Chicago PD has made it 12 seasons on the strength of its cast. The cases the IU has to contend with on a weekly basis are interesting, but the appeal of the show really boils down to the actors, and the chemistry they have with one another.
That's why bringing in new talent, and seeing old talent depart, is such a big deal. It's a delicate balance. Ironically, the classic Chicago PD lineup we know and love was not actually the original lineup. There was a group of actors who appeared in the pilot episode, but then walked, and were subsequently replaced by the people we now recognize as the OG roster.
Scott Eastwood appeared in the PD pilot
One of these actors was Scott Eastwood. The son of legendary actor/director Clint Eastwood, Scott played Officer Jim Barnes in the Chicago PD pilot, and then never returned. He wasn't even brought up by the other characters. Why? Well, because Eastwood didn't really want to live in Chicago.
"I was offered one of those lead roles and it shot in Chicago... and at the time I was like, I can't do that. I don't want to move to Chicago," Eastwood recently told CBR. "I'm not going to sign up for something [for] six and a half years. That's just too long."
The actor, who had a few screen credits under his belt by that point, decided that he was better off hacking it on other TV shows and films, instead of settling down in the Windy City for the next chunk of his career. He did recall, humorously, that the producers told him he was "crazy" for turning a part down.
He didn't want to commit to 6 years in Chicago
"I said no -- and they were all like, you're crazy," Eastwood recalled. "It's Dick Wolf. And I was like, well, that's not my path. That's great, but that's not my journey." The actor conceded that the show went on to become a huge hit, but maintains that he made the right call. "It's just like anything in this industry: follow your gut, always," he asserted. "Your gut will never lead you wrong."
Scott Eastwood only has three TV credits to his name. The first two were Chicago Fire episodes, and the third was the aforementioned PD episode. The actor has gone on to appear in blockbuster films like Suicide Squad (2016), The Fate of the Furious (2017) and Fast X (2023). We'd say both sides made out just fine.