LaRoyce Hawkins becomes latest core cast departure from Chicago P.D.

The goodbye played out on screen in a tense case that pushed Kevin Atwater to rethink his life off the job. In Season 14, Episode 2, Atwater stepped away from the Intelligence Unit and hinted at a move into teaching, a choice tied to the weight of fatherhood after a case hit painfully close to home.

For LaRoyce Hawkins , it caps a run that stretches back to the show’s early days, when Atwater was a rookie on patrol before becoming one of the unit’s most reliable voices. Over roughly a decade on the long-running Chicago P.D. on NBC, Atwater’s arc tracked promotions, hard choices, and a growing sense of responsibility that made this exit land with extra force.

Hawkins logged approximately 268 episodes as Kevin Atwater.

Who’s left the unit before

Hawkins joins a line of major departures that have reshaped the team more than once over the years:

• Sophia Bush — Erin Lindsay. Bush later alleged she endured a toxic work environment during her time on the series.
• Jon Seda — Antonio Dawson, a core player from the show’s early era.
• Jesse Lee Soffer — Jay Halstead, who exited in 2024 after more than a decade.

Separately, Tracy Spiridakos (Hailey Upton) has spoken out about unrealistic beauty standards placed on women in the industry, adding to ongoing conversations about what life behind the scenes can look like.

Shortly after the episode aired, Hawkins thanked viewers for the ride in a message on Instagram Stories.