The main action of Chicago Med usually goes down within the walls of Gaffney, ranging from in the epic three-part Avengers-esque crossover event to Dr. Archer ending up on acid. That won't be the case in the next episode of the 2025 TV schedule, airing on March 5 and streaming next day with a Peacock subscription. Called "Down in a Hole," Ripley well end up... well, down in a hole to try and save lives, risking his own in the process. Luke Mitchell spoke with CinemaBlend about the experience and working with Chicago Fire's Christian Stolte to make it happen.
In "Down in a Hole," Ripley has to try and save a woman and her daughter when they're trapped down in an abandoned well, and the preview proves that this definitely isn't just a repeat of what Burgess went through on Chicago P.D. in a well. It also looks like Luke Mitchell didn't have a whole lot of elbow room while filming, and he shared how Med went above and beyond to make it look as good as it does:
It was very claustrophobic. They had to make these sets as tight as possible. One of the first things Anna Dokoza, our producing director who directed this episode, said to me was like, You're not drinking any water that episode.' [laughs] Basically insinuating that once I'm in the hole, I'm in the hole. I'm not allowed out to pee. I had the crew coming up and measuring me at the end of last year to like find out exactly how wide my shoulders were, exactly how tall I was. At that moment, I was like, 'Oh, dear. I think I'm really going to be in for it here.' But you know what? It really did add to the experience. It really did help that feeling of being down in a hole, which is difficult to fake, let's be honest. Our crew did an amazing job.
Fortunately, the claustrophobic set helped Luke Mitchell rather than unnerved him too much while filming, and he was clearly enthusiastic about the episode when we spoke ahead of its NBC debut. Ripley presumably will be considerably less enthusiastic than the actor, although he'll have some solid support from elsewhere in One Chicago: Chicago Fire's Mouch.
Christian Stolte spent a fair amount of the "In the Trenches" crossover at Gaffney, with Mouch interacting with Ripley at the hospital. It should be interesting to see the positions switched, with Ripley pulling a move that we usually see from the heroes at Firehouse 51. The Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. alum previewed what to expect from the two joining forces:
You get a decent amount of Mouch and Ripley working together and a decent amount of their bonding. That bonding is, I will say, fast-tracked somewhat through the course of the episode and the events that transpire… Saving lives and near death experiences.
Of course, Ripley isn't in the best state of mind heading into this big episode after the loss of Sully, fallout, and then breakup with Hannah. So, how prepared is he for this extremely perilous journey down in a hole? Luke Mitchell previewed:
I think ordinarily, Ripley's that sort of guy. I don't think he had to be in the mental space that he is in to do what he does. But maybe there's just an extra little bit of going all-in to him at this moment in time. There's so many different levels and layers to it, but him feeling like he's a failure, him feeling like he needs to prove himself to himself at the very least. I don't think he's doing it for any applause or anything like that. It is who he is, but I think right now, he's ready to go all-in and if this is how Ripley ends, trying to save the lives of two innocent people, then in his eyes, I think that that would be the perfect way to go out.
Ripley isn't going down into a hole because he has a sudden death wish, and I doubt any fans would have been surprised if he was up to risk his life to save others when everything was still going smoothly for him. We can just hope that Ripley won't actually be going out by the end of the episode, even if saving lives would be his "perfect way." For now, check out what's to come in "Down in a Hole" on March 5:
As usual, Chicago Med kicks off NBC's hit One Chicago Wednesday primetime block at 8 p.m. ET, followed by Chicago Fire at 9 p.m. ET with somebody seemingly on death's door and then Chicago P.D. at 10 p.m. ET with Reid causing trouble for Voight. All three shows are also streaming on Peacock, with past episodes available now and new episodes streaming next day.
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