Chicago Med is saying goodbye to a fan favorite.
Kristen Hager is exiting the NBC after just half a season as a series regular.
Hager starred as Dr. Stevie Hammer, and her storyline seemingly concluded on Chicago Med Season 7 Episode 14.
If you watch Chicago Med online, you know Steve chose to move back to Michigan to save her marriage with her estranged husband.
The series had heavily teased a pairing for Stevie and Will (Nick Gehlfuss), but it appears the door is not closing on a potential pairing down the line.
“We all really liked Kristen and would welcome her character coming back in the future,” show EPs Diane Frolov and Andy Schneider explained to Deadline in a joint statement.
It’s certainly a shocker to add someone as a series regular, only to wrap up their storyline halfway through, but maybe there were some changes behind-the-scenes.
Hager was added to the cast to fill the void left by the departures of Yaya DaCosta and Torrey DeVitto ahead of Chicago Med Season 7.
Jessie Schram was recently confirmed for a full-time return as Dr. Hannah Asher.
Hannah was a love interest for Will during Schram’s original stint on the series, but was written out as the character battled drug addiction.
The series recently re-introduced Hannah and revealed her to be two years clean and back in the medical profession.
Steven Weber, who closed a one-year deal to be a series regular for the current season, recently closed a new deal to remain with the series for Chicago Fire Season 8.
Weber’s Dr. Dean Archer is the head of the E.D., so it would be difficult to lose him on the show unless there was some big twist thrown in to shake things up.
There are many changes on the show, but when you consider that the show is about to enter its eighth season, it makes sense.
What are your thoughts on Hager’s departure?
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Catch new episodes Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on NBC.
Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.