Chicago Fire fans were happily stunned when Jesse Spencer returned to the show briefly in the latest season as Capt. Matt Casey. And not only did the hunky firefighter and one-time leading man reappear, but he dropped down to one knee!
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However, just because the 10-year Chicago Fire veteran popped the question to his on-again-off-again love interest on the show, Sylvie Brett (Kara Killmer), doesn't mean he's here to stay.
In season 10, Casey left the Windy City to pursue another work opportunity and raise his adopted children. So is he really ready to move back to Chicago and help Brett raise her own child she's about to adopt? Or will Brett decline his proposal?
Fans will have to wait until next season to find out, as the cast isn't giving any clues as to what Brett might say. NBC also has its lips sealed shut on whether Spencer will return permanently to the Chicago Fire cast after a two-year hiatus.
The Australian actor has been a mainstay on the silver screen for more than two decades — which might explain if you think he looks familiar. But who is Jesse Spencer? Here's everything we know about the longtime television star and where you might recognize him from.
The Young Talent
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The 44-year-old actor was basically born a star. He grew up loving performing and playing music at a very young age. This inspired his parents to push him into auditioning for the Australian Boys Choir.
The young performer spent seven years as a choir boy and even toured the United States singing at one point. Spencer's experience catapulted his love for acting and music, and he started auditioning in theater productions. By the time he was 16, Spencer had nailed his first gig: the teenage heartthrob Bill Kennedy on the Australian soap opera Neighbours.
His six-year run on the show in more than 450 episodes is probably what most Australians know Spencer from — even decades later. The actor essentially grew up on the show, although he eventually decided to leave the show in 2000.
He told Hello! Magazine that his character's arc wasn't challenging him anymore.
"When I said I was leaving, I hoped they would make Bill's departure interesting — but he just moves away from Erinsborough, there's no drama to it. It's disappointing and typical of the last two years of storylines."
In Spencer's pursuit of a career opportunity that would push him, the actor moved to Britain and grabbed a few small gigs. But it wasn't until 2003 that he really got his big break in Hollywood.
The Australian native's agent sent him a script for an American medical show, but he initially didn't think the role was for him. At 24, the character was more than a decade older than Spencer was and worked as an intensive care unit specialist — a subject he knew nothing about. But he sent a tape of his audition to the show's producers anyway.
Then, there was a roadblock. The show's producers wanted to see him audition in person, but they didn't want to pay for him to fly from Britain to Los Angeles. So Spencer bought the ticket himself, flew to Hollywood — and the rest was history.
He spent the next eight years as Dr. Robert Chase on the hit drama House alongside Hugh Laurie. The show was extremely popular and helped launch Spencer's career in American television.
Spencer told Sky1 that one of the hardest aspects of working on the show was all the medical terms. Even though his father and all of his three siblings actually work in medicine, Spencer says that still didn't help with all the complicated terminology.
"It's so cerebral, you know, so heady, all the logical method of deduction," Spencer said. "Science is just so rigid, almost. We like jazz and free flow. It's like watching people play experimental jazz when we are doing differential diagnosis. It's great to watch on the show, but to shoot it, that's quite mind-numbing."
Though Spencer left the show in 2012, he stayed in touch with his co-star Laurie by joining his cover band. The Australian actor finally got to stretch his musical muscles by becoming the violinist for Band From TV with other television actors, including Teri Hatcher. In 2010, Spencer said the group had raised more than $2 million through its shows and donated it to various charities.
The only other time Spencer's musical prowess was used in Hollywood was in the 2003 comedy Uptown Girls. Opposite the late Brittany Murphy, Spencer took on the role of her love interest, Neal. But he also contributed lead vocals to one of the film's soundtrack songs, "Molly Smiles."
A Fiery New Chapter
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As House came to a close, Spencer almost immediately jumped into Chicago Fire as Capt. Matt Casey. He actually filmed the NBC pilot on a weekend after filming House during the week. But when he took the role, Spencer says he had no idea it would last more than a decade.
The actor told Entertainment Weekly in 2012 shortly after the pilot premiered that he was excited to take on a much-different character than his role in House.
"It's more of a character-based show with a lot of action," Spencer said. "After eight years of being an intellectual and spewing out medical terms, it was time to do something in the opposite direction. And running around in [firefighter's] gear for 14 hours seemed like the right thing to do."
And even if he didn't know when he signed onto the show how long Chicago Fire would last, he enjoys getting to develop a character on screen long-term, he told the Sioux City Journal.
"When we started House, we took it month by month. As the show progressed, it took different directions. Things changed all the time. And that's why I signed up for Chicago Fire. I loved the exploration of character and relationships over the course of time."
After a decade and 200 episodes of fiery drama — in and out of the firehouse — Spencer finally decided it was time to make his television exit, at least for now, after nearly two decades.
"It was a difficult decision because I've loved the show from the start, but there are other things that I would like to do in the future," Spencer said to TV Line. "And there's some family that I need to take care of, and 18 years is a long time."
When he left the show in 2021, Spencer was a newlywed and stayed in the Windy City to focus on building a life with his new wife, research scientist Kali Woodruff Carr. He told the Daily Telegraph shortly after their nuptials in 2020 that he was a lucky man.
"She's smart, pretty and way ahead of her years," Spencer said. "We're very happy. She is my port in every storm, and we're already excited to be moving on to the next phase of our lives."
So, die-hard Chicago One franchise fans were ecstatic when Spencer not only reappeared at the season 10 finale but also returned for two episodes in season 11.
"It had been a while, like over a year or something, since I'd been back," Spencer told NBC Insider after his season 11 appearances. "But it's like riding a bike, you know? There are familiar faces. I know pretty much all the crew and pretty much all the cast. I had a ball."
Spencer's permanent return to Chicago Fire may depend on whether his character gets engaged. But it seems NBC has not given any indication — even to Spencer himself — if Capt. Casey will become a permanent fixture in the Windy City once again.
"I'm always open to that, but you know, the ball isn't really in my court," Spencer told Deadline. "I always told [series co-creator] Derek Haas that if there were episodes that he thought would be appropriate for me to come back, then I'm totally open to that because I want to see the old gang and I love working there. But in terms of me coming back full time or something, I have no idea."
READ MORE: 'Chicago Fire': This Fan-Favorite Character Is Played By a Real-Life Firefighter
