NEED TO KNOW
- Marlyne Barrett, one of the original stars of Chicago Med, is stepping back ahead of season 11, which premieres Wednesday, Oct. 1
- The actress, who plays emergency department charge nurse Maggie Lockwood, is one of only three original cast members who are series regulars
- Barrett previously battled uterine and ovarian cancer, telling PEOPLE in September 2024 she was in “complete remission”
Marlyne Barrett is taking a step back from Chicago Med.
When the NBC medical drama returns this fall for season 11, the 46-year-old actress, who plays emergency department charge nurse Maggie Lockwood at Gaffney Chicago Medical Center, won’t be on the show, PEOPLE has learned.
NBC had no comment on the matter when contacted by PEOPLE.
Deadline was first to report the news, suggesting the exit will be “temporary,” citing sources.
Barrett has been a part of the Chicago Med cast since the very beginning.
Barrett was part of the original cast when the show premiered in 2015, starring alongside Nick Gehlfuss, Yaya DaCosta, Torrey DeVitto, Rachel DiPillo, Colin Donnell, Brian Tee, S. Epatha Merkerson and Oliver Platt.
Of the original cast, only Merkerson, Platt and Barrett are still series regulars.
Merkerson plays Sharon Goodwin, the executive director of patient and medical services, while Platt plays Dr. Daniel Charles, the head of the psychiatry department.
PEOPLE confirmed on Aug. 27 that Gehlfuss is returning to the show and reprising his role as Dr. William “Will” Halstead in a guest arc, though the number of episodes he’ll be in is not yet known.
Barrett has been open about her cancer battle over the past few years.
The Wire star announced in September 2022 that she had been diagnosed with uterine and ovarian cancer that July, after doctors found a football-sized tumor on her left ovary during a routine checkup.
When speaking exclusively to PEOPLE in September 2024, Barrett revealed that she was in “complete remission” after undergoing 30 rounds of chemotherapy and surgery.
Barrett remained positive through it all and continued working on Chicago Med while receiving treatment, something she said was “life-giving” for her during that time.
“I don’t think that people realize mobility means life,” she said at the time. “So as long as I was able to move, work, laugh at everybody’s bad jokes. People were treating me like I was normal, even when my eyebrows were no longer present. It made the time fun, not necessarily having to think about [my health] all the time.”
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Chicago Med season 11 premieres Wednesday, Oct. 1, at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.
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