Chicago Fire season 6 spoilers: Will Jason Kannell return?

At the end of Chicago Fire season 5, we had an opportunity to learn for the first time about Jason Kannell. He came over from a different firehouse with a head and heart full of grief. He eventually did find a friend in Kelly Severide, who was going through his own fair share of trauma in the aftermath of everything that transpired with Anna. He loved her and wanted to believe that the two would have some sort of long-term future; alas, that turned out to not be the case. These two men needed each other, and eventually figured out a way to be there.

With Kannell being one of the people in the fiery cliffhanger at the end of last season, there are many good questions out there about his future on the show — but judging from what showrunner Derek Haas said in a post on Twitter recently, he may not be a big part of it. Per his response to a fan, there aren’t any “big plans” for the character in the first half of season 6. That doesn’t necessarily mean that he dies in the cliffhanger fire, but he may not have a big role in any stories coming in the immediate future. We wouldn’t mind seeing more of him in the event the writers go in that direction.

One of the struggles that often does exist with any new character at this point in the series’ run is trying to find a way to get them to stand out amidst the larger cast. We were lucky that Stella Kidd eventually found her place within the team, given that this was certainly far from a guarantee at one point. We also would assume that there are some more characters who will be coming aboard; we’ve already heard about one of them in a small-town friend of Sylvie Brett. There could be more that follow her up.

At this point, Chicago Fire has been filming season 6 for long enough that they may be transitioning away from the premiere into everything else that is coming. No matter who lives and who dies there, it’s sure to leave the sort of mark that will stick with the 51 crew for a long time. They haven’t moved on from Leslie Shay; it’s his loss of her friendship that caused Severide to spiral a few seasons back, and through that and meeting Anna, he learned to not do things the same way again.

New episodes of the series begin airing in September. Tell us know: Do you want Jason Kannell to be a big part of them? Share now in the comments below, and head over to the link here in the event you’re interested in further news and insight when it comes to the series. (Photo: NBC.)