LaRoyce Hawkins exits Chicago P.D. after 13 seasons as Atwater
Archived — this story has rotated out of today’s deck. It is kept here in full.
The gist
Actor LaRoyce Hawkins left NBC's Chicago P.D. in Season 14's second episode after 13 seasons as Kevin Atwater.
Naiqui Macabroad joins as Officer Donovan "Penny" Watts, filling the Intelligence Unit gap.
Background
Chicago P.D. is the darkest series in NBC's One Chicago Universe, the Dick Wolf franchise that began with Chicago Fire in 2012 and airs alongside Chicago Med on Wednesday nights. LaRoyce Hawkins played officer Kevin Atwater since the series premiered in 2014. Cast turnover has become routine for the Chicago shows — ahead of Season 13, Toya Turner left after one season as Officer Kiana Cook and Arienne Mandi joined as Officer Eva Imani — and the franchise is adjusting to losing several original cast members.
How it unfolded
- Jul 2, 2026Deadline reports Hawkins is leaving as a series regular after 13 seasons and will return to wrap up Atwater's storyline in the first two or three episodes of Season 14; the show begins casting a new series regular, a Black cop described as an agent of chaos.
- Oct 2026Season 14 returns on NBC, and Naiqui Macabroad debuts as Officer Donovan "Penny" Watts, stepping into the spot left by Atwater's departure.
- Oct 14, 2026The episode "Don't Blink" airs as Atwater's last; fans learned of it only from the preview of the prior week's episode.
- Nov 7, 2026CBR reports Episode 4, "My Eye, My Call," introduces Watts, a beat cop from the 11th District who helps Voight's unit on a homicide case and is recruited by Voight; Collider reports Episode 6 forces Intelligence to adapt to a new style of community policing during a Chinatown kidnapping case.
- Nov 8, 2026Just Jared reports Hawkins officially exited in the second episode of Season 14, with Jason Beghe, Marina Squerciati, Patrick John Flueger and several other familiar stars returning.
Key terms
- One Chicago Universe
- A franchise of American TV dramas about Chicago public services, created by Dick Wolf and aired on NBC.
- Intelligence Unit
- The plainclothes detective division of Chicago's 21st District that investigates major crimes in the series.
Source: Wikipedia
Who’s saying what
- Analysts
- CBR notes that neither Hawkins nor NBC has cited an official behind-the-scenes reason for the sendoff.
- Public
- Some fans have speculated the cast rotation could be a way to cut costs given Hawkins' 14-year tenure, per CBR.
Still unverified
No official explanation has come from Hawkins or NBC for the departure; speculation has turned to money and cost-cutting measures across the industry, and some fans have speculated the cast rotation could be a way to cut costs given Hawkins' 14-year tenure.