Why did Jesse Lee Soffer leave Chicago P.D.?

Jesse Lee Soffer
Jesse Lee Soffer

One Chicago fans were shocked when Jesse Lee Soffer, one of the original cast members of Chicago P.D. had announced that he was officially turning in his badge. Now he’s finally opening up to explain why he made the choice to leave the show. 

Soffer, who has played Jay Halstead in every episode since the premier of the show announced in August of last year, that he was leaving. 

Why did Jesse Lee Soffer leave Chicago P.D.?

“I’ve thought so hard about how to answer this question — and there’s no good answer,” Soffer told Variety,  “Except I was ready for more.”

“Eventually, you know the character so well, there’s not much that can shift or transform,” he said. “I really wanted to grow and expand, and we’ve only got this one trip. If I signed up again, it would have been for another three years. I would have turned 40 on the show. I thought, ‘You know what? It’s time to take a risk.”

Soffer called choosing to leave the series “one of the toughest decisions I’ve ever had to make in my life.”

“I love the fans of our show so much, and I love my fans,” Soffer said. “I know that they’re still grieving this, and to some degree, I am too.”

Season 10, Episode 3, A Good Man was his last episode in front of the camera. After being disillusioned by a series of events that had recently transpired, the character of Halstead was having issues discerning between right and wrong, and no longer wanted to toy within an area of gray. He chose to join a special ops team in Bolivia to hunt cartels and assured his wife Hailey Upton (Tracy Spiridakos) that he would be returning after just 8 months, however, we all know that Soffer exited the show. Soffer addressed fans who were disappointed to see his character written off the show. 

“I know the fans are upset be­cause, like, ‘This isn’t the Jay that we know and love! Why isn’t he calling? Why is he doing this?!’ But, you know, the show must go on,” he said. “I don’t think I really have the right to feel any way about that. The writers have to do what they have to do to service the story and the characters that are still there. Also, our show’s pretty dark, and they love diving into the ugliest, hardest version of life.”

He added: “I like to think — and I hope the fans think this too — that he’s just in another country right now, doing what he does best and making the world a safer place. In a family, sometimes somebody moves away or goes to college somewhere else. I still love it. I still love the fans. And I still love Halstead. Halstead’s always going to be in my blood. That’s never going to change.”

Even though Soffer has exited the show as an actor, he has returned to direct an episode:


ALSO READ: Chicago P.D.’s Jesse Lee Soffer is back at it. Just different


After shadowing director Bethany Rooney, who has directed shows such as St. Elsewhere, The Wonder Years, Grey’s Anatomy and Arrow, Soffer felt confident enough to direct his episode, Deadlocked, which is set to air on March 22.

“Some of it was effortless. Some of it was frustrating. Some of it was super rewarding. Some of it was humbling,” said Soffer. “It was easier than I thought it was gonna be, because we’re storytellers in this industry, and I love telling stories. When I’d get a script that was a Halstead-centric story, I’d break that sucker down so much, calling the producers with suggestions. I’ve been doing that all along, so it was an easy shift.”

Soffer continues to keep hope alive that Halstead will return at some point and told Variety, “Never say never.”

Chicago P.D. airs Wednesdays at 9 PM CST on NBC and streams the next day on the Peacock app.

Chicago P.D. is produced by Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group, in association with Wolf Entertainment. Filmed at Cinespace Chicago Film Studio.


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