Chicago P.D. got off to a grisly start in the 2024 TV schedule with a death right off the bat in Season 12, with the aftermath previewing what new cast member Toya Turner would bring to the One Chicago drama as Officer Kiana Cook. Of course, since she was replacing the Intelligence Unit’s one detective, I had to ask showrunner Gwen Sigan a question I’ve been pondering for years: when will one of the longtime officers make detective? Well, she answered that very question, and the time is right after P.D. puts Cook in the spotlight.
The official description from NBC for Episode 5 – called “Water and Honey” – previews that in the middle of “a momentous rainstorm,” the team will support Officer Cook “when she and her partner disagree about an investigation,” although the promo suggests that Torres will get a fair amount of focus. It seems that the Intelligence Unit might finally be ready for Upton’s replacement, both as more boots on the ground and promoting somebody to fill the detective vacancy.
And I first asked the question of which Chicago P.D. officer should make detective next back in 2021, when I interviewed the cast. Subsequent events seemed to suggest that Atwater would be next, but I’m not so sure after a clue from early Season 12. When I spoke with the showrunner ahead of the premiere, however, I did get confirmation that the promotion is on the way for somebody, with Gwen Sigan sharing:
It definitely is. A promotion is in store, and I think it will be really fun. It’s been so many years that we’ve tried to make it [happen]. How do you make that into an actual story? How can you make a promotion into something deeper than that for one of our characters? So we finally found a way to do it, and I’m excited.
As I said, I previously suspected that Atwater would be next up, but LaRoyce Hawkins went out of his way to compliment Marina Squerciati as Burgess and Patrick John Flueger as Ruzek when we spoke earlier this year. What changed my mind in Season 12 was a brief exchange in the premiere, which was an episode that didn’t feature Squerciati at all. (You can find it streaming with a Peacock subscription.)
Ruzek established that his fiancé was absent because she was at the NAWLEE – a.k.a. National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives – conference, where she was “learning a lot.” The late Emily Martel commented that “CPD loves stuff like NAWLEE” and attending will “give her a leg up.” The stars seem to be aligning for Burgess to be the next detective, and we won’t have too long to wait for more than just more clues. According to the showrunner:
That will be Episode 6. You’ll see a little bit of something happen for one of our one of our characters.
The downside is that NBC will air a repeat of the Chicago P.D. Season 12 premiere next week rather than a new episode, and the network has not confirmed if Episode 6 will air the week after. Still, if you’re anything like me and have been asking the question about the next detective for a long time now, that wait is coming to an end. For now, check out the promo for the new episode on October 23:
As always, Chicago P.D. closes out NBC’s One Chicago lineup on Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET, following Chicago Fire at 9 p.m. ET and Chicago Med at 8 p.m. ET. You can also find all three dramas streaming on Peacock.