Sophia Bush's Surprising Exit from Chicago PD: The Truth Behind the Story
It's been five years since Sophia Bush left the franchise, but the public interest in the actress and her sudden departure from the project hasn't waned.
We look back at the chronology of events and wonder if Sophia's character, Erin Lindsay, will return to the screen.
Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., Chicago Med, and Chicago Justice — all these popular NBC shows actually share the same universe.
Some of their characters migrate from one show to another, so you'd see the Chicago P.D. leading actress, Sophia Bush, guest starring in other projects: Erin Lindsay is an investigative detective, known for her compassion and caring nature, who quite naturally has to deal with other Chicago's professionals in the course of her work.
Bush's Departure: Official Explanation
Because Erin Lindsay was the main character in Chicago P.D. and appeared regularly in other NBC shows, Bush's decision to quit the franchise came as a shock to her fans — especially since there was no official comment at first.
The actress' representatives vaguely explained that Sophia wanted to invest more of her time into charity and environmental activism. In addition to that, there were leaks that Sophia was unhappy with something on the project, which forced her to leave her dream job. This leads us to the second, more likely explanation of the actress' departure.
A More Likely Explanation
Sophia left Chicago P.D. peacefully and quietly, but because her character was so important for the show, she had to become more outspoken and explain her decision. In an interview, Bush complained that the "intolerable" working conditions on the show forced her to be a "workhorse" and compromise her health for the project. On top of that, the actress suffered attacks from one of her colleagues. "My body was, like, falling apart, because I was really, really unhappy," she said.
Later, the actress revealed the name of the colleague who had influenced her decision to leave: Bush accused her co-star Jason Beghe of "abusive behavior" on set. Following these allegations, NBC launched an investigation and found several other women who had been affected by Jason's inappropriate behavior. The actor apologized for his actions and admitted to having certain issues.
Sophia Bush announced her departure in advance, so her character was given a final line. In season four, Erin Lindsay leaves Chicago to work for the FBI in New York in exchange for her mother's release.
Will Sophia Bush Return as Erin Lindsay?
Sophia currently has a starring role in the new series Good Sam with Jason Isaacs as her on-screen partner. Despite the actress' busy schedule and the traumatic experience of working on Chicago P.D., it is possible that she could make guest appearances in the Chicago franchise.