LaRoyce Hawkins says goodbye to Chicago P.D. after 14 seasons
Kevin Atwater is out of Chicago.
LaRoyce Hawkins has ended his run as Detective Kevin Atwater on NBC's Chicago P.D. after 14 seasons. His final on-screen appearance came in Season 14, Episode 2, titled "Don't Blink." The episode aired Wednesday, Oct. 14 on NBC, according to NBC Insider.
Hawkins is an original star, meaning he has been with the police drama since its first episode. That opener, "Stepping Stone," premiered Jan. 8, 2014. Fourteen seasons on, that stay amounts to a 12-year run on screen, as noted by People. Hawkins is 38.
Word that he would depart first emerged over the Fourth of July holiday weekend. Hawkins then waited until transmission week to talk it through. He spoke to The Hollywood Reporter in an interview conducted a day before his last episode aired. He said he planned to watch that broadcast in real time, as it went out, surrounded by family.
It was not his first long conversation with that outlet about the character. He previously spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about Season 5 changes and what they would mean for Atwater and his family. That interview was published Oct. 18, 2017. Nine years on, the latest interview closed the loop.
In the farewell story, Atwater does not die. He steps away from the Intelligence Unit, the plainclothes detective team at the centre of the programme, to focus on family life. He decides to relocate from Chicago to Atlanta with Tasha and their baby son. Karen Obilom appears in the episode as Fox.
The exit carries extra weight because Hawkins himself is Chicago-area through and through. He is a native of Harvey. He played a Chicago detective for more than a decade as a local actor in a Chicago-set show. That link made him a favourite for many viewers at home.
For fans who have followed since 2014, this changes the shape of the team on screen. Atwater held the rank of detective and served as a steady presence in the unit alongside stars including Patrick John Flueger. Viewers learned his story week by week, season by season. Seeing him choose family and leave town brings that long arc to a close.
