Chicago Med season 9: Everything we know so far

Here's some good news for Chicago Med fans: NBC is all set to release the ninth season of the show next year, as reported by Deadline.

The American medical drama is the third installment of the popular One Chicago franchise alongside Chicago P.D. and Chicago Fire. The show has had a good run of eight seasons, with the first releasing in 2015.

The last season of Chicago Med premiered on Sept. 21, 2022, after which the ninth was slated for a fall 2023 release. However, the highly anticipated release was stalled due to the SAG AFTRA strikes, disappointing fans.

More recently though, a report from September 2023 suggests that NBC is aiming at a March 2024 release as WGA and AMPTP reach an arrangement to end the strike.

Created by Dick Wolf and Matt Olmstead, Chicago Med follows the story of the doctors and nurses at the emergency department of the fictional Gaffney Chicago Medical Center.

While regular characters on the show, like Dr. Will Halstead, April Sexton, Dr. Natalie Manning aand Dr. Sarah Reese, make it interesting, the show also features characters from Chicago P.D. and Chicago Fire occasionally.

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Chicago Med season 9: Will Halstead departs, Sharon Goodwin, Dr. Daniel Charles and other old characters to mark their return

With the ninth season coming in, viewers can expect major changes in the character line up.

After serving as one of the leads since the first season, Will Halstead, a former attending physician in department of emergency medicine, played by Nick Gehlfuss, will be leaving the show. He left in the season 8 finale, after taking charge of tampering with O.R 2.0, that led him to lose his job.

Another character suspected to leave for good is April Sexton, played by actress Yaya DaCosta, an Emergency Department nurse at Gaffney Chicago Medical Center.

She was last seen in season six, with the storyline having her enter a nurse practitioner programme. While fans wonder if the character has left the show for good, actress Yaya DaCosta has kept the possibility of a return open:

"I always thought April was going to finish her schooling and become a doctor. They introduced her little brother, Noah,who she actually helped put through school, and he became a doctor.

"So, yeah, I think the idea was always that we would kind of tap into some woman’s empowerment, and now that he was all set, go back to her fulfilling her dream."

However, there are several characters that previously featured in the show who are expected to return on the show.

They include Sharon Goodwin, the chief administrator of the hospital, Dr. Daniel Charles, Maggie Lockwood, Dr. Crockett Marcel,Dr. Dean Archer, Grace Song, Liliana Wapniarski and Dr. Hannah Asher. Another possible entry would be of the antagonistic character Jack Drayton.

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What is the plot for Chicago Med Season 9?

Dr Will Halstead was caught in a trial that led him to lose his job. Dr Natalie Manning lived in a guilt, which strained her relationship with Halstead, while Dr Ethan Choi suffered a gunshot.

The previous season evidently saw a lot of complications in the lives of the doctors and staff at the Gaffney Chicago Medical Center, leaving the hospital in a state of uncertainty.

While the plot is kept under wraps for the forthcoming season, it's safe to believe that a lot of questions from the last season could be answered.

It's set to continue the emotional barriers faced by the characters, including the aftermath of Will Halstead's departure, and change in the status of hospital ownership, Archer's worsening health and relationship with Asher and Dr Marcel taking control.

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Chicago Med season 9 is expected to release on March 2024 on NBC.