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Jesse Lee Soffer remained an integral part of Chicago P.D. for 10 years, until he decided to say goodbye to the procedural drama in 2023. He then started playing the lead role in another procedural, FBI: International, but the show was abruptly canceled this year.
Now that Soffer is free to take up other projects, fans were wondering if he would return to Chicago P.D. It has now been confirmed that the actor is indeed returning to the sets of the hit NBC series.
However, there is a catch. Jesse Lee Soffer is not reprising his role as Jay Halstead, and instead, has taken up behind-the-scenes duties on the show. He is all set to direct one episode of the upcoming 13th season of the series.
Jesse Lee Soffer is returning to Chicago P.D. as a director
While fans were hoping to see Jesse Lee Soffer’s return as Detective Jay Halstead in Chicago P.D., the actor has instead decided to take up direction duties on the show. He will be directing the fourth episode of the upcoming 13th season of the series.
The announcement was made by Brian Luce, a producer of the show, on social media. Posting a video with Soffer on Instagram, Luce announced that he was happy to collaborate with his friend again, and they will be spending at least eight days together working on an episode of the show. He captioned the post:
“My Bestie is back in the big-boy directors chair and I couldn’t be more happy!!!”
He later posted a picture of Soffer from the sets and wrote:
“Remember the 3 little bears. WELL someone’s been sitting in my chair!!!”
This is not the first time Soffer has turned director for the show. He earlier helmed Season 10 Episode 16, Deadlocked. Even after he exited the project, he returned to direct Season 11 Episode 12, Inventory, in 2024.
Chicago P.D. Season 13 is scheduled to premiere on October 1, 2025, and will air new episodes on Wednesdays. And while Soffer will direct the fourth episode of the season, he will not be seen on the screen as Jay Halstead.
Why did Jesse Lee Soffer leave Chicago P.D.?
Jesse Lee Soffer was introduced as Detective Jay Halstead in the very first season of Chicago P.D. He remained associated with the series for 10 years, appearing in a total of 189 episodes. Meanwhile, he also made recurring appearances in other One Chicago shows like Chicago Med and Chicago Fire.
In 2023, he decided to move on from the series. In the storyline, Halstead resigned from office and moved to Bolivia, where he worked with the Army to hunt down drug cartels. Soffer later opened up about his decision to leave the series in an interview with Variety, and revealed that he was ready to move on as he felt there was not much left to be explored about his character after 10 years. He said:
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“I’ve thought so hard about how to answer this question — and there’s no good answer. Except I was ready for more. Eventually, you know the character so well, there’s not much that can shift or transform. I really wanted to grow and expand, and we’ve only got this one trip.”
Chicago P.D. Season 13 will debut on NBC on October 1, 2025.
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