In what context did Jesse Spencer return to Chicago Fire for the season finale?

Jesse Spencer Returning to Chicago Fire for Season Finale Amid Taylor Kinney’s Continued Leave of Absence

Jesse Spencer will revisit the Windy City in Chicago Fire‘s Season 11 finale — but another firefighter, Taylor Kinney’s Lieutenant Kelly Severide, will not appear in the May 24 episode, TVLine has learned.

It was announced in January that Kinney is taking a leave of absence from the NBC drama to deal with a personal matter. The actor last appeared in the Feb. 22 installment, and his character’s absence was explained in the March 1 episode, when it was revealed that Severide had gone to Alabama for an arson investigation training program.

Spencer most recently reprised his role as Captain Matt Casey in Episode 18 early last month, when Casey came back to Chicago to enlist Lieutenant Stella Kidd into a Department of Homeland Security task force against a potential domestic terror attack. In the season ender, “Kidd finds a new lead on the Homeland Security case,” reads the official episode description.

Spencer exited Fire in the show’s 200th episode, which aired back in October 2021, after almost 10 seasons as a full-time cast member. His character decided to move to Oregon to take care of his late best friend Andy Darden’s sons, while maintaining an off-screen, long-distance relationship with Sylvie Brett (Kara Killmer). The two attended Stella and Severide’s wedding together in the Season 10 finale, but the pair eventually broke up in the Season 11 premiere, citing bad timing. When Casey visited Firehouse 51 last month, he hinted to Chief Boden that his time in Oregon might be coming to an end as the Darden boys are almost off to college, opening up the possibility of a reunion with Brett down the road.

Asked if he would ever return to the show full-time, Spencer previously told TVLine, “Oh, that’s a tough question. I think I’m always open to it. I never say never. When I left the show, I talked to [co-showrunner] Derek [Haas] and everybody and said, ‘Listen, if it makes sense to bring me in for a storyline that you think would be appropriate for Casey to come in for, I’m happy to pop in for an episode.’ But in terms of like long-term or something, I don’t think so.”