Torrey DeVitto discusses what led to Natalie Manning’s significant cameo in Chicago Med a few weeks after her comeback in the season 8 finale. Nick Gehlfuss, who played Will Halstead on One Chicago, opted to leave the program, and the show lost another original cast member, this time under the medical drama label. However, his departure was bittersweet because it allowed for his reconciliation with Natalie.
Now, DeVitto breaks her silence over her return as Natalie Manning in the Chicago Med season 8 finale in an interview with ET. During the conversation, she credits Gehlfuss as the person who recruited her to do the cameo. Read her full quote below:
“My agents got a call asking if I would come back and then I personally got a call from Nick Gehlfuss. Nick is like a brother to me. It was pretty much an instant yes to come back and see this out with him. He and I both felt like our characters didn’t get the ending they both deserved together, so it was really nice being able to come back and give them that “happily ever after.” Stepping back into Natalie’s shoes felt like coming back home and seeing family. It felt like no time had passed. She will always be such a big part of me. It was a joy getting to step back into her [shoes].”
Staring as an ED pediatrician, Natalie eventually became an attending in the emergency pediatrics division fictional Gaffney Chicago Medical Center. During her time in Chicago Med, she was one of the primary leads of the ensemble series, with an increased focus on her personal life on top of her daily emergency room challenges. Her first husband was killed during combat, forcing her to raise her son, Owen, who also made a cameo in the Chicago Med season 8 finale.
Despite her prominent role in One Chicago, DeVitto decided to exit Chicago Med after season 6. While the show wrote a complicated departure storyline for the character, her real-life farewell was more straightforward. After her multi-year contract expired, she opted out of the Dick Wolf-produced franchise to venture out with her career. Since then, she appeared in a handful of other projects. Her latest one is Hallmark Channel’s new film, Love’s Greek To Me.
For now, it’s uncertain if either Natalie or Will ever return to the Windy City. Chicago Med is confirmed for at least season 9, so Gaffney Chicago Medical Center will have to move forward without them. Considering One Chicago’s history with returning characters, it isn’t outside the realm of possibilities that they make their way back to Chicago.
Source: ET
