"Chicago Med" is a medical drama created by Dick Wolf and Matt Olmstead that began airing on NBC on November 17, 2015. The show is the third entry in Wolf's shared "One Chicago" TV franchise and crosses over between "Chicago Fire" and "Chicago P.D." In April 2023, "Chicago Med" was renewed for a ninth season. Its first season, which aired from 2015 to 2016, averaged 9.83 million viewers, and the series peaked with its fifth season, which aired from 2019 to 2020, and had an average of 11.22 million viewers. The "Chicago Med" pilot episode debuted on April 7, 2015, to 8.43 million viewers, and the show began airing in the 9 p.m. time slot on Tuesday. In Season 2, it moved to the same time slot on Thursdays, but dipped slightly in viewership. In Season 3, the show tried a 10 p.m. time slot on Tuesdays before sticking to its 8 p.m. time slot on Wednesdays going forward in Season 4. The cast has changed over the seasons, but originally Nick Gehlfuss starred as Dr. Will Halstead, the older brother of "Chicago P.D." character Detective Jay Halstead, from Seasons 1 to 8. Torrey DeVitto played Dr. Natalie Manning, who was briefly engaged to Will and left to reunite with him in Season 8. Yaya DaCosta played April Sexton from Season 1 to 6, then returned as a recurring character in Season 8. Other cast members included Rachel DiPillo, Colin Donnell, Brian Tee, S. Epatha Merkerson, Oliver Platt, Marlyne Barrett, Norma Kuling, Dominic Rains, Steven Weber and Jessy Schram.