For more than a decade, Taylor Kinney’s Kelly Severide has been one of Chicago Fire’s most recognizable faces. But not every chapter of Severide’s journey has been universally loved. In fact, some storylines turned the fanbase sharply against him—earning the character more backlash than praise.
Kinney has openly acknowledged that Severide’s most criticized phase came when the character drifted away from the disciplined leader fans admired and leaned into reckless decisions, emotional distance, and morally gray choices. From impulsive relationships to questionable calls on the job, these moments sparked heated debates online, with viewers accusing the show of “ruining” Severide.
According to Kinney, that backlash wasn’t a surprise. He’s said that those storylines were designed to show how trauma, loss, and pressure can erode even the strongest firefighters. “Severide isn’t meant to be perfect,” the actor has explained. “He’s meant to be human—and sometimes that means making choices people don’t agree with.”
What frustrated fans the most was seeing Severide push people away—especially when it came to leadership and loyalty at Firehouse 51. For longtime viewers, it felt like a betrayal of the character they’d grown to love. But for Kinney, that discomfort was the point. The goal was to challenge expectations and show the cost of carrying too much for too long.
💥 Love him or criticize him, Severide remains impossible to ignore.
Taylor Kinney’s willingness to lean into the backlash only cemented the character’s complexity—and kept Chicago Fire at the center of fan conversation. Because in a show built on heat and pressure, even heroes are bound to crack.
