Why Yaya DaCosta left Chicago Med for Fox’s Our Kind of People

Earlier this year, the news first came out that Yaya DaCosta was leaving Chicago Med after being a longtime part of the series. It came as somewhat of a surprise at the time, but the writers were able to put together a fitting exit for her character of Dr. April Sexton.

So what lies ahead for the actress now? In the event that you did not know, she is joining a new series on Fox in Our Kind of People, a show that you can check out in promo form below. This was a move made to take on a different sort of material. Speaking (per Deadline) about the transition today, DaCosta made it clear that her leaving the NBC show had to do mostly with the material she was presented by the new show, as opposed to something wrong on the Chicago Med front:

“My exit from Chicago Med and the arrival of this show happened really simultaneously. There isn’t much to say about it. There was a window opening and a question mark as to whether I should stay or go … And in that window, I fell in love with Our Kind of People and I jumped at the opportunity to work with Lee Daniels again. I first worked with him years ago on The Butler.”

DaCosta was not the only actress to depart Chicago Med after season 6, as Torrey DeVitto (Natalie Manning) also chose to move on. It’s fairly common for One Chicago actors to leave after a lengthy stretch of time — these shows have a procedural format and ultimately, it makes sense that people would want to do something new. For Yaya in particular, she’s getting a chance to headline her own show here after being a part of a larger ensemble; the transition in that way feels more or less like a no-brainer.

The Chicago Med season 7 premiere is airing on NBC come September 22 — two weeks from today! For more on that, be sure to visit the link here.

Are you going to miss Yaya DaCosta on Chicago Med?

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