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Dr. Stevie Hammer's absence from Chicago Med appears to be permanent as Kristen Hager, who played her on the NBC medical drama for half a season, has left the show. Last fall, Kristen Hager made her debut on Chicago Med's season 7 premiere, appearing in 13 episodes.
Although Hager has departed the show, showrunners Diane Frolov and Andrew Schneider say the character could return at any time. Hammer, after all, is still alive and well after leaving Gaffney Chicago Medical Center. In an interview with Variety, Schneider explained his reasoning, saying,
"She's a wonderful actor. We felt we had pretty much done her story regarding her mom and resolved that, but we'd love to have her back. And the great thing about the 'One Chicago' series is if the character's alive, the character can come back."
Frolov teased her return, even more, saying,
"What's happening with Stevie right now is she's going back to try and reconnect with her husband and make that work. So we're leaving that up in the air. Does that in fact happen? She is a character that has the potential to return."
All about Kristen Hager's departure from Chicago Med
Kristen Hager debuted on the show as a physician in the emergency room during the seventh season's premiere. Stevie was last seen in Episode 14, titled All The Things That Could’ve Happened, in early March when she reunited with her mother and then decided to move to Michigan to try again with her estranged husband.
Stevie's move ended a possible romance before it could even get off the ground, after some will-they-won't-they-back-and-forth with Dr. Will Halstead. In a later episode, Will's ex-girlfriend Hannah returned to the hospital, and her actor, Jessy Schram, will become a series regular in the future.
Even though Stevie has left Chicago, the door is open for her to return at some point. Her mother's story arc might have concluded, but that doesn't necessarily mean that the character has no chance of returning.
More about the upcoming episodes of Chicago Med
It was recently confirmed that Steven Weber, who was promoted to series regular at the same time Hager joined the cast, will return as Dr. Dean Archer next season.
The return of Jessie Schram as Dr. Hannah Asher, Will Halstead's, played by Nick Gehlfuss, love interest who struggled with drug addiction, also shakes things up. She has been clean for two years and has returned to work at Gaffney Chicago Medical Center.
Chicago Med airs Wednesday nights at 8.00 pm on NBC.
