Why Jon Seda's Antonio Dawson Left Chicago P.D.

Jon Seda's Antonio Dawson was one of the most recognizable faces in the One Chicago universe. The character appeared across multiple procedurals that made up NBC's popular franchise, but became best known for co-leading "Chicago P.D." After six seasons of the police drama, however, Seda departed, and according to reports from the time, it all came down to his character's storyline being played out — though it seems there's likely more to the story.

Seda was one of the original stars of "Chicago P.D.," playing Detective Antonio Dawson after portraying the character in a recurring capacity on the mothership series "Chicago Fire." Alongside Jason Beghe's Hank Voight, Dawson was the co-lead of "Chicago P.D." but left the show midway through season 4 to join the cast of the quickly-cancelled legal spinoff "Chicago Justice." Following that brief interlude, Seda returned to "Chicago P.D." for season 5 before leaving for good at the end of season 6. During that time, Seda appeared in dozens of "Chicago Fire" episodes, seemingly cementing his status as a One Chicago mainstay, making his eventual departure a surprise and a major downer for fans of the franchise.

Seda left the "Chicago" franchise in 2019 alongside "Chicago Med" co-stars Colin Donnell and Norma Kuhling. At the time, Deadline cited sources as claiming his and the other cast departures stemmed from "creative reasons related to the characters' story evolution." According to the report, Dawson as a character had "played out," but Seda himself remained "very well liked by the producers" with the outlet speculating that he could show up in future projects from the same creative team in the future — which thus far hasn't happened.

Antonio Dawson was a detective and the older brother of former Firehouse 51 paramedic Gabby Dawson (Monica Raymund), who similarly left the "Chicago Fire" cast after six seasons. Following his brief stint on "Chicago Justice," Seda returned to "P.D." in the first episode of season 5. His character soon suffered a shoulder injury that caused him to become hooked on painkillers, leading to a horrific storyline in which a dealer rapes his daughter. This prompts an intoxicated Antonio to kill the dealer, forcing his co-workers to cover up the murder. In the season 7 premiere, we learn he'd been shipped off to a rehab clinic to finally get clean after a relapse. It was later revealed he'd moved to Puerto Rico.

Such an unceremonious end for Jon Seda's character was a surprise given how well-known a figure he was in the One Chicago universe, suggesting there may have been more at play behind the scenes. Showrunner Rick Eid spoke to CinemaBlend about Dawson's last storyline. "There were a lot of the things in the air when we were writing that, so it sort of morphed," he explained. "But I think the idea is that we wanted to take his character seriously, where he was at the end of season 6, and imagine what would happen to him in episode 1 of season 7." According to Eid, there was "a moment that [he and the writers] were hoping [Seda] was actually going to be in the show" for the season 7 episodes, but "for whatever reason it didn't work out that he was gonna actually do it." Whatever did happen, clearly the writers were never intent upon writing Dawson out of "Chicago P.D."

Whatever really happened between Jon Seda and the "Chicago P.D." producers, the actor remained graceful upon his departure, sharing a message on X where he thanked fans and seemed grateful for his time in the One Chicago universe, saying it had been "an honor portraying Det. Antonio Dawson." Elsewhere, in a ScreenRant interview, Seda said of the show, "I was just thankful to be a part of it. I love the character, but things change, things evolve, and shows change and, for whatever reason, go in different directions. That's where the show went." On the topic of whether Antonio Dawson could return, he said, "I think someone said there was an episode where the sister mentioned he was doing well in Puerto Rico. So look, as long as the show is still going, I'm willing at any time. Antonio is still alive. If they ever wanted me to come back for an episode, or come back, or whatever, I'd be totally up for it. I've learned to never say never."

Showrunner Rick Eid seemed similarly positive when he told CinemaBlend, "I think the door's always open for someone like Jon. Everybody here loves him, thinks he's a great actor. Of course." All of which just makes things even more confusing in terms of why Antonio was so swiftly removed from the series. Still, he lasted longer than former co-star Sophia Bush, who played Erin Lindsay on "Chicago P.D." and left the show after four seasons. 

Since leaving "Chicago P.D.", Seda played the role of Dr. Sam Velez in NBC's sci-fi drama "La Brea" for three seasons before the show wrapped up in 2024. His most recent project was 2025's "Into the Deep," a direct-to-digital action thriller co-starring Richard Dreyfuss.