'Chicago Med' Season 8 Premiere Features Surprise Return of Fan-Favorite

America's Next Top Model alum Yaya DeCosta made a surprise return to Chicago Med. Season 8 featured her beloved character of Dr. April Sexton, with the possibility of her becoming a permanent star again. DaCosta left the medical drama at the end of its sixth season. She later appeared as the title character on FOX's nighttime soap opera, Our Kind of People. The show was canceled after one season. Her unexpected departure from Chicago Med left the writers scrambling with how to transition. "We had to make sure that their arcs last season set them both up for surprising but understandable departures from the show," co-showrunner Diane Frolov told Entertainment Tonight in 2021. last "We also had to set up that the characters they were closest to -- Will, Crockett, and Ethan -- were emotionally poised to rebuild their lives after Natalie and April had left. Ethan misses April and will always have feelings for her, but that won't impede him from having strong romantic relationships in the future," co-showrunner Andy Schneider added.

In the final minutes of the Season 8 premiere titled "How Do You Begin to Count the Losses," Dr. Sexton visited the grave of her estranged ex, Ethan's (Brian Tee), late father to pay her respects after hearing about his death. The exes chat and realize that unresolved feelings came back to the surface. "April?" Ethan called when he notices her at the cemetery. "I saw your dad's obituary. I would've come to the service, but I wasn't sure... I mean, I didn't want it to be awkward," April told him. "Are you back in Chicago?" he asked, which she confirmed that she is.  Fans are hoping the former pair rekindle their romance.

Created by Dick Wolf and Matt Olmstead as the third installment of Wolf Entertainment's Chicago franchise, Chicago Med in 2015. The show follows the emergency department and the doctors and nurses of the fictional Gaffney Chicago Medical Center. DeCosta had been on the show since the beginning. 

DeCosta's absence was felt, but she insisted she didn't leave for the FOX drama. "My exit from Chicago Med and the arrival of this show happened really simultaneously. There isn't much to say about it. There was a window opening and a question mark as to whether I should stay or go," DaCosta said per One Chicago Center. "And in that window, I fell in love with Our Kind of People and I jumped at the opportunity to work with Lee Daniels again. I first worked with him years ago on The Butler."