A New Female Detective is Joining "Chicago P.D."
by Liz Raftery
March 17, 2017


"Chicago P.D." is getting a new detective. Tracy Spiridakos (Revolution) has signed on for the recurring role of Hailey Upton, a detective in the robbery homicide unit, TVGuide.com has learned.

The character will be introduced in Episode 21, "Fagin," which is scheduled to air in early May.





According to NBC, Upton is a detective who has a winning combination of humor, intelligence and killer instincts. She's a hard worker who earned her detective shield on her merits alone after working a mysterious undercover assignment. But because the promotion came to her that way, she's had to prove herself to some colleagues in the boys club who don't believe she earned it.

Her debut episode finds Upton and Voight (Jason Beghe) clashing on a case, but they eventually set aside their differences and work together. And Voight doesn't need any convincing about Upton's value to the department -- in fact, he indicates that if she's ever interested in moving up to Intelligence, he's got a spot for her.

(Which begs the question... is someone leaving?)

http://www.tvguide.com/news/chicago-pd-tracy-spiridakos-hailey-upton/

"Chicago P.D." Promotes Tracy Spiridakos to Series Regular for Season 5
by Vlada Gelman
July 25, 2017


"Chicago P.D." is losing Det. Erin Lindsay (Sophia Bush), but the Intelligence unit won’t be without some girl power this fall.

Tracy Spiridakos, who recurred as Det. Hailey Upton during Season 4 of the NBC drama, has been promoted to series regular for the upcoming run, TVLine has learned.



A member of the robbery homicide unit, Upton clashed with Voight when she was first introduced in a May episode. She eventually earned the Sergeant’s respect — and even a spot on his unit while Burgess took a leave of absence.

Now it looks like that placement will be permanent (and hopefully, we’ll get some insight into the mysterious undercover assignment that earned Upton her detective shield).



Season 5 launches Wednesday, Sept. 27 at 10/9c on NBC.

http://tvline.com/2017/07/25/chicago-pd-season-5-tracy-spiridakos-series-regular/

Tracy Spiridakos to Exit "Chicago P.D." after Season 11 (EXCLUSIVE)
by Emily Longretta
Oct. 24, 2023


“Chicago P.D.” is losing another member of Intelligence. Tracy Spiridakos, who portrays Hailey Upton, will be leaving after Season 11, multiple sources confirm to Variety.

It is unknown how many episodes she will appear in in the upcoming season.



Spiridakos joined the NBC procedural in Season 4, first as a recurring character. She was upped to a series regular in Season 5 and has appeared in 127 episodes.

The exit comes one season after Jesse Lee Soffer, who portrayed Upton’s husband, Jay Halstead, chose to leave the series after 10 years.

https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/chicago-pd-tracy-spiridakos-exits-season-11-1235761110/

Chicago P.D. Fans Are Sad (But Not Surprised) About Tracy Spiridakos' Exit (https://www.looper.com/1430590/chicago-pd-fans-commiserate-loss-tracy-spiridakos/)

With Tracy Spiridakos set to exit "Chicago P.D.," fans are sad to see her leave, but not surprised that Hailey Upton's story is apparently coming to an end.

7 Theories About Why Hailey Upton Leaves In Chicago PD Season 11 (https://screenrant.com/chicago-pd-season-11-hailey-upton-exit-theories/)

Tracy Spiridakos will exit Chicago PD sometime in season 11, but it is unknown when or how her character, Hailey Upton, will be written off the show.

Chicago PD Season 11: Upton Plot Details Revealed Ahead Of Tracy Spiridakos' Exit (https://www.looper.com/1483556/tracy-spiridakos-chicago-pd-season-11-upton-plot-details/)

New information has emerged regarding Hailey Upton's final storylines ahead of her actor, Tracy Spiridakos' departure from the cast of "Chicago P.D."

Tracy Spiridakos Reveals Why she’s Leaving "Chicago P.D.", Teases "Vulnerable" Season 11 Finale (EXCLUSIVE)
by Emily Longeretta
May 21, 2024


Tracy Spiridakos is saying goodbye to Hailey Upton. Ahead of the May 22 finale, the “Chicago P.D.” actress is opening up for the first time about her decision to leave the procedural at the end of Season 11.

In an exclusive interview with Variety, Spiridakos, who joined the Dick Wolf police drama in Season 4, reveals she went to showrunner Gwen Sigan at the end of Season 10 to share that she wanted the next season to be her last.



“I decided at the end of my sixth season, which is when I had reached out to Gwen and to everyone at Wolf to let them know that I just wanted to do one more year. I wanted us to send out the character with one last season,” Spiridakos says.

“It was a hard decision — very, very hard. I love everybody on the show — cast, crew, producers, writers, everybody. It’s such an incredible team. I was just curious what was out there for me and wanted to switch it up, and that was it.”






For now, there’s one more episode for viewers to see Hailey. The finale will pick up where the penultimate left off, with the squad frantically searching for Voight (Jason Beghe), who was kidnapped by serial killer Frank Matson (Dennis Flanagan).

Since Voight is her closest confidant, Hailey will do everything in her power to find him.



“She goes through the emotion of feeling so scared of losing him and then focusing all of that fear and anxiety on the work to do everything she can to outsmart Matson as best she can,” she teases. “The whole team is doing everything they can.”

The “intense” finale is extremely fast-paced, Spiridakos says. “I don’t think anyone sits down the whole episode… There’s a lot of really vulnerable moments. We see these characters, who we haven’t necessarily seen be so vulnerable, you see a lot of that come through as well.”

https://variety.com/2024/tv/news/why-tracy-spiridakos-leaving-chicago-p-d-season-11-finale-interview-1236011362/

Chicago P.D. Season 11 Finale Confirms How Tracy Spiridakos' Hailey Upton Leaves (https://www.looper.com/1588462/chicago-pd-season-11-finale-cameo-alvin-olinsky-elias-koteas/)

With "Chicago P.D." Season 11 now over, Tracy Spiridakos' Hailey Upton has left the long-running departure. Here's how the character's story ends.

The Chicago P.D. Season 11 Finale's 'Impossible' Cameo, Explained (https://www.looper.com/1588462/chicago-pd-season-11-finale-cameo-alvin-olinsky-elias-koteas/)

Of all the people who could have cameoed on "Chicago P.D.," including the ones fans wanted, the one who actually did was probably the biggest surprise.

Chicago P.D. Season 12 Has Debunked A Big Returning Character Theory With Upton's Replacement (https://screenrant.com/chicago-pd-season-12-upton-replacement-not-returning-character-dawson/)

Chicago PD's latest update about who will be replacing Hailey Upton debunks one popular theory about how the cast will change in season 12.