Actress Tracy Spiridakos (Revolution, Rise of the Planets of the Apes), who plays Detective Hailey Upton on NBC’s drama show Chicago P.D., will leave the series after season 11. According to TV Line, season 11 and Spiridako’s last few appearances on the intelligent unit force will debut on Wednesday, Jan.17 at 10/9c p.m. A couple of exclusive photos of Spiridakos and other actors were obtained by TV Line.
The first episode of season 11, entitled “Unpacking,” will feature the detective shadowing a crisis prevention team and finds an “approach to policing at odds with the team’s mental health clinician,” according to the episode summary. This case, in particular, will unleash Upton’s “personal struggles” alongside the head of the force, Hank Voight, whom Jason Beghe (Thelma & Louise, The Next Three Days) plays.
Chicago P.D.’s showrunner, Gwen Sigan (Chicago Fire, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit), unveiled that season 11 will be “a big season of growth and change for Hailey Upton.”
“We find her at the start of this season in a precarious place; wanting to move her life forward after finally taking off her ring, finding that it’s more difficult than she’d like,” said Sigan via TV Line. “There’s a lot she still has to confront in herself and doesn’t necessarily know how to do so.”
An explicit date has not been set for Spiridakos’s departure from the Dick Wolf (FBI, Law & Order) procedural. She was first seen on the show during season four as a recurring character before becoming a permanent member on the force in season five.
In season 10, which concluded in May, Upton was seen dealing with the sudden leave of her husband, Jay Halstead, played by Jesse Lee Soffer (The Brady Bunch Movie, As the World Turns), during the third episode. Halstead left for Bolivia to monitor the worst cartel targets. He did not return Upton’s calls upon arrival and failed to let her know he had extended his stay.
To see some exclusive photos from the new season, head over to TV Line.