Chicago Fire Spoilers: EP Talks Shay’s Death, Was Anyone Else Considered To Be Killed Off?

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Chicago Fire fans are still mourning the loss of Shay who was killed off in the season premiere.

TVLine recently caught up with the show’s executive producer Matt Olmstead who opened up about writing Lauren German’s character off the show.

TVLINE | Not to put a target on anybody else’s back, but you have a very big cast. Did you ever consider killing off a different character?

We did. In the writers’ room, we have [photos of] all the actors in character lined up just as a visual reference. We went down, one by one… It’s like a roster of a sports team when you’re having to make a cut. You’re having to weigh the pros and cons of each one. Some we moved off in two seconds, said that wasn’t going to happen. Others we debated, but we gave everybody a day in court. We came back to Shay because it affected the most people.

TVLINE | How far in advance did you tell Lauren the news? And how did she react?

There was some discussion that this might be happening, and she was very professional about it. She joked that she wasn’t going to miss the Chicago winters. She’s a California girl. So it was nice to know she was able to joke about it a little bit. My experience, having done this a couple times, is you’re expecting the worst and then you’re relieved [by] the professionalism and the graciousness of the actor. They almost know that you’re feeling worse than they are. It sucks, but it’s a job and a craft. This is what happens sometimes. You mourn it and move on.

To read the rest of the interview, visit TVLine.com