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The Chicago Fire Showrunner Revealed a Season 12 Twist You Didn't See Coming

Showrunner Andrea Newman gave some details about Chicago Fire Season 12 in a new interview. 

By Jackie Manno

Chicago Fire has been known for its dramatic ups and downs, and it looks like Season 12 will be no exception. 

How to Watch

Watch Chicago Fire Wednesdays at 9/8c on NBC and next day on Peacock.

In a December 2023 interview with TV Line, showrunner Andrea Newman teased a new, mysterious detail about what to expect for the upcoming season. 

"There will be some time jump going into the premiere, and viewers and 51 are in it together,” she told the outlet. “There have been big changes, and the 51 gang is on a rollercoaster ride throughout the episode trying to navigate all of it.”

But what, exactly, does this surprising twist mean? When we finally see our 51 crew in Season 12, where will they be emotionally, mentally — heck, even physically? Tune in to the Season 12 premiere of Chicago Fire on Wednesday, January 17 at 9/8c on NBC to find out. (Episodes will also be available for streaming the next day on Peacock.)

Newman also revealed in the TV Line interview that a new face is joining Truck 81. 

“There will be a new firefighter joining Truck 81, but not for the reasons anyone thinks,” Newman said. “Of course, the newbie will be trouble with a capital T — but is it the good kind or the bad kind? We’ll find out….” 

Indeed we will. Only a few more weeks left to go until the Chicago Fire Season 12 premiere. Who's excited? 

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Chicago Fire's Miranda Rae Mayo opens up about the show 

Truck 81 is Stella's (Miranda Rae Mayo) domain, so we're sure she and this new recruit will have plenty of interactions. In a 2022 interview with Looper, Mayo, who joined the Chicago Fire cast in Season 4, opened up about what the experience of filming the show has been like for her. 

"The crew was so loving and warm and welcoming and really wanted me to succeed," she said. "That's also what we saw onscreen with Stella Kidd's character is that, from the jump, there was the support of Dawson's (Monica Raymund) character. Since Dawson was supportive, everybody else hopped on board and was very quick to embrace her. That's very much how my experience was off-camera. The people who really welcomed me the most were Uri, who played Otis, and David Eigenberg, who played Herrmann. And Brett [Kara Killmer]. They were very warm and, 'Come in, meet the family, meet my family, come over for dinner.'"

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Chicago Fire's Miranda Rae Mayo

She continued, "But I think that, when doing a show and pushing characters who live in the culture of the CFD, it's hard not to exude that, because that's very much how firefighters are. It's all about family, it's all about helping people and the community. It's been a great team to be a part of." 

She also talked about how the role has changed her as a person: "I feel like I've just been more curious, if that makes sense, just about the process of how people operate in this profession. I think maybe the most challenging part for me, or one of the more challenging parts is, I'm a very ... I love to talk about the process with other people. It's the archetype of an actor. 'Let's talk about our feelings, let's talk about our process, let's be in this together.' And that is the antithesis of the culture of the people who work in the CFD that I've met."