Characters / Chicago Fire

Main Characters

Wallace Boden

Battalion Chief/Deputy District Chief Wallace Boden

Played By: Eamonn Walker

Battalion Chief of Firehouse 51, Wallace Boden is an experienced firefighter from back in the day who supervises all rescues of the firefighters of 51.

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• Action Dad: He is a veteran in the CFD who holds the rank of Chief and has a stepson James. Later in mid-Season 3, his wife Donna gives birth to their son Terrance. To top that all off he also was a Navy Seal before joining the CFD.
• Benevolent Boss: Immensely loyal and fiercely protective to any and all the firefighters and paramedics at Firehouse 51 and always looks out for their best interest, though he will take disciplinary action if he sees fit. As he put it, he’s a “Chief first and a friend second.”
• Cartwright Curse: Openly feels this way about himself - that his relationships have a way of finding their way to being broken. He goes so far as to try to end his relationship with Donna due to being afraid of potentially screwing it up until he learns she's pregnant with his child.
• The Chains of Commanding: Due to his profession, he finds himself having to make decisions that can result in serious injury or death. The responsibility weighs heavily on him.
• Da Chief: Of Firehouse 51, Chief Boden obviously.
• Disappeared Dad: He himself is one for James, his stepson from his previous marriage, due to the divorce being so acrimonious his ex won't let him spend much time with the boy (though he and James are very close, with James calling him "Dad'). Averted with his biological son Terrance with Donna.
• Distressed Dude: In Season 4, when he's framed for aggravated assault by Serena Holmes as part of a ploy to accuse him, that he spends a night in jail, describing it as the worst night of his life before making bail.
• Experienced Protagonist: He has been a firefighter for close to thirty years.
• A Father to His Men: Chief Boden, the Benevolent Boss, who always has the support of his firefighters and always stands up for them.
• Good Scars, Evil Scars: Has some serious burns on his back from a fire that claimed the lives of two of his fellow firefighters twenty years back.
• Happily Married: Ties the knot with Donna in the season 2 finale. The two remain in a healthy, committed relationship.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Hermann who has been with him since their Candidate days and served as his best man during his wedding to Donna.
• The Kirk: Boden is a protective Reasonable Authority Figure and the immediate superior to Casey and Severide.
• Married to the Job: Inverted to a degree. He mentions to Matt in “Devil’s Bargain” (as Matt struggles with being promoted to Captain and trying to find the balance between being a friend and a boss due to a rift between him and Kelly over a call) that his climb up the ranks has been great for his career, it has also taken a toll on his personal life with him being on his third marriage and not having many friends due to having to be the head man. Although with Donna and their son Terrance, he’s been able to find the balance between being a Father-Husband and fulfilling his duties to the People of the City of Chicago.
• My Greatest Failure: His inability to find any survivors after traveling to the World Trade Center right after 9/11, as told in "That Day."
  Boden: Through all the digging and the dust and the death, we never found a single soul. And I felt like I failed them. Firefighters don’t fail people. A hole formed inside of me.
• Papa Wolf: Boden has a streak of being very protective towards children and it is a bad idea to ever threaten his son or his stepson. Ask the guy who was physically abusing James or the man who murdered Ernie.
• Parental Substitute: Boden feels this way towards Severide.
• Rank Up: Promoted to Deputy District Chief in Season 10. The map of the CFD fire districts also points out that his office stays at Station 51 as the station at the heart of the district for easy access to the other firehouses under his command.
• Scary Black Man: Boden is a Benevolent Boss who genuinely cares for his men, stands up for them, and is a very friendly, loyal person, but he can be terrifying if somebody gets on his bad side. Especially if they threaten his firefighters. In-Universe, he's second (or possibly equal) only to Hank Voight when it comes to people you simply do not piss off.
• Team Dad: Boden is described as "a firefighter's firefighter", being fiercely loyal and protective of all the firefighters in 51.
• Token Minority: Becomes the only black member in 51 after Mills' departure. Averted once Ritter, and later, Foster join his crew.
• We Used to Be Friends: With Benny Severide whom he served with as firefighters back in the day. The bad blood between them was because of the death of their teammate Henry Mills twenty years previously over Boden's affair with Ingrid, Henry's wife.

Kelly Severide

Lieutenant Kelly Severide

Played By: Taylor Kinney

Rescue Squad 3's commanding officer who takes on the most challenging assignments during calls. He's also a well-known lothario with legendary love life.

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• Beard of Sorrow: Severide briefly grows his Perma-Stubble into the months after Shay's death. He shaves it off when he returns to work at 51.
• Blood on These Hands: Severide, see Mercy Kill below.
• Break the Cutie: Kelly goes through his own fair share of loss and grief throughout the series. Lost his best friend Shay in the Season 2 finale. His new love in season 5 is former cancer patient Anna who he donated bone marrow to dies anyway. Then his father who finally did something worthwhile as a father doing the firehouse a huge favor dies from a stroke and goes down an emotional spiral.
• The Casanova: In what season doesn't Severide catch a girl's eye. Eventually settles down with fellow firefighter Stella Kidd.
• Chick Magnet: Kelly has had a number of relationships, either briefly or seriously, with a number of pretty women.
• Crossover Ship: Two In-Universe. Severide from Fire and Lindsey from PD were in a brief relationship. He also had a brief fling with April Sexton from Med.
• Daddy Issues: Lives in the shadow of and resents his father Benny, a philandering firefighter. Fears turning into him so much that it's his main motivation to become a bone marrow donor. Reconciles with his father posthumously when he discovers that his father utilized every connection, he had to rid Deputy Commissioner Jerry Goursch from harassing Firehouse 51.
• Drugs Are Bad: Of the prescription variety - Severide was self-medicating to cover up a bad shoulder injury.
• Firemen Are Hot: Early episodes and promotional material tended to highlight his and Casey's physiques.
• Fourth-Date Marriage: Severide gets married to a woman named Britney during a weekend trip to Las Vegas. They're genuinely in love and agree that they've helped each other through painful losses (Shay for him and her sister for her), but ultimately decide to end things because she has to go back home and confront her issues head-on rather than stay in Chicago and avoid them.
• Freudian Excuse: Severide's inability to commit to a relationship seems to stem from walking in on his father cheating on his mother with one of his teachers. His parents all but abandoned him in the aftermath and he'd have ended up on the street if a classmate's parents hadn't taken him in. Also, he was engaged to a fellow firefighter's sister some years before the pilot. His bride-to-be cheated on him days before the wedding. Making matters no better, his mother repeatedly advises him that marriage just isn't in his cards. It takes several seasons for him to resolve this, resulting in...
• Happily Married: He and Kidd finally saying "I do" at the end of Season 10.
• Hot-Blooded: Severide is very brash and impulsive as well as being a hothead.
• Lady Killer In Love: In Season 5, he appears to genuinely abandon his womanizing ways when he starts an honest relationship with Anna. Later on, he and Stella rekindle their spark in Season 6 and seem to make it official, with him even agreeing to take it slow with him after learning of his Fourth-Date Marriage.
• Like Father, Like Son: Severide's father was a firefighter too. He was even a member of the same house and the same rescue squad.
• Long-Lost Relative: He discovers he has an adult half-sister called Katie Nolan from one of his father's affairs.
• Mercy Kill: Severide is heavily implied to have given one in the second episode.
• The McCoy: Severide is this to Boden's The Kirk and Casey's The Spock.
• Platonic Life-Partners: With Shay. They are closer than family and each other's confidant. Following her death, Shay's memory is still Severide's rock in trying times.
• Rank Up: Inverted; was temporarily demoted to firefighter but was restored to lieutenant.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Brash, charismatic, and outgoing Severide is the Red Oni to the more reserved Matt Casey's Blue Oni.
• True Companions: With his roommate Leslie Shay. He's crushed by her death in the season 3 premiere.
• Vitriolic Best Buds: With Casey. They both argue and have numerous disagreements but when the chips are down all that goes out the window and they have each other's back.

Sylvie Brett

Paramedic in Charge Sylvie Brett

Played By: Kara Killmer

A paramedic who moved to Chicago to get away from a failed engagement. She had a brief romance with Cruz but was dumped on the night she intended to dump him.

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• Amicable Exes: After she and Joe Cruz break up, they're still civil to one another working together with no drama. Even when Joe's feelings for her resurface
• Beware the Nice Ones: Brett is kind, patient, and loyal, but don't take it she's a pushover who won't stand up for herself. Her former childhood friend Hope found out after the
• Dude Magnet: Has an ex-fiancee, and has dated Joe, then later Antonio. In Season 7, she grabs the attention of Kyle the new CFD chaplain. In Season 8, Matt Casey develops feelings for her after Gabby divorces him.
• Everyone Loves Blondes: Naturally kind and approachable, Brett gets along with everyone, just more open and soft-spoken than Shay.
• Fish out of Water: When she first appears working as a paramedic who's moved from a country hometown to the urban city of Chicago.
• Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: She's bubbly, optimistic, and kind-hearted, and a blonde to go with it.
• Happily Adopted: She reveals this to Dawson in Season 5, though she would really appreciate it if her birth parents would at some point seek her out.
  • In season 8, she finally meets her birth mother, Julie. She gave up Brett for adoption when she was 16.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Gabriella and Chili. In Season 7, she starts to develop this with her new partner Emily Foster.
• Hidden Depths: Sylvie reveals a talent for literature, in helping Mouch write his secret firemen-based romance novel.
• Innocent Blue Eyes: Portrayed by Kara Killmer.
• Ms. Fanservice: She's rather cute. Seen in her underwear in season 3 episode 5 ... then later to Antonio's pleasure when they start dating. Later seen near nude with Casey during the Season 9 finale.
• Official Couple: With Cruz in season three. And Antonio in season five. And Teddy in season seven. And Casey as of season nine.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: The Blue Oni to Dawson's Red Oni. Her soft-spoken nature contrasts that of Dawson's confrontational, tomboyish nature.
• Runaway Fiancé: In her introductory episode, Brett lays it out to Otis that she ran out on her Childhood Friend fiancé Harrison. She stared at the prospect of marriage and "couldn't pull the trigger." Subverted as it's revealed Harrison was the one who called off the wedding.
• Ship Tease: With Casey starting in season eight. It takes off at the end of season nine.
  • Also with Jimmy. However, this was quickly squashed once she started being interested in Antonio.
• Single Woman Seeks Good Man: Twice so far in the series. First, she goes out with Joe Cruz who she says is "the nicest guy in the world." Later she's shown to be crushing on Antonio and they start dating in Season 5. Eventually engages into a relationship with Matt Casey in the Season 9 finale.
• Suspiciously Similar Substitute: A blonde paramedic who replaces Shay as Gabby's partner. Severide is startled when he sees Brett for the first time when Ambo 61 goes into service, seeing her blonde hair, and thinks it's Shay before Brett turns to face him.
• Too Much Information: She can't help but go into extreme detail about her and Antonio Dawson's love life. Her unfortunate audience is usually Gabby Dawson, Antonio's sister.
• Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: She does not like clowns, so is quite humorously squeamish when treating a patient wearing clown makeup.
• Practically Different Generations: She and her younger maternal half-sister are thirty years apart in age.

Christopher Hermann

Firefighter/Lieutenant Christopher Herrmann

Played By: David Eigenberg

Engine 51's commanding officer, although originally a member of Truck 81 and Casey's second-in-command. He is also a source of a lot of the mischief the crew of Firehouse 51 gets into.

He fancies himself as a master businessman despite most of his schemes backfiring on him one way or another with some having long-term consequences.

He's part-owner of Molly's, a neighborhood bar and firefighter/cop hangout, along with Dawson and Otis.

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• Action Dad: Has four (later five) kids of his own and a firefighter.
• Deadpan Snarker: Along with his smart mouth, Hermann has a very dry, snarky sense of humor.
• Experienced Protagonist: Has been a firefighter for nearly as long as Boden.
• Family Man: Has a stable close-knit family being Happily Married to his wife Cindy with their four sons and one daughter.
• Friend to All Children: Has a soft spot for young victims. Especially since he's a father with kids.
• Get-Rich-Quick Scheme: Hermann spends the first season going through a number of them to try and make enough money to buy his family a house after they were evicted in the series premiere. None of them work out and his wife eventually talks him out of pursuing more of them. He eventually finds a steady side business in running Molly's a neighborhood bar that quickly becomes a firefighter/cop/doctor hangout.
• The Heart: Casey says Hermann is this for firehouse 51 himself.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With both Boden and Mouch.
• Hidden Depths: "Count Your Breaths" shows Herrmann has become quite good at tasting microbrews.
• Hot-Blooded: Very blunt, outspoken, and known for losing his temper and shouting.
  • One of his schemes ends up having lasting career ramifications as he'd pissed off a chief on the promotion board and the chief then made it his mission in life to block Hermann's promotion to lieutenant.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Hermann is headstrong, opinionated, and snappy, has a bad temper to go with his snarky humor. Nonetheless, he is a Family Man for his wife and kids and is The Heart of all of Firehouse 51.
• The Leader: In Season 7, Hermann becomes lieutenant and becomes the commanding officer for Engine 51.
• Limited Advancement Opportunities: Inverted. In Season 2, he takes the Lieutenant test and passes but due to no open slots he has to wait and for years before getting a chance to become one which he ruins by mouthing off to District Chief Walker and of course mentioned above in Hot-Blooded how one of his schemes ended up screwing a Deputy District Chief out of a lot of money and said DDC does everything in his power to see too it that Christopher NEVER gets promoted. Although in Season 7 Chief Boden promotes him to Lieutenant of engine 51 because Number 1? He was long overdue and deserving and Number 2? To stick it to Gorsch.
• Massive Numbered Siblings: His wife gives birth to kid number five early in the series... who was conceived the first time he made love with his wife after several months (he takes out his frustration by pounding a limousine with a halligan bar).
• Number Two: Hermann acts as Casey's de facto right hand, taking charge of Truck 81 when Casey is unavailable. This becomes more set in stone when Hermann passes the lieutenant's exam and becomes the relief commander of the company.
• Ponzi: Herrmann falls victim to one of these until Otis fakes being a lawyer and gets him out of it.
• Rank Up: Boden promotes him to lieutenant just to infuriate Jerry Gorsch.
• Skewed Priorities: One of Christopher’s downfalls and one of the main reasons why his businesses (before Molly’s) have failed and also why he can’t get promoted up the ranks due to him putting his pride over reason.
• Shirtless Scene: Hermann rips off his shirt in triumph (and reveals he's in excellent shape) when Casey complains that the older man has a lower body fat percentage than him.
• Sitcom Arch-Nemesis: In season four, Hermann develops an antagonistic relationship with a hipster family from Portland, Oregon who shoots down every one of his attempts to be friendly and try to close down Molly's. He begins retaliating by being as annoying as possible.

Mouch

Firefighter Randy "Mouch" McHolland

Played By: Christian Stotle

A veteran on Truck 81 who, along with Hermann, is the source of most of the house's harebrained schemes. When not on calls, he's usually found on the couch in front of the TV hence his nickname "Mouch" (part man part couch). Starting in Season 3 he's dating, and eventually marries, Trudy Platt, CPD District 21's desk sergeant.

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• Ascended Extra: Recurring character in Season 1, before being promoted to main.
• Brave Scot: "One Crazy Shift" reveals him to be a second-generation Scotsman (and an out-of-practice bagpiper who doesn't read sheet music).
• Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Mouch typically serves as the union representative for when the crew at 51 faces disciplinary action or a lawsuit and is very knowledgeable in the legal and political side of the CFD.
• Characterization Marches On: According to show co-creator Derek Haas, Mouch originally was "this lay-about, sort of old guy who's just trying to ride out his last couple of years in the firehouse."
• Disappeared Dad: An unintentional example. He'd donated sperm many years before and promptly forgot about it but his grown biological daughter eventually tracks him down after his donor information was accidentally leaked.
• Experienced Protagonist: Mouch is a veteran firefighter, having served as long as Hermann and the longest-serving member of 51.
• Embarrassing Nickname: He tries to get his buddies to stop calling him "Mouch" when he makes a run for the CFD Union presidency, believing that a nickname highlighting his laziness would hurt his election chances. His buddies, being who they are, refuse to do so.
• Happily Married: To Trudy Platt as of late season 4.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: Very close to Hermann.
• Idiot Ball: Trudy, his wife, has this opinion of him and he usually agrees. Depending on her mood, it can be affectionate or disparaging.
  Trudy: This one...he's an idiot!
• No Social Skills: Outside of conversing with his fellow Firefighters and Trudy, Mouch doesn’t really mesh well without others. This is why his relationships prior to Trudy didn’t end well. He also became embarrassingly star-struck when he was invited to a meet-and-greet with Rush.
• Only Known by Their Nickname: So much so that "Mouch" rather than McHolland is the name stitched on his turnout coat. Trudy, his wife, is the only person who regularly addresses him by his given name.
• Retirony: had a heart attack during what he'd intended to be his final shift. Surviving it convinced him to stay on.
• Unmanly Secret: He's written a series of firefighter-themed romance stories but the department catches wind of it and threatens to fire him if he has any of them published.

Joe Cruz

Firefighter Joe Cruz

Played By: Joe Minoso

Originally Truck 81's chauffeur, he transfers to Squad 3 to fill its constantly vacant spot after secretly obtaining Rescue Squad Certification from the CFD Academy. He's roommates with Otis and a very popular Zumba instructor on the side.

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• Ascended Extra: Got promoted from recurring character to principal cast in season 2.
• Beware the Nice Ones: Cruz is a fairly nice and laid-back guy but push him too far and he will make you pay.
• Big Brother Instinct: He's very protective of his younger brother Leon.
• Blood on These Hands: He left a gangbanger Flaggo to die in a fire, a gangbanger that was grooming his brother to join his gang.
• Death Seeker: Cruz was this for a while, after the Blood on These Hands incident above. Fortunately, an intervention by Mouch and Casey sets him straight.
• Happily Married: To Chloe Allen in Season 8.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Otis.
• Murder by Inaction: Cruz in season 1, leaves a victim to die in a fire, the "victim" being the boss of his brother's gang. Justified as Cruz was only trying to protect his brother.
• Omniglot: Of Latino descent and fluent in Spanish.
• Portmanteau Couple Name: In-Universe, he shares this with Otis, "Crotis".
• Rescue Romance: He saves Chloe Allen from a high-rise fire.
• True Companions: He's this with Otis, being roommates.
• Un Manly Secret: His side profession as a Zumba dance instructor that comes out in Season 3.

Stella Kidd

Firefighter/Lieutenant Stella Kidd

Played By: Miranda Rae Mayo

A new firefighter who got assigned to Truck 81 upon the closure of her former firehouse. Stella is revealed to have a history with Gabriela Dawson and Kelly Severide. Gets promoted to lieutenant in Season 10, taking command of Truck 81.

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• Awful Wedded Life: For 6 years, she was married to Grant Smith, a manchild musician who doesn't take responsibility for his actions.
• Brutal Honesty
• Deadpan Snarker
• Happily Married: To Severide in the Season 10 finale, to the delight of "Stellaride" shippers everywhere.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: Has this dynamic with Dawson.
• Love Makes You Stupid: In Season 7 episode "Going to War" when trying to extinguish a fire trapping Severide, she runs out of air, but ignores her low air alarm and collapses, nearly dying. Casey calls her out on this in a later episode, standing by an order she cannot work a call where Severide's life is on the line.
• Raven Hair, Ivory Skin
• Rank Up: passes the lieutenant exam in Season 9, and finally takes over command of Truck 81 partway through Season 10.
• Remember the New Guy?
• Ship Tease: With Severide after her divorce. Eventually Severide proposes to her during Season 9 and she happily accepts, leading to them saying "I do" in the Season 10 finale.

Blake Gallo

Firefighter Candidate Blake Gallo

Played By: Alberto Rosende

A firefighter candidate who was assigned to Truck 81.

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• Dark and Troubled Past: When he was 12 years old, his family died in a fire in West Lawn. He was the Sole Survivor of said fire.
• It's Personal: In "Shut It Down", a call becomes personal when a little girl gets burned in a fire and ends up comatose. She was around the same age his sister died.
• Those Two Guys: Hangs out with Ritter.

Darren Ritter

Firefighter Candidate Darren Ritter

Played By: Daniel Kyri

Originally assigned to Engine 37, he gets kicked off after freezing up on a call. He later joins Engine 51 under Herrmann's command.

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• Ascended Extra: Promoted to series regular beginning in Season 9.
• Fake Guest Star: Appears in every episode of season 8, despite being credited as a guest star.
• Second Episode Introduction: In season 7.
• Straight Gay
• Techno Wizard: He can do pretty much anything with computers. When Gorsch returns with a peace offering, Severide and Boden enlist Ritter to use his skills to confirm their suspicions about him.
• Those Two Guys: Hangs out with Gallo as the two newest members of 51.
• Twofer Token Minority: Black and gay, the latter which he reveals to Herrmann, who invites him and his boyfriend to a barbecue.

Violet Mikami

Played By: Hanako Greensmith

Brett's current partner on Ambulance 61 she was originally assigned on Ambulance 99 at Firehouse 20 before she was transferred to Firehouse 51.

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• Remember the New Guy?: She and Gallo went to the same fire academy and were always competing with one another.

Former Main Characters

Matt Casey

Lieutenant/Captain Matthew "Matt" Casey

Played By: Jesse Spencer

Truck 81's commanding officer and frequently Battalion 25's Only Sane Man despite also being the character most likely to find himself caught in a high-stakes situation. He owns and operates a small construction company on his time off.

Originally engaged to Hallie, a doctor, he eventually begins an on-again-off-again with Dawson, eventually marrying her. However, the devastating miscarriage alongside other factors eventually result in divorce and Dawson leaves for Puerto Rico in Season 8. Months after she leaves, he begins a relationship with her former paramedic partner, Sylvie Brett.

In Season 4 he wins an election to become his district's alderman and finds that the extra responsibility and attention makes his life all the more difficult.

In Season 10, he departs for a position in Portland, Oregon to take care of Darden's sons.

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• Action Hero: A Chicago firefighter with the rank of lieutenant, and gets promoted to Captain, so it goes with the territory.
• Artistic License: Casey and Dawson would never, ever be allowed to work at the same firehouse if they were in a relationship, nor would Casey be allowed to continue as her company officer. He'd be relieved of duty, as would the Chief who allowed it. This goes with his new relationship with Sylvie Brett, Dawson's former partner.

• Big Damn Heroes: Several times during the course of the show but one big example is when he pushes Welch out of the way during a drive-by shooting on a sidewalk and this was for a man that he DID NOT LIKE.
• Break the Cutie: Just as equal to Kelly in the heartbreak department.
• Butt-Monkey: Throughout season 1, Casey is put through the wringer. Ten minutes into the pilot, he loses a man on his Truck company who's embalmed right in front of him. He then under pressure to cover for a cop's son who caused a fatal vehicular accident, then repeatedly intimidated and strong-armed by said ruthless Cowboy Cop to do so. His fiancee leaves him because he wants to have a family with her. Finally, after they reconcile, she dies in a fire.
  • This is later reinforced when after discovering she is pregnant, Gabby suffers a miscarriage and loses their child. Additionally, after settling down with their adopted child, Louie and the couple is forced to give him up when they discover that Louie's biological father is still alive and takes him back. Shortly after, Gabby requests a divorce and she departs to Puerto Rico.
    • Zigzagged when he decides to move on with Sylvie Brett, as when he was interrupted by his subordinates when trying to ask Brett out, he was instead forced to watch as the Chaplain proposed to her. Eventually, though the duo becomes an Official Couple in the finale of Season 9, consummating their relationship.
• The Chains of Commanding: Natural being a commanding officer he has to make several tough decisions and at times it weighs heavily on his mind.
• Convulsive Seizures: Casey has one in the ambulance after suffering a head injury in season 2 "Not Like This."
  • This is given a continuity nod in Season 9 when Casey suffers a major head injury when he was attending to a car accident, suffering from the debilitating effects that may potentially force him to retire early. Fortunately subverted when it is revealed that his injury was treatable and he returned to normal after taking pain medication.
• The Fettered: He's rather one of the more grounded employees at 51, generally always lives by a strict code of standards, morals including testifying against Detective Voight's son that leads to their feud.
• Friend to All Children: One of the few times he lets his guard down is around kids. The main reason why he and Hallie break up is that he wants kids and Hallie doesn’t.
  • Also in season five both Matt and Gabby adopt a foster child Louie and pretty much treats him like his own blood. Makes it even sadder when both of them have to give Louie up to his real father.
• Firemen Are Hot: Early episodes and promotional material tended to highlight his and Severide's physiques.
• Glad-to-Be-Alive Sex: Casey and Dawson after the trying events of "I Am the Apocalypse." And that's the only reason.
  Dawson: This is... This is just the reaction to the stress of the day.
  Casey: Absolutely.
• Hair-Trigger Temper: A part of season two after his head injury.
• Icy Blue Eyes: Casey's blue-ish gray eyes fit his generally aloof, cool-headed, sometimes moody demeanor.
• Jerkass Ball: Has several moments of this throughout the series. In season 5, after he and Gabby lose Louie, he gets all jerkass to everyone when a call involves a pregnant woman. It takes a mouthing-off and compassionate speech from Herrmann to realize his spiral.
  Casey: (to Herrmann, after he says his peace) Tell everyone to put away the cleaning supplies, and order barbecue on me.
• Mr. Fanservice: See Firemen Are Hot, and the audience and Dawson certainly think so.
• Number Two: In Season 6, after he is promoted to Captain, Casey is now second-in-command at 51 after Boden.
• Outliving One's Offspring: He and Gabby become pregnant at the end of season 3. In early season 4, she loses the baby due to complications.
• Parental Issues: His mother, Nancy, was incarcerated for killing his abusive father.
• Parental Substitute: To the Darden boys.
• Put on a Bus: Leaves after 200 episodes to care for the Darden boys in Portland, Oregon.
• Rank Up: When he's promoted to captain in Season 6.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Is the Blue Oni to Severide Red Oni.
• Ship Tease: With Gabby throughout Season 1 and part of season 2. Later with Sylvie in season 9.
  • After Gabby's departure to Puerto Rico in Season 8, Casey begins developing feelings for her partner, Sylvie Brett for most of the season, culminating in a relationship in the finale of Season 9.
• The Spock: Generally cool-headed and approaches things with reason, in contrast to Kelly Severide.
• Vitriolic Best Buds: With Severide, though they get along well in general, they are prone to butting heads over their differing opinion.

Hallie Thomas

Dr. Hallie Thomas

Played by: Teri Reeves

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• Brainy Brunette: She works as a physician at Lakeshore hospital.
• Child Hater: Downplayed as Hallie never shows any real dislike towards kids, she just doesn't want to have kids. It's one of the reasons that drives her and Casey to split up again.
• Hospital Hottie: Hallie is quite an attractive woman and is a doctor.
• The Lost Lenore: To Casey, after her death in the season 1 episode "Leaders Lead".
• Nice Girl
• Put on a Bus
• Relationship Revolving Door: Has one with Casey.
• Satellite Love Interest: She has little to no relevance to the plot apart from being Casey's on-again/off-again fiancee.

Leslie Shay

Paramedic Leslie Shay

Played By: Lauren German

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• All Lesbians Want Kids: A recurring subplot throughout the first season is paramedic Leslie Shay's quest for a child of her own. At one point, unable to afford artificial insemination, she's desperate enough to ask her best friend Kelly Severide to impregnate her the natural way.
• Back for the Dead: Lauren German makes one final appearance, credited as a guest star, as Shay in the Season 3 premiere.
• Blue Oni: Cool-headed and humorous, to both Dawson and Severide's red.
• Break the Cutie: In Season 2 episode 4, a patient commits suicide right in front of her, her best friend comes to harsh words with her over it and sends her into a downward spiral.
• The Confidant: Shay is this for Dawson.
• Dropped a Bridge on Her: Shay's death seems to exist only to cause Severide and Dawson pain. Nothing in her own story led up to it.
• Everyone Loves Blondes: Shay is loyal, supportive, and well-liked by her co-workers, especially her partner Dawson and best friend Severide.
• Heroic BSoD: In episode 4 "A Nuisance Call", a patient on a routine call commits suicide in front of Shay and Dawson, and hits Shay pretty hard.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Gabriella and Severide, despite being female to her and gay to him.
• Lipstick Lesbian: When off-duty at least.
• Shipper on Deck: For Dawson and Casey.
• Straight Gay: Shay is a proud lesbian for sure but she doesn’t display any of the typical lesbian stereotypes and does one of the toughest and at times heart wrenching jobs in the world.
• Sudden Sequel Death Syndrome: In Season 3, it's revealed the Season 2 finale's Cliffhanger resulted in her death, and much later that it was the work of a serial arsonist.
• Sugar-and-Ice Personality: Generally aloof, cool-headed, and snarky, but has a warm-hearted, supportive, and well-liked at 51.
• Undying Loyalty: To all of her friends, especially Kelly, to the point she's willing to supply him with painkillers when his arm was hurt, and to forge a urine sample in order to help him pass a drug test, however she does eventually get tired of it and moves out until Kelly decides to get help.

Otis

Firefighter Brian "Otis" Zvonecek

Played By: Yuri Sardarov

Originally Truck 81's aerial operator (and nicknamed "Otis" after the elevator company as a result), he eventually becomes the company chauffeur after Cruz transfers to Squad 3. A proud Russian from a huge family, he lives with his grandmother and Cruz. He is part owner of Molly's with Hermann and Dawson. In the season 8 premiere he "Sacred Ground", he is badly burned in a fire, later dying in the hospital of his injuries.

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• Ascended Extra: Appeared in season 1 in a recurring capacity until promoted to the main cast in season 2.
• Cassandra Truth: in the last few episodes of Season 3, he keeps trying to alert 51's officers that Scott Rice of Squad 3 is shirking duty on calls, but only Cruz takes his side at first.
• Cool Uncle: Has three nephews who visit him in "The Nuclear Option", and he's excited to give them a ride on the Truck.
• Desk Jockey: Placed on medical leave after being shot in the neck a bullet set off by a house fire, Otis decides to help out around the firehouse, taking a desk job.
• Embarrassing Nickname: He asks that the firehouse stop calling him "Otis" once he's no longer a candidate but his request is quickly shot down because nicknames are forever. When a relief chief asks Mouch how to pronounce Otis's last name Mouch bluntly replies "O-Tis", overemphasizing each syllable.
• Fan Boy: likes Settlers of Catan and Battlestar Galactica (1978) to the point of owning a Colonial warrior's flight helmet autographed by Richard Hatch^note revealed to be a fake, dislikes Battlestar Galactica (2003).
• Heroic Sacrifice: A split second before the backdraft that fatally burns him, he pushes a steel door closed, which saves the lives of several firefighters and civilians.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Cruz.
• Momma's Boy: Or grandmother's boy. He has his grandmother ("Baba") move to Chicago to live with him and, although Cruz finds it strange and uncomfortable, even shares his room with her, having purchased bunk beds for the purpose.

• Sudden Sequel Death Syndrome: In the season 8 premiere, he is badly burned in an explosion and later dies in the hospital.
• Techno Wizard: Is one of the more tech-savvy members of the battalion, and runs a semi-popular firefighter-themed podcast for a while.

Emily Foster

Paramedic Emily Foster

Played By: Annie Ilonzeh

An easy-going and confident paramedic and is brand new to the CFD, and Brett's new partner on 61.

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• Cheaters Never Prosper: A year before she became a paramedic, Foster was a resident at Lakeshore hospital, but was kicked out for cheating on her board exams.
• Fish out of Water
• Missing Mom
• Mysterious Past
• Put on a Bus: She reapplies to med school at Northwestern University.
• Twofer Token Minority: A bisexual African-American paramedic.

Peter Mills

Firefighter/Paramedic Peter Mills

Played By: Charlie Barnett

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• Ambition Is Evil: Peter is a very cool guy and talented up and coming firefighter but his drive to be a member of Squad 3 in the first season does end up with him getting on the wrong side of his fellow smoke-eaters on Truck 81 and especially when he hasn’t even passed his probationary period yet to become an actual firefighter.
• Amicable Exes: With Gabriella.
• Broken Pedestal: For Chief Boden and Gabriella when he learns that Boden once had an affair with his mother and that Gabriella had kept it secret from him which along with her obvious feelings for Casey leads to them breaking up.
• Butt-Monkey: Played for Laughs, in early season 1, when he starting as the new candidate so the firehouse hazing process begins. In the pilot, Dawson lets him think Shay is interested in him, only for her to later tell him she's gay, humiliating him. Then at the annual CFD barbecue in episode 2, he's told to show up in his 'dress blues', only for him to be the only one who does so.
• Career-Ending Injury: He suffers a head injury that causes severe balance issues, effectively ending his career as a firefighter (although he sticks around as a paramedic). Subverted towards mid-season 3 when he's cleared for duty again
• Full-Name Basis: The firefighters of Truck 81 developed a habit of always calling him "Peter Mills" while he's a candidate.
• In the Blood: Peter Mills' father was a firefighter who died when Peter was a kid.
• Long-Lost Relative: He never knew his father's family; his mother told him they moved to Seattle and sets out to find them in Season 3.
• New Meat: In Season 1, he's employed at 51 as the new firefighter candidate on Truck 81, and is immediately the target of the firehouse's humor.
• Nice Guy: Easily the nicest and most caring dude to probably ever come from 51.
• Put on a Bus: He is given a proper send-off in Season 3. He decides that being near his family is worth more than the thrill of being a firefighter so he moves to North Carolina.
• Real Men Cook: He immediately gets on the good side of Firehouse 51 with his cooking. He also volunteers at his family's restaurant.
• Token Minority: The only black member on Truck Co. 81.

Chili

Paramedic In Charge Jessica "Chili" Chilton

Played By: Dora Madison

A new paramedic on Ambulance 61, hired to replace Peter Mills.

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• Cynicism Catalyst: Her twin sister Alyssa aka Jelly Bean, a CI of Detective Antonio Dawson is found dead. This leads to her heavy drinking and spiraling out of control and her relationships with her co-workers suffering when she takes her emotions out on them.
• Fatal Flaw: Her fear of vulnerability. Chili would rather put on an untouchable facade or drink herself giddy than admit she needs support from another person. She has been known to throw tantrums when someone manages to get under her skin or tries to help her out. This is seen when Brett suggests she get professional help to deal with her problems; Chili responds by falsely accusing her of insubordination and demanding another partner.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Sylvie Brett, once they work out their problems.
• Parental Issues: According to her, her parents didn't get along.
• Put on a Bus: She is fired by Boden because of her drinking problem and her resulting behavior.
• Quirky Curls: Chili has these.
• Ship Tease: With candidate Borelli. They eventually begin a brief liaison, which ends after her erratic behavior gets to him.
• You Look Familiar: Had previously played her character's sister on Chicago P.D..

Jimmy Borelli

Paramedic Jimmy Borelli

Played By Steven R. McQueen

Originally a Candidate on Truck 81, Jimmy found himself bumped off when house closures resulted in a more experienced firefighter transferring to House 51. Chief Boden arranges for Jimmy to stay at the house as a paramedic until a more permanent firefighter slot opens up for him.

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• Beauty Is Never Tarnished: Horrifyingly averted. His handsome face is left permanently disfigured, and missing an eye, after he stubborn headily goes against the chief's direct orders, and gets himself caught up in a car explosion.
• Broken Pedestal: Loses all respect for Chief Boden after Boden's was forced to leave his brother to die while pinned under wreckage of a building about to collapse. Preventing the unit going in a pointless attempt to remove tons of breakage that pinned him down. While the building was a minute away from collapsing which it later did. While Jimmy despised Boden for making that choice and saving him despite himself when he refused to leave his brother behind. None of the rest of the squad did so, supporting Boden's command decision.
• Career-Ending Injury: Suffers one after his attempt to save a trapped car-wreck victim literally blows up in his face.
• Eye Scream: His left eye is lost after he reckless attempt to save a victim from a burning car in the second episode of season 5.
• Leeroy Jenkins: Ignores Boden's orders in an attempt to save a victim trapped in a burning car. His recklessness deprived him of the use of his left eye after suffering severe burns to the face and neck.
• Firemen Are Hot: Virtually the case when he started as a fireman candidate before being the firehouse paramedic.
• New Meat: His career as a firefighter didn't get off to a great start. He's fired on his first day (due to a prank his older brother pulled), has to beg for a second chance, and eventually loses his spot because a more experienced firefighter transferred to House 51.
• Rebuilt Pedestal: After Jimmy almost loses his life and half his face after refusing to leave a person trapped in a car and about to die. Despite Boden ordering him to do so as it was about to explode. He accepts solace from the Chief finally understanding the reasoning behind Boden's actions regarding leaving his brother behind to die.
• Single Tear: Sheds one out of his remaining eye as Chief Boden stays by his side in the hospital.

Gabriella Dawson

Paramedic/Firefighter Gabriella Dawson

Played By: Monica Raymund

Originally a paramedic studying to become a doctor. She drops this goal and decides to pursue a career as a firefighter instead. She spends most of the early seasons pining after Casey and feeling jealous due to his relationship with Hallie. She and Casey eventually get together but repeatedly swing from hot to cold. In Season 5, she returns to being a paramedic, due to her fearing for her own safety after taking in a foster child.

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• Action Girl
• Amicable Exes: With Peter.
• Artistic License: Casey and Dawson would never, ever be allowed to work at the same firehouse if they were a couple, due to the potential conflict of interest. If this happened in real life, he would be relieved of duty and demoted; same for the Chief who allowed it to happen.
  • Dawson's insubordination and disregard for CFD regulations would result in her being fired and prosecuted in real life.
• Chronic Hero Syndrome
• Determinator
• Genre Savvy: She's been with the CFD for several years before becoming a firefighter so she knows how to avoid most of the pranks Candidates have to endure. The rest of the house has to work extra hard to catch her by surprise.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Leslie Shay, despite Shay being most definitely not heterosexual.
• Hot-Blooded: Dawson is very impulsive and stubborn and it gets her into trouble in her profession on more than one occasion.
• I Did What I Had to Do
• It's All About Me: Makes major life-changing decisions without any input from Matt, or even consideration for Matt’s feelings on the matter. It comes to a head when she wants to get pregnant again. Matt is understandably concerned about the risks due to her previous ectopic pregnancy, but she gets pissed at him for researching adoption instead. When she declares, "My body, my risk, my choice," Matt finally gives her a long-overdue What the Hell, Hero?. Rather than admit that she could be wrong, Gabby decides to fly to Puerto Rico.
• It's All My Fault: She feels this way about Shay's death because, in the building explosion, she'd switched places with Shay for her to give rescue breaths on a victim which put Shay directly in the blast area.
• New Meat: Despite having served at Firehouse 51 for several years, Dawson is bumped to the bottom of the house's pecking order once she becomes a Candidate.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero
• Outliving One's Offspring
• Parental Substitute
• Put on a Bus: left to assist in the post-Hurricane Maria reconstruction of Puerto Rico.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni
• Ship Tease
• Single Woman Seeks Good Man: Gabriela often comments on Casey's qualities and how those are major attraction points for her.
• Spicy Latina: Has a quick temper, very outspoken, passionate, and stubborn and is of Latin descent.
• What the Hell, Hero?

Recurring Characters

CFD Employees

Harold Capp

Firefighter Harold Capp

Played By: Randy Flagler

Squad 3's senior member, after Severide. He's the one who takes command whenever the lieutenant is unavailable.

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• Character Development: Originally just a recurring extra. He's developed into a minor source of comic relief around the house.
• A Day in the Limelight: In 51's Original Bell, he gets injured on duty and may potentially lose his eyesight. He recovers.
• Hollywood Tone-Deaf: Fancies himself a singer, having been in an acapella group in high school. Everyone else finds his singing to be simply dreadful.
• Number Two: On Squad 3 after Severide.
• Recurring Extra: He's present in nearly every episode (and occasionally pops up in spin-offs) but he rarely speaks.
• Those Two Guys: He and Tony act as this for the other more central members of Squad 3.
• Ugly Guy Hot Girlfriend: While Capp is by no means ugly, he is generally treated as unlikely to get an attractive girlfriend but the guys in the house. In season 9, after Squad 3 teases him and accuses him of being a hopeless loner, he mentions his (up to that point never mentioned) girlfriend, Mazie. His coworkers tease him even more, making very clear that they believe Mazie does not exist, but the next day Mazie comes to the house, to the astonishing surprise of the rest of Squad 3: she's played by Conner Ann Waterman.

Tony

Firefighter Tony

Played By: Anthony Ferraris

A firefighter and the driver of Squad 3.

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• Recurring Extra: In the same manner as Capp, being present whenever Squad 3 is on a call.
• The Quiet One: Rarely ever talks. Though this could be chalked up to the fact that in real life Anthony Ferraris isn't an actor, but instead a member of the actual Squad 2.
• Those Two Guys: Usually seen sitting and chatting with Capp.

Jeff Clarke

Fire Lieutenant Jeff Clarke

Played By: Jeff Hephner

A firefighter who got assigned to Firehouse 51 during Gail McLeod's reorganization of the fire department.

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• Career-Ending Injury: Gets hurt on the job and ends up switching to medical school.
• Put on a Bus: Gets promoted to lieutenant in another house in the middle of season two.
• The Bus Came Back: In Chicago Med during season two, only to leave the hospital for another one in Hawaii at the end of the season.

Carl Grissom

Deputy District Chief/Commissioner Carl Grissom

Played By: Gary Cole

The deputy district chief of the 4th district.

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Spellman

Firefighter Lieutenant Spellman

Played By: John Hoogenaker

A firefighter who got assigned to Firehouse 51 during McLeod's reorganization of the fire department.

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• The Mole: serves as Mc Leod's spy at 51.

Gail McCleod

Gail McCleod

Played By: Michelle Forbes

A financial consultant brought in to make budget cuts to the CFD.

• Near-Villain Victory: She shows up at 51 to give her final orders to Boden and his officers before making sure she shuts down the station for good, only to be stunned by the rallying of the residents in Boden's battalion and the other companies coming to show their stand against her and wanting 51 to stay open.
• Smug Snake: She uses her power to shut down CFD stations under the surmise to balance the budget, and believes she has the support of the State of Illinois behind her to ensure she does as she pleases.
• Villainous Breakdown: A calm, but Tranquil Fury one when she's brought to Senator Wheeler's office and ordered to sign a document that bans her from shutting down anymore firehouses, and when she tries to argue, the Senator's aide, Isabella, gives her a Shut Up, Hannibal! / "The Reason You Suck" Speech warning her that if she doesn't, she'll never work for any first responder department ever again as her credentials will be blacklisted indefinitely and her $200,000 she got for the 10% reduction in the CFD budget will be leaked to the public, destroying her reputation. Stuck in a no-win situation, she signs the document, gives Boden a Death Glare over her defeat, and storms out in silent rage as Isabella tells her to Get Out! as her career is over and she better not set foot in Chicago again.

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Rick Newhouse

Firefighter Rick Newhouse

Played By: Edwin Hodge

A charismatic firefighter brought on to replace Clarke after he is transferred out.

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• Good Parents: Has a very close and healthy bond with his daughter Naomi.
• What Happened to the Mouse?: Goes on a trip with his daughter in the middle of season three and is never seen again. Capp asks who will replace him two episodes later but we are never given a reason as to why he left.

Jason Pelham

Lieutenant Jason Pelham

Played By: Brett Dalton

A floating lieutenant brought in to temporarily replace Casey after he leaves the firehouse.

• Mysterious Past: The other firefighters are suspicious of why he keeps being floated and isn't in charge of his own firehouse.
• Put on a Bus: After working a call with another company, who has a second-chance-type-of-reputation, he leaves to lead that company and allow Kidd to lead Truck 81 as Casey's successor.

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Evan Hawkins

The chief paramedic of the Chicago Fire Department, he dated Violet Mikami for a while.

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• Character Death: Dies trying to save a man from a theater fire when part of the building collapeses on them.

Benny Severide

Fire Chief Benjamin "Benny" Severide

Played By: Treat Williams

Kelly's father, a legendary firefighter.

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• Character Death: Has a stroke in season seven and dies off-screen.
• Disappeared Dad: To pretty much every last one of his kids.
• Jerkass: Egotistical, smug and selfish doesn’t even begin to describe him.
• Jerk Ass Has A Point: While besmirching the memory of Henry Mills right to Peter Mills' face is definitely a dick move, he isn't exactly wrong since Henry (allegedly) went back into a burning building against orders.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Genuinely seems to care about his son Kelly, and expends every favor he's accumulated to have Jerry Gorsch removed from 51, even after Kelly berated him just days beforehand.
• Roaring Rampage of Revenge: After his daughter is beaten and raped by a local gangbanger, he ends up killing him in cold blood. Gets away with it too.
• The Casanova: Has been married three times.

Jerry Gorsch

Assistant Deputy Commissioner Jerry Gorsch

Played By: Steven Boyer

A former firefighter candidate who worked his way through the bureaucracy after a poor performance review from Boden ended his firefighting career. Fired in Season 8 for funneling kickbacks to a friend.

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• 0% Approval Rating: Disliked by everybody at Firehouse 51.
• Desk Jockey: As even Gorsch admits, he "wasn't much of a firefighter".
• It's Personal: Gorsch has made it his personal mission to either force Boden to resign or to work under his personal supervision, all because Boden gave him a bad performance review when he was a candidate.
• The Neidermeyer: He's uptight, officious, and proves himself completely out of his depth when he assumes command of the house during a call.
• Nepotism: He tries to install his brother-in-law as Engine 51's commanding officer, only for Boden to promote Herrmann to lieutenant instead.
• Unwitting Instigator of Doom: Just before his dismissal, Gorsch arranges for a new, upgraded Truck 81 for the firehouse, but was too busy politicking to have an underlying issue with the aerial ladder's controls repaired. This comes back to bite 81's crew when Casey nearly gets thrown from the aerial in a later season, for which Casey initially blames Mouch.
• We Will Meet Again: After Grissom has Gorsch recalled to HQ, Gorsch declares his intention to keep going after Boden. Or, in his words, "wait for another opportunity".