‘Chicago Med’: Major Star Agrees to Stay on the Show Ahead of Season 8

When Chicago Med returns for its eighth season in September, nurse Maggie Lockwood will be back to work. Star Marlyne Barrett, who has played the character since the show began, signed a multi-year deal to return to the series, reports Deadline. Chicago Med is the youngest of Dick Wolf’s three One Chicago shows, following Chicago Fire and Chicago PD.

Barrett’s future was in question since she was not among the stars to renew their contracts before last season. She didn’t sign on for new seasons alongside S. Epatha Merkerson, Oliver Platt, Nick Gehlfuss, and Brian Tee only because her contract didn’t expire after Season 7 wrapped. Maggie is the charge nurse at Gaffney Chicago Medical Center’s emergency department and is never afraid to speak her mind. In Season 5, she survived breast cancer and married cancer patient Ben Campbell (Charles Malik Whitfield). The character has also appeared in crossovers with the other Chicago shows.

“Here we go! ITS OFFICIAL. More to come for Maggie – Love the Wolf Pack,” Barrett wrote on Instagram Monday. “Looking forward to Season 8.” The main cast for Season 7 also included Will Halstead, Torrey DeVitto, Dominic Rains, Steven Weber, Guy Lockard, Kristen Hager, and Jessy Schram.

Barrett earned her breakout role as Council President Nerese Campbell on HBO’s The Wire, starring in 11 episodes between 2006 and 2008. She also starred in two episodes of John Ridley’s American Crime and had roles in the movies Hitch and After Everything. Barrett worked with Wolf by appearing in episodes of Law & Order, Law & Order: Trial by Jury, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and Conviction.

Chicago Med Season 8 will debut on NBC on Wednesday, Sept. 21 at 8 p.m. ET. Chicago Fire Season 11 and Chicago PD Season 10 will begin the same night. Wolf is an executive producer on Med, alongside Diane Frolov, Andrew Schneider, Stephen Hootstein, Derek Haas, Arthur Forney, Matt Olmstead, Michael Brandt, Nicole Rubio, and Peter Jankowski.

Wolf is the overlord of two other primetime nights. On Thursdays this fall, NBC will air Law & Order, SVU, and Law & Order: Organized Crime all on one night. Producers are plotting a three-show crossover for this season, and it could serve as the season premiere on Sept. 22. Wolf is also the executive producer on CBS’ FBI, FBI: Most Wanted, and FBI: International, which will air on Tuesday nights this fall.