It’s been a long, hot summer, but One Chicago is finally back.
We recently caught up with Chicago Med showrunners Andrew Schneider and Diane Frolov to chat about what’s coming up on Chicago Med Season 8!
A lot is going on, so please scroll down and check out what they have to tell us about the aftermath of last season’s fiery cliffhanger and what’s ahead for your favorite characters.
Let’s jump right in and talk about the premiere a little bit. What can you tell us about what’s going on with that fire that happened at the end of last season?
DF: Well, we are going to pick it up immediately afterward. We’re going to see what happens to everyone who’s in that building.
Awesome. So I know you can’t give away what happens, but will we need tissues for this premiere?
Andrew: You also might need tissues for other reasons! But we believe there’s a lot of emotional impact in this episode.
That’s going to be exciting. And I’m sure we’re going to see a lot of the aftermath of this. Is this something that’s going to be affecting people throughout the whole season?
Diane: Well, it does have a big effect. When we pick up episode two, that is going to be a month later. So there’s been some processing of what happens in episode one. We don’t just jump to the next week.
Oh, cool. So there’s a lot of time to see where everybody’s head is at and what’s going on with everybody else.
One of the things that I love about Med is that we have these long arcs and some shorter arcs. Speaking of which, can you tell us about what’s going to be happening for Dr. Choi this season now that he’s back?
Diane: Well, he’s going through a metamorphosis, and that is going to continue; we will see more of that. He’s loosening up. He was a bit of a rigid, by-the-book kind of guy. He’ll see more gray areas this season.
And people are surprised by some of the decisions that he makes because they always are looking for the old Ethan or expecting him.
I think we started to see a little bit of that when he came back at the end of last season. I remember thinking, wow, this is interesting from Mr. By the Book. I’m looking forward to more of that! And I understand that there are some new people coming. What can you tell us about that?
Andrew: Well, actually, in the first episode, we introduce a new psych fellow who will be working with Dr. Charles.
Diane: We’ll have a couple of new first-year residents. And what we thought was interesting about that group of medical students is they started when we were going through COVID. They didn’t have hands-on experience.
And so they’re coming into the hospital without having real clinical experience; a lot of stuff they learned on Zoom. You know, it’s an unfortunate situation with some of these residents.
Andrew: They have never touched a patient because of the COVID protocols when they were in medical school. So there’s a steeper learning curve for them.
That’s going to bring on some interesting drama that sounds very topical! It’s also one way that is very different for them than in past years. I think it’s great that you guys are exploring that.
Are there going to be any crossovers from the other Chicago shows?
Andrew: Oh, yeah, yeah. Even in the premiere.
Diane: In the premiere episode, we have many from PD and Fire.
I was wondering if we would see people from Fire since there is a fire! I’m also curious about what else is going on with Dr. Charles and his daughter and the other things that were going on for him last season.
Diane: He will have a personal storyline that we’re starting towards the end of the first group of episodes. We’re also going to explore more that he’s going to be looking for a new therapist –
Andrew: For himself.
Diane: So that’s a personal story. And we’re doing a lot of exploration about psychiatry right now, and what are some of the challenges. You know, the lack of funds and the lack of people in the field and various challenges.
Great. Now, what’s going on with Maggie and Vanessa and their situation?
Diane: That’s a very, very complicated situation. Vanessa wants her biological father to be a part of her life. And for Maggie, this brings up all kinds of difficulties. She hasn’t yet told Ben about Grant! So there’s going to be tension there around that issue.
I was wondering if Ben knew, and since he doesn’t, that will be some great drama. I’m also curious about where we’re going with Dr. Archer this season.
Andrew: He’s going to develop a new kind of respect in his relationship with Hannah Asher.
Diane: And he’s also going to have a health issue, which will manifest a little bit later. I think around episodes four or five, somewhere in there.
Andrew: And that’s something that will be a recurring storyline for him.
It sounds like there’s a lot of interesting stuff going on!
So to wrap up, my final question is: Chicago Med’s been going on for eight seasons. What are some last words about what’s new and exciting in this new season?
Andrew: Well, I think because we are entering season eight, and our characters are loved and well known to our audience, it’s going to be very satisfying emotionally for our viewers to see these characters that they’ve come to know and love in new and interesting situations.
Over to you, TV Fanatics! What are you most looking forward to on Chicago Med Season 8?
Don’t forget you can watch Chicago Med online while waiting for the premiere!
Chicago Med airs on NBC on Wednesdays at 8 PM EST/PST. The season premiere airs on September 21, 2022.
Jack Ori is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. His debut young adult novel, Reinventing Hannah, is available on Amazon. Follow him on Twitter.