Since Jack Dayton (Sasha Roiz) took over management of the Gaffney Chicago Medical Center, Dr. Will Halstead (Nick Gehlfuss) has been unhappy with the hospital’s increasingly profit-focused management. When Dr. Crockett Marcel (Dominic Rains) objected to Dayton continuing with a surgery helped by his OR 2.0 system, the season 8 finale of Chicago Med brought his rage to a head.
The regular hernia surgery passes without a hitch, due to 2.0’s inaccurate depiction of a complication. Halstead hands in his resignation letter revealing to Goodwin (S. Epatha Merkerson) that he hacked the system and manipulated 2.0 to generate an undesirable outcome, and defends Dr. Song (T.V. Carpio). The question is, “What are we supposed to do without you?” Asks Goodwin of him.
Chicago Med Loses Another Member
The rest of the Med staff, however, may fall victim to the law of unintended consequences: Dayton tells Goodwin that the bungled 2.0 public protest has destroyed him financially, and he will have to sell the hospital.
Gehlfuss’ final episode as a regular on Chicago Med is the series finale; he is one of only a select group of cast members who have been with the show since the beginning, along with Marlyne Barrett, Merkerson, and Oliver Platt. However, as demonstrated by the other surprise in the finale: “The door could still be open for a return to the show.” Will flies from Chicago to Seattle and is met there by Natalie Manning (a previous series regular played by Torrey DeVitto) and her son, Owen.
In the previous episode, it was revealed that Nick and Natalie had been in touch ever since she left after season 6, and now he has relocated to Seattle to begin seeing Natalie again.
DeVitto, whose identity was closely guarded, told The Hollywood Reporter, “It was brief and beautiful — precisely how it needed to be.” He’s decided to travel to Seattle, where she currently resides, to be with her. They appear to be walking out into the distance, leading one to believe they will be together forever.
DeVitto discussed receiving the call to reprise her part and the “special closure” she was able to achieve with Gehlfuss in an interview with THR.
