Chicago Fire Boss Previews ‘Haunted’ Season 13 Without Boden

Chicago Fire Boss Previews ‘Haunted’ Season 13 Without Boden

Goodbye, Boden (Eamonn Walker) … hello, Dom (Dermot Mulroney).

When Chicago Fire returns for season 13, there’s a new leader at Firehouse 51, and his name is Dom Pascal. “It’s like Boden nurtured them,” says showrunner Andrea Newman. “When a new leader comes in, people are going to have different reactions. And some of the reactions are surprising.” But Boden won’t be forgotten. As Newman says, “Boden’s presence is still a huge part of the show, and it always will be, because he shaped how he brought this group together and how he raised this family.”

And new faces aren’t always a bad thing. “There’s still such a core group there and they really feel like a family and they always have,” Newman continued. “Bringing in new people is really a joy as a writer. You get to see new dynamics, you get to see how some people change, how their relationships get a little bit shaken up when this new person comes in. The idea of ​​sitting down and trying to write without the father of this family, honestly, it feels like you feel as a father when you hope you’ve raised your kids right.”

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Speaking of family, another big suspense plot twist from last season involved Damon (Michael Bradway) revealing to Severide (Taylor Kinney) that they share a father.

“We just feel like this is a haunted season 13. It’s like the ghosts of everyone’s past are coming back,” Newman said. “That’s very true for Severide, because he’s worked so hard to forget his dad and become his own firefighter. So all of a sudden, having Benny’s son, his half-brother, pop into his life makes him have to rediscover all of that. So that opens up a lot for Severide and that relationship is very complicated and fascinating and there’s a lot going on between the two of them from the beginning.” But Severide isn’t the only one haunted. There’s still the question of what’s next for Violet (Hanako Greensmith) and Carver (Jake Lockett). “Violet is haunted by Hawkins [Jimmy Nicholas] and what happened to Hawkins and that relationship,” Newman said. “And Carver is haunted as a spirit. So we’re exploring a lot of that early in the season. There’s a lot between the two of them and a lot about the fact that they both bring their own ghosts to the table.”

It’ll all play out when Chicago Fire returns Wednesday, September 25, on NBC.