Jesse Spencer Shares Emotional Behind-the-Scenes Video After Surprising 'Chicago Fire' Exit
Jesse Spencer capped his time at Firehouse 51 with an emotional video paying tribute to his time on Chicago Fire. After Spencer's Captain Matthew Casey announced his exit during the drama series' milestone 200th episode, the actor bid farewell to the series he starred on for the past 10 years by sharing his new track, "FireBug (si ça te fait plaisir)," which translates to "if it pleases you," alongside a behind-the-scenes video highlighting his time on the show.
The four-minute-long video offered a behind-the-scenes look at Spencer's time on Chicago Fire, showing the actor on set with his former co-stars, including Taylor Kinney, Monica Raymund and David Eigenberg. The video, which showed moments throughout Spencer's 10-year tenure on the show, was accompanied by his singing and ukele playing. The House alum, however, made it clear that his time on the NBC drama would not soon be forgotten, Spencer singing, "well that flame forever burns in my heart," going on to add, "just would not have been the same without you all right here."
https://t.co/EiO13QyHd7 #ChicagoFire
— Jesse Spencer (@Jesse_Spencer) October 21, 2021
After starring as Captain Matthew Casey, one of the leaders at Firehouse 51, ever since the Dick Wolf series' 2012 premiere, Spencer officially exited the show during Wednesday night's historic 200th episode. During the episode, his character told his love interest Sylvie Brett and his colleagues that he would be moving to Portland, Oregon to care for his late best friend Andy Darden's sons. After Darden died in the series premiere, his son Griffin showed up in Chicago asking for help, with Spencer's onscreen counterpart going on to secure a job with the Portland Fire Department.
Addressing his departure from the show with reporters, Spencer said he was ready to take a break from network TV. The actor secured his role on Chicago Fire following his eight-season run on House. He told reporters that he "realized I've been doing TV for a long time," and while he has "loved the show from the star," there are "other things that I would like to do in the future, and there's some family that I need to take care of, and 18 years is a long time." After deciding that it was time for him to step away, he said he called showrunner Derek Haas "and broke him the news, said I thought it was time to leave the show, and he agreed that we should at least get Casey to 200 episodes."
The 200th episode may not have marked Spencer's last Chicago Fire appearance, though. He and Haas revealed that the story has been left open for the actor's potential return, with the actor explaining that he is "just stepping back for right now." New episodes of Chicago Fire air Wednesdays on NBC.