‘Chicago Fire’ Alum Taylor Kinney Makes First Appearance Since Series Leave of Absence

Chicago Fire actor Taylor Kinney has stepped out for his first red carpet appearance since announcing a leave of absence from the hit NBC series. PEOPLE reports that Kinney was spotted at the 2023 MotoGP VIP Experience & Charity Giving event, which was held over the weekend at the Circuit of The Americas race track just outside of Austin, Texas. The event was in support of MotoUp, a non-profit organization that supports military communities through motorsports.

It was announced earlier this year that Kinney — who plays Lieutenant Kelly Severide — would be taking a leave of absence from the show — which is in its 11th season — for an undetermined amount of time. The actor has not spoken out about his temporary exit, other than to say that he needs time to “deal with a personal matter.” In Episode 15 of Kinney’s leave of absence was explained by Severide said to be attending “the best arson investigation training program in the world.” It was further noted that his absence did not necessarily mean he was leaving the firehouse, so the show seems fully prepared for Kinney to return at some point in the future.

Kinney’s leave succeeds the news that Chicago Fire co-creator Derek Haas — who has been the series showrunner for all 11 seasons of the NBC drama — is leaving Wolf Entertainment at the end of Season 11. Notably, Haas is also the showrunner of CBS’ FBI: International.

“Although I am leaving Wolf Entertainment next year to focus on creating new shows, I’m entirely committed to delivering amazing episodes of Chicago Fire and FBI: International through the end of the current seasons,” Haas told Variety in a statement in November. “I learned everything I know about storytelling, pace, characters, production values, and hiring the best cast, crews, and staffs from Dick Wolf and Peter Jankowski, and as hard as it is to leave a place you love and have called home for over a decade, including incredible support from Universal Television, NBC and CBS, I look forward to building my own brand in entertainment.” It is currently unclear if Haas has any new shows in development.

The Chicago exits continue to roll in it seems, as Jesse Lee Soffer left Chicago P.D. back in October. Soffer had played Senior Detective Jay Halstead since Season 1. Prior to Soffer’s exit, Chicago P.D. showrunner Gwen Sigan spoke with Variety and hinted at how the exit would impact the character’s wife, Detective Hailey Upton Halstead (Tracy Spiridakos).