How Hailey Upton Leaving Chicago PD Will Change The Unit's Dynamic In Season 12

Summary Upton's departure will disrupt unit dynamics in Chicago P.D. season 12, forcing a shift in relationships.

Voight relied on Upton as a surrogate daughter and trusted her to have his back.

Upton's absence may lead to a more volatile Voight as there's no one to check his behavior.

While shocking, the departure of Hailey Upton (Tracy Spiridakos) during the last moments of Chicago P.D.'s season 11 finale will disrupt unit dynamics when the series returns for its 12th season. For over a decade, the police procedural has focused on the personal and professional relationships between the police officers working in the intelligence unit. These officers must completely trust one another and their leader, Hank Voight (Jason Beghe) during high-risk investigations, especially during times they engage in questionable or illegal activity to get violent criminals off the streets.

Upton was one of the longest-running characters on the police procedural, having joined during season 4 to replace Erin Lindsey (Sophia Bush). For several years, she was involved in a romantic relationship with Jay Halstead, and the two got married, but divorced after Halstead left for Bolivia for an indefinite period. Halsted remained absent from Chicago P.D. during Upton's final appearance, allowing her to move on in a way that demonstrated her independence and growth as a character. Upton left Chicago P.D.'s Atwater, Burgess, and Ruzek behind to adjust to working without her, which could prove to be difficult.

Related Who Did Voight See In The Chicago PD Season 11 Finale? That Big Cameo Explained Chicago PD season 11 finale ended with Hank Voight's near-death experience, but it also paved the way for the return of a beloved original character.

Hailey Upton Has Been Part Of Chicago P.D.'s Intelligence Unit Almost From The Start

It Feels As If She's Always Been There, So It'll Be Hard For Her Colleagues to Move On

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Upton first appeared in Chicago P.D. season 4; the character was meant as a replacement for Sophia Bush's Erin Lindsey, who had left at the end of the previous season. However, she so quickly became one of the most active detectives in the series, making it easy for her colleagues to forget there had ever been a time that she had not been part of the unit. Upton was smart, dedicated, and willing to take risks, making her invaluable to the team. She also had a special relationship with Voight that nobody else could come close to replicating.

Upton also visited FBI on one occasion to help out with a case.

Upton's unusual dedication to cases was shown to be a symptom of unresolved trauma during season 11, with her ultimately admitting that she threw herself into work to avoid the pain of her childhood. However, the upside of this unhealthy behavior was that she closed more cases than anyone else and was often on hand to support her colleagues when they were struggling emotionally, even giving tough love to Petrovitch about her alcohol dependence issues. These aspects of her character will be hard to replace and will force a shift in the dynamics of the unit now that she is gone.

Sergeant Voight Relied On Hailey The Most In Chicago P.D.

Voight Considered Her His Surrogate Daughter

Voight is not one who trusts others easily, not even within the team he leads, and that was even more true after the murder of his son, which opened a revenge arc that led to the death of his best friend and fellow cop Alvin Olinsky. Besides Olinsky, Upton was probably the only person in his unit Voight allowed himself to be close to. He trusted her to have his back and had hers as well, which was why he allowed Matson to torture him during the season 11 finale rather than complying with Matson's demand that he call her so that Matson could kill them both.

It was Voight's love for Hailey that allowed him to convince her to move on at the end of season 11.

It was Voight's love for Hailey that allowed him to convince her to move on at the end of season 11. On a personal level, Voight would have been happy to keep her around, but he knew that was not in her best interest. He was unable to stop her from risking her life to rescue him, but after they were both safe, he sacrificed his desire to keep her at the police department by encouraging her to seek a job that would be more fulfilling for her. However, it's likely Voight will have a hard time adjusting to her absence.

Chicago P.D. season 12 storylines will likely involve Voight seeking a new cop for whom he can be a mentor and father figure. Voight replaced Lindsey with Upton after Lindsey left, so it's unlikely he'll allow himself to sit with the emptiness of Upton's departure for long. He will also be forced to rely on other cops, such as Burgess, Ruzek, and Atwater, rather than focusing all his energy on Upton, which will lead to some interesting shifts in his relationships.

Why Upton Was The Only One Who Could Really Call Out Voight In Chicago P.D.

Their Father/Daughter Relationship Allowed Them To Call Each Other Out When They Went Too Far

Voight's whole personality is based on going too far in the name of putting away criminals. Chicago P.D.'s classic Voight period included beating up and torturing suspects to get confessions. That has been toned down in more recent seasons, but Voight will still push the envelope as far as he can. Most of his subordinates have learned to back off and let him handle things his way, but Upton was different. She had no qualms about calling him out for destructive behavior, probably because she saw a reflection of her own problems in him.

Upton's absence from Chicago P.D. means there is no real check on Voight's behavior. His recent traumatic experience with Matson and Upton's absence will likely trigger him to lash out more than he has in a while, and there is no one who can step up to stop him. Upton's departure from Chicago P.D. will affect Voight worse than it will the rest of her former colleagues because of their close relationship, and that could lead to a more volatile Voight, at least until a new character is brought on for him to treat as a surrogate daughter.

Chicago P.D. season 11 streams on Peacock.