Yahoo News Chicago PD star Jesse Lee Soffer lands major new TV role
Former Chicago PD star Jesse Lee Soffer has landed his next major TV role.
The actor, best known for playing Detective Jay Halstead on the police procedural, has been cast as a series regular in the upcoming fourth season of FBI: International.
However, despite Chicago PD and FBI: International both being a part of the Dick Wolf TV universe (the two shows even had a crossover in 2020 when Tracy Spiridakos took her Chicago PD character Hailey Upton to FBI), Soffer will not be reprising his role as Halstead.
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According to TVLine, he will instead be playing a brand-new character to presumably try and fill the void left by Luke Kleintank’s recent exit from the show.
Kleintank played leading man Scott Forrester since FBI’s inception in 2021, though bid farewell to the character after three years last month.
"After much thought and consideration, I've made the difficult decision to leave FBI: International," the actor shared in a statement ahead of his final episode airing. "This decision is driven by my unwavering commitment to my family, whose love and well-being are paramount in my life."
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Meanwhile, Soffer bowed out of Chicago PD after 10 seasons in October 2022.
Opening up about his decision to leave, Soffer admitted that "there’s no good answer", though he "was ready for more".
"Eventually, you know the character so well, there’s not much that can shift or transform," he explained.
"I really wanted to grow and expand, and we’ve only got this one trip. If I signed up again, it would have been for another three years. I would have turned 40 on the show. I thought, ‘You know what? It’s time to take a risk'."
FBI, FBI: International and FBI: Most Wanted air on Tuesdays on CBS. In the UK, all three shows air on Sky Witness and NOW.
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