Executive producers Andy Schneider and Diane Frolov preview Wednesday's Christmas episode.
It's time to ring in the holiday cheer at Gaffney Chicago Medical Center. On Wednesday's fall finale of Chicago Med, "Secret Santa Has a Gift for You," it's Christmastime in the Windy City, but the doctors and nurses aren't exactly brimming with excitement over the arrival of the festive holiday.
With the outcome of Will’s (Nick Gehlfuss) secret investigation into Matt (Michael Rady) weighing heavily on his mind, he switches gears and works with Dylan (Guy Lockard) to help a 4-month-old patient. Meanwhile, Stevie (Kristen Hager) and Vanessa (Asjha Cooper) both struggle to keep their secrets under wraps, while Crockett (Dominic Rains) and Blake (Sarah Rafferty) work with Abrams (Brennan Brown) to save a patient in need of a liver transplant.
The fall finale, showrunners Andy Schneider and Diane Frolov hint, is the culmination of all that's led up to this point -- and it's resolve itself in an unexpected, dramatic way.
"We bring the [Medicare fraud storyline] to a head. It has a very explosive end to it and that's in our fall episode," teases Frolov. "We also do the same thing with the Vanessa-Maggie relationship," which Schneider adds "has a surprising turn," as well as the dynamic between Blake and Crockett.
"Everything that we've platformed and set up through the first half of the season comes to a head in this finale," Schneider says.
The OneChicago franchise is known for leaving it all out on the field when it comes to midseason closers and this episode is no different. "We've maintained that tradition," Schneider says with a laugh. "It's a Christmas full of surprises."
Frolov noted that it's rare for Med to feature a holiday episode during its seasons, echoing Schneider's sentiments that the developments in the fall finale is surprising and changes the course of several characters' trajectories. As for what viewers can expect when the medical comes back from holiday break in early January, Frolov says they'll "have to pay off the fallout from this finale."
"It does springboard. We're having some cliffhangers that will need resolution come the rest of the season," Schneider says, adding that Brian Tee, who plays Dr. Ethan Choi, "will be back later in the season." (Tee was also filming Expats for Amazon Prime Video.)
"It's great to have him back. He's such an important character to this show and brings so much to the show. It was great to have him back for a limited time," Schneider says.
And Schneider and Frolov aren't closing the door just yet on possible returns for former stars Torrey DeVitto and Yaya DaCosta, both of whom departed the series after last season. (DaCosta currently stars on Fox's Our Kind of People.)
"Both of those doors are open," she promises. "Both of them. You know, neither character has died. So I think that's another thing that goes on with these Chicago shows, people do show up again."
"No question. Both of those actors left on very good terms. Everybody loves them. And the thought of them coming back is certainly positive," Schneider adds. "It's very possible."
Chicago Med returns for its fall finale Wednesday, Dec. 8 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NBC. For more, watch below.
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