Things are changing at Firehouse 51. Daniel Kyri and Jake Lockett, two long-standing members of the cast, will not be returning should NBC renew Chicago Fire for a fourteenth instalment.
Daniel and Jake, who are known and loved for playing firefighters Darren Ritter and Sam Carver, are expected to leave as part of an “effort to trim the budget of Chicago Fire”.
Confirming the news, Daniel, 30, took to Instagram on Wednesday evening. “I’ll miss this character, and it’s time to move on,” he began. “Thank you to the cast, crew & the awesome fans.”
As for Jake, the actor has yet to comment publicly.
HELLO! has contacted NBC for comment. Deadline first reported the news.
Amid the cast shake-up, there has been no word on the fates of veteran cast members such as Taylor Kinney and Miranda Rae Mayo, whose contracts are reportedly up. In the meantime, viewers have taken to Instagram, where they voiced their upset over Daniel and Jake’s departures.
“This is absolutely devastating. I love Daniel and @thejakelockett so much,” wrote one. “This post is why we need a dislike button,” added a second.
“I started watching the series because of Carver and Violet, now it turns out that they are going to take him away from us,” wrote a third. “Nooooooo. I really didn’t need this today. Those two characters were great for the show,” declared a fourth.
Following its inception in 2012, Chicago Fire has bid adieu to some amazing actors, including Eamonn Walker and Jesse Spencer.
After a 12 stint as Wallace Boden, Eamonn left the show in 2024, with NBC clarifying that he would make occasional appearances in a recurring capacity. While the TV star has never revealed the reasons for his exit, there’s clearly no hard feelings as he recently popped up in season 13 of Chicago Fire.
