack Damon is related to Severide, but not as father and son.

The show is opting for the same storyline they used years ago, with Damon being a half-sibling. This isn’t as shocking as the idea of Damon being Severide’s son since we know Benny Severide had at least one other child, and yes, he kept that other child a secret for a while.

So there’s a huge storyline opening up for Severide as he learns more about Damon. Severide is sure to want to make sure Damon is actually his half-brother before doing anything else. Benny isn’t around anymore, and Damon’s story about Benny being abusive didn’t seem to add up.

We know Benny was tough and absent, but he has ever described the man as abusive and his half-sister Katie has never said anything like that.

Severide wants to start a family with Kidd

On top of that is another family element to the character. At the end of season 12, Severide told Kidd that he wanted to start a family with her. He made it clear that this is something to talk about. It’s not that they have to start a family. He loves Kidd, but he wants to put it out there that he wants more than just the two of them.

This is a huge storyline for Kidd as well as Severide. We need to see plenty of them together to see their discussions and understand both of their wants. Kidd would be the one to carry the baby to term and give birth. She’d be the one to take off the initial leave. Sure, Severide would be a better father than Benny was, but he’s not always present in his life with Kidd.

He can end up with tunnel vision on arson cases. These are things Kidd and Severide need to discuss. I want to see them be successful as a couple. There are too many couples who aren’t successful in the One Chicago franchise, so we need more time with Severide and Kidd together and see them work through this.

Severide probably isn’t leaving Chicago Fire yet

As of right now, there are no signs that Taylor Kinney is leaving Chicago Fire. The storylines at the end of season 12 set things up in a major way for him in season 13.

The show has also lost a major star from the series. Eamonn Walker has stepped down as a series regular after 12 seasons. The series won’t want another lead walk away so soon after, so there will be things going on behind the scenes to help encourage Kinney to stay if he was thinking about leaving.

With the storylines that are set up for season 13, Taylor Kinney better not be going anywhere!