Chicago Fire has made an exciting change to the cast of its upcoming 13th season. Actress Jocelyn Hudon, who plays paramedic Lyla Novak, has been promoted to series regular after one season.
Lyla was introduced to viewers in season 12 as a freelancer before agreeing to join Violet (Hanako Greensmith) as an official member of the Firehouse 51 team.
Jocelyn shared the good news on Instagram, posting a screenshot from Deadline’s story as well as a photo of a personalised cake adorned with the Chicago Fire logo.
Fans rushed to the comments section to congratulate the 29-year-old, with one person writing: “Congrats! Already love your character,” while another added: “Congratulations can’t wait to see the future series episodes.”
Jocelyn is a familiar face on our screens thanks to her various TV roles and was even nominated for Best Actress at the 2024 Mammoth Film Festival after starring in The Fall.
She’s perhaps best known for playing Abby in the FX horror drama, The Strain, created by Guillermo del Toro. The Canadian actress has also appeared in Apple TV’s Acapulco, NBC’s The Irrational and made one-episode appearances in shows such as 9-1-1, Criminal Minds and The Rookie: Feds.
Jocelyn’s promotion isn’t the only major change to the Chicago Fire cast in recent months. Not only has newcomer Michael Bradway joined the drama as firefighter Jack Damon, but the show has also seen some surprising departures.
Rome Flynn’s left the series after a short stint as Derrick Gibson, who decided to step down from his job at Firehouse 51 to get help for his prescription pill addiction.
Opening up about his departure, Rome told Variety: “Just like all the fans, I was sad to see Gibson leave. He was a character I very much enjoyed playing.”
He added: “I had a wonderful experience during my time on Chicago Fire and have great respect for the cast and crew and hope to team up with Dick Wolf again when the time is right.”
Rome isn’t the only star to depart the franchise lately. Alberto Rosende, Kara Killmer, and Eamonn Walker have all stepped down from their roles after starring in multiple seasons.
Alberto’s character Blake Gallo made his final appearance in the season 12 premiere when he decided to move to Michigan to be closer to his newly discovered family. Meanwhile, Eamonn is stepping back from playing boss Wallace Boden but will likely return for a number of episodes in some capacity in the future.
As for Kara, her final storyline saw her on-screen counterpart Sylvie Brett pack her bags for Portland after tying the knot with Matt Casey (Jesse Spencer).
Speaking to TVLine about her exit, Kara teased a possible cameo return. “If you’re going to spend 10 years somewhere, you want to spend it in a place like our show, but I’m very excited to see what else is out there on the horizon.”
The actress added: “I’m very satisfied with where things end up for Sylvie on Fire. I would be more than happy to pop on anytime.
“[Firehouse] 51 has a unique way of getting itself into trouble, and we love to see familiar faces, and so I’m happy to come back anytime.”
