Chicago Fire is just one week away from the Season 10 finale, but fans have had a lot to be excited about since back in April thanks to news that Jesse Spencer is returning as Matt Casey for the first time since the 200th episode. Although Casey is coming back to the Windy City for the happy reason of Severide and Stella’s wedding, it wouldn’t be a Chicago Fire finale if something didn’t go wrong. Based on some comments from co-showrunners Derek Haas and Andrea Newman when speaking to CinemaBlend, I’d say that fans might not be prepared for what’s on the way with the “nonstop” episode.
The Season 10 finale airs on May 25 and will bring back not only Jesse Spencer’s Casey, but also Kara Killmer’s Brett after her decision to spend time with Casey in Oregon. It’s safe to say that the Stellaride wedding will move forward despite their recent tension over the planning, and if this wasn’t a Chicago Fire finale, it would seem possible that the wedding could go off without a hitch.
But this is a Chicago Fire finale, and Derek Haas previewed an episode that he expects will provoke some extreme reactions from fans:
This finale is nonstop. Every act where the commercials come in – before every act, you're either crying, screaming, or throwing a brick through your TV set. Or praising or cursing our names.
That either bodes very well or very poorly for how the episode is going to go for the heroes of Firehouse 51! The original One Chicago show isn’t known for ending seasons with a whimper when it can go for a bang, and Derek Haas’ prediction of fans crying, screaming, or wanting to fling blunt objects at their TV indicates that this won’t be an episode to miss.
As for whether fans are more likely to curse or praise the showrunners’ names… well, only the finale on May 25 will prove that for sure, but it sounds to me like viewers aren’t ready for what’s in store if those are the reactions that Haas is expecting. When I asked just how far ahead into the next season they had to plan if they’re going to deliver such a nonstop finale, Andrea Newman shared:
That's a good question. We don't always have to look ahead. This one, we did. There's some cliffhanger-y stuff that will need to be resolved.
Cliffhangers are to be expected when it comes to Chicago Fire, but the one that ends Season 10 evidently is not the kind that the writers can just figure out how to resolve over hiatus. Historically speaking, finale cliffhangers can be resolved in ways that range from tragic deaths like Otis back in Season 8 to death-free but still traumatizing (for Cruz, anyway) like early in Season 10. (You can rewatch those episodes streaming with a Peacock subscription.)
In fact, Derek Haas cited the Season 9 cliffhanger for Squad to elaborate about planning ahead for Chicago Fire:
A lot of times over the years we pretty much throw caution to the wind and say 'That's next season's problem,' which is our problem but we kind of don't care. We put our whole Squad into a sinking boat last year with no idea what we were gonna do. We were like, 'Ah, we'll figure it out.'
So, what’s going to happen that’s so extreme that fans will be ready to throw things, and that the co-showrunners and writers had to plan ahead? The bosses didn’t drop all the juicy details about what’s going to happen, but Derek Haas promised that the Season 10 finale ending “is gonna top” the Season 9 ending with the fates of all of Squad 3 in jeopardy, with Andrea Newman adding that “We’re screwed next season.”
That’s not to say that fans should spend the next week stocking up on tissues, lozenges, and/or bricks to prepare for the Season 10 finale, since it will feature the return of Casey. When I asked the co-showrunners what adjective they would use to describe Casey’s return, Andrea Newman chose “emotional,” while Derek Haas went for “heartwarming.” Newman also shared that Casey “definitely has a reaction” to seeing Stella as lieutenant on Truck 81, and that “he makes some really nice reconnections with his former Truckmates” when he returns. Plus, the bromance with Severide lives on!
All things considered, it sounds like fans should be very happy that Chicago Fire (along with Chicago Med and Chicago P.D.) scored the three-season renewal back in 2020 that already guarantees a return in the fall. Don’t miss the penultimate episode of Season 10 on Wednesday, May 18 at 9 p.m. ET or the finale the next week, between Med (which just delivered a major twist for Ethan) at 8 p.m. and P.D. (which already has sky-high stakes for the finale, according to one star) at 10 p.m. For more important TV dates now and in the not-too-distant future, check out our spring TV finale schedule.
