The Intelligence Unit of the Chicago Police Department’s 21st District, the focus of NBC’s long-running Chicago P.D., has its share of characters that have been with the show from the beginning, like Sergeant Hank Voight (Jason Beghe), who has led the show for 13 seasons. The show wouldn’t be what it is today without the romance between Kim Burgess (Marina Squerciati) and Adam Ruzek (Patrick John Flueger), or LaRoyce Hawkins‘ reliable Officer Kevin Atwater.
By the same token, the 21st has had its share of characters that have come and gone, such as Detective Hailey Upton (Tracy Spiridakos), as well as Emily Martel, who shockingly died in Season 12’s premiere. But of all the detectives that have walked past Sergeant Trudy Platt’s (Amy Morton) desk on their way upstairs, the one that is missed the most? Sophia Bush’s Detective Erin Lindsay, and she isn’t coming back any time soon.
Sophia Bush’s Detective Erin Lindsay Left an Indelible Mark on ‘Chicago P.D.’
Sophia Bush describes Erin Lindsay as having “come from the street, so she already knows how all these people work.” It’s an element of the character that makes her stand out, and, in the hands of a talented actor like Bush, it’s a character with depth. We first meet Lindsay and the rest of the Intelligence Unit in the first episode, “Stepping Stone,” but come to learn more about her history prior to joining the CPD. Her troubled childhood led to Lindsay engaging in street crime at the age of 15, but her activities brought her into contact with Voight. The meeting would prove to be life-changing, with Voight first making her his C.I. to keep her out of jail before he and his wife took her in, giving her the affectionate, caring family that was never given to her by her own.
That prior history with Voight gave both actors something they could work with — an additional layer that wasn’t afforded to the others — and it proved beneficial to their characters’ respective arcs. Bush thrived playing Lindsay through trials and tribulations, heartbreaking losses, and a relapse, while Beghe’s Voight is at his best when personally invested in protecting those he cares for, allowing viewers to see past that gruff exterior. And when Internal Affairs closes in on Lindsay for brutalizing a suspect to force information about the location of a missing child (sticking her gun down his throat — a Voight move if there ever was one), Voight arranges for her to be recruited into a New York narcotics unit, lending their heartrending parting real gravitas, and bringing one of Chicago P.D.’s strongest seasons (and strongest relationships) to an end.
‘Chicago P.D.’ Was Never the Same After Sophia Bush Left
Lindsay was mentioned a few times early in Season 5, and since then, nothing. Upton would be promoted from recurring character to series regular, filling Lindsay’s space on the team, and, ultimately, filling Voight’s need to protect. However, the show hasn’t been the same since. Chicago P.D. hasn’t really found a character with a real, earned connection to the streets like Lindsay had, and the Upton/Voight relationship paled in comparison. The series remains strong, but the raw emotion of those first four seasons with Bush on the show hasn’t truly been matched. Chicago P.D. would simply be better if Lindsay returned, but it’s very unlikely to happen.
The reason Bush won’t come back to Chicago is because of the reason she left the show after Season 4, claims of abusive behavior on set. At the time, Bush explained in a post on Instagram, saying, “Please don’t demean my capabilities by degrading my position. I left because I wanted to. End of story.” It would soon be revealed that what drove Bush to leave the show (apart from the physical toll) was the on-set behavior of her co-star Beghe. Their relationship on the air was tight, but off-screen, there was a very different story, with Beghe investigated by NBC for “ongoing anger management issues.”
