Taylor Kinney‘s Kelly Severide is returning to Chicago Fire

With some depressing One Chicago news in the past weeks, there is finally something for Chicago Fire fans to be happy about. Series regular Taylor Kinney, who portrayed the role of Kelly Severide, also one of the most prominent cast members of the long-running series, is finally returning for the 12th season of the show.

Earlier this year, Taylor Kinney announced that he was going to depart from Chicago Fire to deal with a personal matter, leading the showrunners and writers to figure out a way to account for such an important cast member's absence. It ultimately did fall in place with Kinney making his final appearance on February 22, 2023.

Now, TV Line has reported that Kinney would come back to reprise his role in the new season of Chicago Fire, but there is little detail available about the capacity in which the character would return.

After his sudden departure, the show has ventured in a different path, leading many to believe that Kinney may not be here to stay. There is also no comment from the actor or the production confirming whether he will return as a series regular for only a few episodes.

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How did Chicago Fire account for Kelly Severide's disappearance?

Kelly Severide was one of the key members of the One Chicago squad, having been around for 11 years. When he announced that he was going to go on a leave of absence, the writers compensated his character arc by showing that Severide had gone to Alabama for an arson investigation training program on the March 1 episode, a week after Kinney's leave.

But according to the story that progressed, Stella later learned that he was no longer in Alabama, having been recruited to help with an ATF investigation. In the season finale, Stella Kidd (Miranda Rae Mayo) decided to take some time off work to go bring her husband back home, which would also link the story back to Kinney's return in this season.

Taylor Kinney has been around on the show since it started back in 2012, appearing in over 200 episodes. He has also been one of the more frequent guest stars on the two sister shows, Chicago Med and Chicago P.D.

During Severide's absence from the scene, former series regular Jesse Spencer reprised his role as Captain Matt Casey in two episodes in an attempt to fill the gap. If things go right, the two may even appear together in Chicago Fire.

For the 12th season, co-showrunner Andrea Newman will hold the post solo for Season 12 after the exit of co-creator Derek Haas last year.

Chicago Fire is available for streaming on Peacock.