After a season filled with significant changes, Chicago P.D. is set to deliver even more drama, romance, and crime-solving action in the second half of season 12.
“We have quite a lot coming with our new deputy chief character, Shawn Hatosy’s Reid,” Chicago P.D. showrunner Gwen Sigan shared exclusively with Us Weekly on Tuesday, January 7.
“We saw in the midseason finale, he kind of makes this statement to Voight like, ‘We’re gonna be friends,’ but it’s clearly a friendship of ownership and, like, leverage.”
Sigan expressed that writing the dynamic between Deputy Chief Charlie Reid (Hatosy), who joined the cast this season, and Intelligence Unit leader Hank Voight (Jason Beghe) has been “really fun.”
She teased that their contrasting leadership styles “change the dynamics quite a lot in the unit” as the season progresses.
In addition to this new dynamic, Sigan also confirmed that the second half of season 12 will finally showcase Kim Burgess (Marina Squerciati) and Adam Ruzek (Patrick Flueger) getting married after their third engagement in season 11.
The showrunner also hinted that Dante Torres (Benjamin Levy Aguilar) will continue to struggle with an “existential crisis and a crisis of faith,” and that Kevin Atwater (LaRoyce Hawkins) will experience “some romance” again in upcoming episodes.
“We’ve got a little bit of everything,” Sigan noted. “Things will keep changing and evolving for the unit for sure.”
Here’s a breakdown of what else Sigan revealed about the remainder of Chicago P.D. season 12:
Cook’s Backstory Will Be Revealed
Since joining the Intelligence Unit earlier this season, fans will finally learn more about Kiana Cook (Toya Turner) and her background.
“Episode 9 is a Cook episode,” Sigan shared with Us, referring to the midseason premiere airing on Wednesday, January 8. “You’re getting to meet a lot of her family members actually in this episode, which is fun.
And you’re getting to learn about her past and her backgrounds and the different worlds that she belongs to and how vastly different those are from each other.”
Sigan added that Cook’s past will shed light on why she is so dedicated to her job, and teased that the show’s return will be an “action ride” for Cook. The rest of the season will also provide more “background on her and who she is and why she’s really unique for the unit.”
Chief Reid Faces Off with Voight
Throughout season 12, Deputy Chief Reid has been aware of everything Voight’s team has been doing—both the good and the bad—and has turned a blind eye. However, Sigan revealed that Reid’s decision not to reprimand the team will come at a cost.
“He’s a character that plays so many of his cards so close to the vest. And it’s difficult for Voight to really read him,” the showrunner explained. “We’ve always seen Voight kind of be a bit of the all-knowing. So to have it be somebody else is really fun.”
Sigan described Reid as a “fun house mirror to Voight,” meaning that while Reid operates in a similar way to Voight, his approach is “enhanced and exaggerated.”
Chicago P.D. Season 12 (Photo: NBC)
She promised viewers would learn more about Reid’s motivations as the season unfolds, calling their relationship a “cat and mouse game” and emphasizing that their “friendship has a lot of strings attached.”
Burgess Is Taking Charge
In episode 6 of season 12, Burgess was promoted to detective, and viewers will get to see her in action in the second half of the season.
“There’s this really easy transition of her just taking that leadership role of kind of being the one that sort of leads the charge,” Sigan explained.
“You’ll see her giving commands more often and certainly being a bit, perhaps, overwhelmed or taken aback by just how much [paperwork and] more responsibility [she has].”
Despite the challenges, Burgess finds her “groove” and develops a leadership style that Sigan described as “so different” from past detectives Hailey Upton (Tracy Spiridakos) and Jay Halstead (Jesse Lee Soffer).
“It feels like her own thing, which is much more, ‘I’m still your peer, but I am gonna give you orders now. I’m gonna now direct a bit more,’” Sigan said. “Everybody, I think, is so supportive and just falling into those roles, too.”
Torres Faces Personal Struggles
During the midseason finale, Torres’ past affair with informant Gloria Perez (Yara Martinez) was exposed after she was found running a drug operation in Chicago.
Gloria died after aiding the Intelligence Unit, and to Torres’ surprise, he was not reprimanded by Reid for his actions.
However, Torres is still struggling when the show returns. “It triggered a lot for him,” Sigan said of the affair and Gloria’s death.
“We reveal why he was ever attracted to this woman and why he got in this affair and sort of the trauma that leads all the way back to his childhood.” She teased that Torres will continue to grapple with these events, which will lead to a “crisis of faith.”
Atwater’s Romance Isn’t Over
Atwater’s relationship with Valeria “Val” Soto (Natalee Linez) started as a no-strings-attached arrangement in season 12, episode 3, but Sigan hinted that this dynamic might evolve as Val returns in future episodes.
“The nice thing about that relationship was the way it starts is almost this, like, ‘We’re gonna do something for the pair of us that’s just for us,’” Sigan shared. “But then, obviously, as time has gone on, how has that morphed and grown?”
The showrunner revealed that Atwater will soon have to decide whether his relationship with Val is casual or something deeper.
“We get to explore the whys behind it for the pair of them and maybe why they’re not wanting something very serious,” Sigan explained. “Is that a defense mechanism or is that because of the way they built up their lives?” She teased that the romance would become “more emotional and deeper.”
Burgess and Ruzek’s Wedding Plans
Squerciati previously revealed that she hopes Burgess will have her “white dress moment” when she finally marries Ruzek, while Flueger thinks their style is more suited to a “courthouse” wedding.
Sigan confirmed that their wedding will fall somewhere in between. “It’s been such a long time coming, and they have this family—they have [daughter] Mikayla [and] she wants to have her say, and I think she wants a party,” Sigan said.
“So it, to me, is going to be sort of a middle ground of finding what works for both of them that isn’t a courthouse wedding, but that they can have everyone they love there.”
She added that the wedding should be a “simple” and “grounded affair,” although the scenes have not been filmed yet. Sigan even suggested that Trudy Platt (Amy Morton) could officiate the ceremony.
Chicago P.D. airs on NBC Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET.
