NBC’s Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D. and Chicago Med do a very good job of proving, on a weekly basis, that they are a part of the same Chicago universe, with characters from each show frequently turning up for guest appearances on the other shows. Now, one former Chicago Fire character is becoming a fixture on Chicago Med, as actor Jeff Hephner will be bringing his firefighter to the hospital drama at the end of this season.
A report from TVLine says that Jeff Hephner will reprise his role as Lieutenant Jeff Clarke on Chicago Med. His character will debut on the show in the Season 1 finale, where we’ll learn that the firefighter has left the department, gone to medical school and is now a fourth year med student who has a rotation in the Chicago Med emergency department. The character will recur in Season 2.
Jeff Hephner kicked off his screen career with a role in Tigerland in 2000, and has gone on to have several sizable parts on many television shows, like The O.C., Easy Money, Mercy, Boss and a recent stint on the CBS medical drama Code Black. Hephner has also appeared on Criminal Minds, CSI: Miami, Without a Trace, House M.D., NCIS and Castle.
The character of Jeff Clarke only graced Chicago Fire for Season 2 of the show, but during that short time he made quite an impact with a suitably drama-filled storyline. Clarke joined Firehouse 51, Squad 3 as a transfer from a recently closed house. He showed up at the same time as a financial consultant from the state tried to close the firehouse to save money for the Chicago Fire Department, and that, combined with his extremely private nature, led him to be disliked and branded as a mole. When the rest of the house realized that he actually turned the consultant down, though, they befriended him.
Jeff also had a tricky personal life. The Marine and Iraq war veteran had his wife, Lisa, cheat on him while he was on his final tour, and by the time we meet him the two are (understandably) estranged. His wife asks for forgiveness after he and the rest of the crew are nearly killed on a call, and he decides to take her back. But, while Jeff and Lisa were trying to reconnect, her ex-lover, a sneaky loanshark, shows up and harasses the couple to the point that Jeff is tempted to kill him. Unfortunately, Lisa’s ex does turn up dead, and Jeff becomes the prime suspect and tries to protect Lisa when he finds out she was involved in her ex’s death.
When the character of Jeff left Chicago Fire, he had transferred out of Firehouse 51, so it’ll be interesting to see how he went from working at another firehouse to quitting firefighting altogether and deciding to become a doctor. Well, we can all see what’s happened to Jeff when Chicago Med airs its Season 1 finale. Be sure to check out our summer TV premiere schedule so you can keep up to date on all your favorite summer shows.
