LaRoyce Hawkins finished filming his final episode of Chicago P.D. on August 14, ending a 13-season run that has helped define Kevin Atwater on the series. The exit lands just as the show moves toward its 14th season on Wednesday, October 7, with only a short stretch left to explain how Atwater leaves.
Sheila R. Brown wrote in an August 14 post, “Yesterday, @laroycehawkins filmed his final episode of #ChicagoPD. His hard work paid off with 13 seasons on the show” and added, “We will miss Kevin Atwater! However, I can't wait to see what unfolds next for you, my friend. Bravo!” That wording matters because Hawkins is not gone from the season in one clean break; he is only returning for a couple of episodes to close out Officer Kevin Atwater's storyline.
August 14 at Cinespace Chicago Film Studios
On August 14, Sheila R. Brown posted videos and photos of Hawkins being celebrated after wrapping filming, with Marina Squerciati, Jason Beghe, Jesse Lee Soffer, Tracy Spiridakos, Miranda Rae Mayo, Arienne Mandi, and Benjamin Levy Aguilar present. Brown, who is Executive Director of the CineCares Foundation at Cinespace Chicago Film Studios, framed the moment as a sendoff, and Marina Squerciati echoed that the group was “sending off one of the best.”
That August 15 follow-up gave the clearest read on how the production is handling the departure: this is not a quiet off-screen exit, but a cast-level farewell for an original member of Chicago P.D. Hawkins first came into the season-exit conversation on July 2, when it was said he would appear in two or three episodes, so the final stop here is a compressed farewell rather than a long goodbye.
Kevin Atwater in Season 14
Two episodes is the likeliest endpoint, and that narrow window points to a story that has to move fast when Chicago P.D. returns for its 14th season. The show now has to finish Officer Kevin Atwater’s arc without dragging it across too many episodes, which is where the business of serialized TV becomes obvious: every beat has to earn its place, especially when a core character is leaving.
The harder issue is the one the captions did not solve. Hawkins is wrapping up Atwater’s storyline, but how the character exits is still the real dramatic test, and the cleanest path seems to avoid a death and instead tie the departure to Tasha Fox and the possibility of Atwater becoming a father. For viewers, that means the next chapter is not just Hawkins’ last appearance; it is whether Chicago P.D. gives Atwater an exit that closes 13 seasons without flattening what the character has built.
