Chicago Fire recently delivered a big wedding episode to send off Kara Killmer in the 2024 TV schedule, but the Brettsey nuptials between Brett and Casey actually had me flashing back to the hit drama's Dawsey days. While it's been a while since any of the characters shouted out Gabby Dawson and even longer since Monica Raymund's last One Chicago appearance, I couldn't help but think back to when Dawson and Casey tied the knot. Fortunately, I also recently spoke with Raymund, and she opened up about her upcoming return to the nine-show Dick Wolf TV universe as Hightown wraps.
I spoke with Monica Raymund at SCAD TVfest in February, with her Chicago Fire follow-up series currently airing its final season. After she shared how nerve-wracking it was to leave Fire and audition for Hightown, she then opened up about her experience in directing episodes she's also performing in:
It's probably more challenging, because I'm in it, so it's a different beast altogether. I have to figure out how to be the director and also do my job because my first job is acting.
Monica Raymund has directed two episodes of Hightown, with the first in Season 2 and the second in the currently-airing third and final season. Her very first TV directing gig was back in 2018, however, with an episode of Law & Order: SVU. While Raymund's Dick Wolf Entertainment experience in front of the camera was set in One Chicago, an SVU/Chicago P.D. crossover means that Olivia Benson and Gabby Dawson live in the same TV universe.
When I asked Raymund if starting out directing in that Dick Wolf universe after all her years of Fire made her feel more comfortable, she shared that her next Wolf return is coming up soon:
Oh, for sure. That's how I got my start, was directing in Wolf at first. I've done a few of the shows. I'm going back in a month and a half. I'm going to do an episode of FBI, so I've never gone out of Wolf. I always have one foot there, because they're family.
Following her episode of SVU in 2018, Raymund directed three episodes of FBI over on CBS, including the episode that featured Chicago P.D.'s Tracy Spiridakos as Hailey Upton to officially connect the FBIs with One Chicago. Next up in the Wolf world for the actress-turned-director was an episode of Law & Order: Organized Crime. Fans can next expect to see her touch on FBI's sixth season.
Raymund went on to share why directing within Wolf Entertainment was the right place to start:
It's the best way to learn. You know, learn where your family is. Peter Jankowski at Wolf Studios gave me my first shot, and I've been working with them, so it was the best way for me to cut my teeth as a director.
In addition to six full seasons of Chicago Fire, Monica Raymund appeared as Gabby Dawson in a number of Chicago P.D. and Chicago Med episodes as well. Then, she voiced Laura Romero for the Dark Woods scripted podcast series. Throw in her directing gigs, and leaving Fire as Dawson definitely wasn't the end of her time in that world.
Still, as a longtime Dawsey fan, I can't help but look back at her Gabby Dawson days every once in a while, which included after Casey's wedding to Brett. The two ceremonies could hardly be more different – not least because the courthouse wedding between Dawson and Casey didn't involve a fish store like Brettsey's – but flashing back to days gone by isn't a bad thing for a show running as long as Chicago Fire.
If you want to revisit Monica Raymund's days as Gabby Dawson, you can find the full run of Chicago Fire so far streaming via Peacock Premium subscription. Peacock is also the streaming home of Law & Order: SVU and Law & Order: Organized Crime, if you want to check out the episodes she directed there. Her episodes of FBI stream via a Paramount+ subscription.
