Throughout Chicago Med’s history, fans of the hit TV show have become very invested in many of its storylines and characters. As a result, there are many people who want to see past Chicago Med characters return and are happy to see Sharon Goodwin get great storylines. Just like the fans who want to make sure that Dr. Charles no longer has miserable storylines, there are a lot of Chicago P.D. and Chicago Fire fans who care just as much about those shows.
With so many people invested in Chicago P.D., Chicago Fire, and Chicago Med, there is a lot of interest in behind-the-scenes news about those shows. With that in mind, there were a lot of people who were upset about recent news that broke about Chicago P.D., Chicago Fire, and Chicago Med. However, it actually seems like that bad news could actually be good for the shows.
Chicago P.D., Chicago Fire, And Chicago Med Fans Were Upset That The Shows’ Budgets Are Being Cut
As of May 2025, the One Chicago franchise was definitely still going very strong for NBC. After all, at that time, Chicago Fire’s 13th season, Chicago P.D.’s 12th season, and Chicago Med’s 10th season were all in the midst of airing.
While it is incredible that all three shows have lasted so long, the franchise’s fans had one basic and important question. Would Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med get renewed by NBC for more seasons?
Fortunately for fans and everyone involved in the shows, a May 2025 Deadline article revealed that NBC had renewed all three shows. However, that report also revealed that NBC had also insisted on lowering the budgets for Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med.
Deadline’s article revealed one major way that the shows’ budgets were set to be reduced.
Chicago Med’s Best Characters, According to CBR | |
|---|---|
Character | Rank |
Dr. Sarah Reese | #10 |
Maggie Lockwood | #9 |
Dr. Connor Rhodes | #8 |
Dr. Dylan Scott | #7 |
Dr. Natalie Manning | #6 |
Dr. Will Halstead | #5 |
April Sexton | #4 |
Dr. Ethan Choi | #3 |
Sharon Goodwin | #2 |
Dr. Daniel Charles | #1 |
According to the outlet, the stars of all the shows had their “minimum guarantees” dropped. In this case, that means that the One Chicago stars would no longer be assured to appear in every episode each season. Instead, the shows’ main characters will reportedly miss 2–4 episodes each season.
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Deadline’s article listed another way that the budget for the One Chicago franchise was set to be kept under control. For those that don’t know, One Chicago is the name given to the franchise that is currently comprised of Chicago Med, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Fire.
Chicago P.D.’s Best Characters, Ranked by Likability, According to Collider | |
|---|---|
Chicago P.D. Character | Rank |
Alvin Olinksy | #9 |
Hailey Upton | #8 |
Trudy Platt | #7 |
Kevin Atwater | #6 |
Antonio Dawson | #5 |
Kim Burgess | #4 |
Adam Ruzek | #3 |
Erin Lindsay | #2 |
Jay Halstead | #1 |
The outlet reported inside sources had told them that the franchise’s stars would have to forego their annual 5% raises.
While Deadline’s article didn’t bring it up, there is another very obvious way that the One Chicago shows could bring down their budgets.
Chicago Fire’s Best Characters, According to Screen Rant | |
|---|---|
Chicago Fire Character | Rank |
Darren Ritter | #10 |
Stella Kidd | #9 |
Joe Cruz | #8 |
Sylvie Brett | #7 |
Kelly Severide | #6 |
Matt Casey | #5 |
Wallace Boden | #4 |
Brian “Otis” Zvonecek | #3 |
Christopher Herrmann | #2 |
Leslie Shay | #1 |
During One Chicago events, the shows often feature catastrophes that would be expensive to film. On top of that, the show’s feature other elements that appear like they would be costly. For example, Chicago Med’s OR 2.0 storyline seemed like it would have cost a pretty penny to film.
If NBC and the producers of the One Chicago shows are looking to cut costs, pulling back on expensive storyline elements like that only makes sense.
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Whether fans are just reading the headlines about the budget cuts or they have learned more, one fact remains. There are a lot of fans who are worried about how their favorite One Chicago shows may change due to the budget cuts.
While it makes perfect sense to have that concern, it is worth noting that the budget cuts could become a blessing in disguise.
Why One Chicago’s Budget Cuts Could Ultimately Become A Good Thing
To be clear, the stars of Chicago Med, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Fire all have very valid reasons to be upset about the budget cuts. On top of that, there is no denying that cutting back on how much money can be spent on producing those shows could be bad.
However, there are reasons why fans can be optimistic that the shows could become better thanks to the budget cuts.
There is one implication of the One Chicago budget cuts that is only good for NBC’s bottom line. The fact that the franchise stars reportedly won’t get their 5% raise is a shame for them that has no silver lining for viewers.
First off, having the franchise’s stars appear in fewer episodes could actually be a good thing for viewers.
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Of course, when fans love a One Chicago character, they want them to appear in every episode they watch. For example, since Dr. Daniel Charles is such a beloved Chicago Med character, having him not appear in an episode is undeniably disappointing.
That said, having characters not appear in every episode will create an opportunity to shine a spotlight on others. That could mean that budget cuts could result in fans becoming invested in more characters as they get fleshed out more.
It is also worth noting that the shows almost certainly won’t draw attention to characters not appearing during an episode. As a result, it is possible that at least some viewers may not realize the characters are missing.
The other way that the budget cuts could become a good thing is if the franchise does save money by scaling back on the events.
As One Chicago fans will already realize, big events that create crossovers have long been a major part of the franchise. While that can certainly be exciting, the crossovers have also arguably become rather predictable and distracting. After all, those episodes often put many of the individual show’s ongoing storylines on hold. Not only that, it has to be noted that some viewers only watch one or two of the One Chicago shows so they are less interested in the crossovers.
As a result, if those crossovers with huge events happen less often, at least for a while, that may be refreshing. Alternatively, if the crossovers remain, it would also be refreshing for them to be scaled back. Cops, firefighters, and hospital workers interact for reasons that are fascinating and don’t have to involve something like a building collapse. It certainly seems like the teams behind the One Chicago franchise could create a crossover that is even more entertaining, which is smaller in scale.
Chicago Med
- Release Date
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November 17, 2015
- Network
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NBC
- Showrunner
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Michael Brandt
- Directors
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Michael Waxman, Michael Pressman, Charles S. Carroll, Milena Govich, Anna Dokoza, Bethany Rooney, Fred Berner, Tess Malone, Mykelti Williamson, SJ Main Muñoz, Donald Petrie, Martha Mitchell, Vincent Misiano, Timothy Busfield, Jonathan Brown, John Polson, Stephen Cragg, Anthony Nardolillo, Michael Berry, David Rodriguez, Afia Nathaniel, Oz Scott, Valerie Weiss, Gonzalo Amat
- Writers
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Joseph Sousa, Lily Dahl, Natalie Drayer, Darin Goldberg, Shelley Meals, Melissa R. Byer, Treena Hancock, Mary Leah Sutton, Simran Baidwan, Joshua Hale Fialkov, Jason Cho, Will Pascoe, Liz Brixius
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Marlyne Barrett
Maggie Lockwood
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S. Epatha Merkerson
Sharon Goodwin
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Oliver Platt
Dr. Daniel Charles
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Nick Gehlfuss
Dr. Will Halstead
