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'Chicago Fire' season 3 premiere react: In the line of duty

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This post contains details from the third season premiere of Chicago Fire, which aired Sept. 23] The Chicago Fire season...

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The filming of "Chicago Fire" and Dick Wolf's other Chicago-set shows has become a tourist draw for the city, and an Arizona-based production company is betting fans will pay more than $100 for the "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" to rub elbows with some of the stars of these shows.

OCE Productions is hosting the first Chicago Heroes Event on March 3 to 4 at Navy Pier. "Chicago Fire" stars Kara Killmer and Joe Minoso, "Chicago P.D." stars Jesse Lee Soffer and Jon Seda, and "Chicago Med" star Torrey DeVitto are among those on the bill.

Longtime "Chicago P.D." star Sophia Bush, who recently left the series, has also signed on, event co-organizer Christy Braga said. Two or three more stars from NBC's "Chicago" franchise are expected to be announced as part of the lineup in coming months, Braga said.

Admission to the event, which is not affiliated with Wolf or NBC, costs $50 per day or $90 for both days, and there are no panel discussions. The admission fee allows attendees to see the celebrities but not interact with them.

"Unfortunately, we have to charge admission because if not, then it just becomes a public thing and anybody from the public can walk in," said Braga, who lives in Florida.

Photographs with the stars range from $45 for a snap with Minoso to $450 for a group shot, while autographs cost $30 to $70. Private meet-and-greets range from $150 to $350. Braga said there will be a charity raffle and vendors selling merchandise at the event.

Braga and her team are organizing the event months after Luminary Productions scrapped a fan convention that trumpeted a similar lineup. The production company cited "multiple factors beyond our control" for the cancellation of Chicago Watch, which was set for May at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place.

Braga said she has experience hosting fan events for "One Tree Hill" -the teen drama that aired from 2003 to 2012 and starred Bush - but this is her first time organizing an event in Chicago.

"We figured, hey, we have eight or nine months before this happens so we're hoping that we have more than enough time to be able to get this going, and as of right now, we're selling really, really good. We're very happy at the rate that it's going," Braga said.

"Chicago P.D." airs at 9 p.m. Wednesdays on NBC, while "Chicago Fire" airs at 9 p.m. Thursdays. A premiere date has not yet been announced for Season 3 of "Chicago Med." "Chicago Justice" was canceled in May after one season.
tswartz@chicagotribune.com RELATED: 'Chicago Fire' fan convention set for May in Chicago canceled " Dick Wolf lauds Chicago, insults its residents in West Side visit " Stars of NBC's Chicago-set franchise return to city to film new seasons "

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Sophia Bush, Jesse Lee Soffer top bill for event honoring 'Chicago' franchise stars

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The filming of "Chicago Fire" and Dick Wolf's other Chicago-set shows has become a tourist draw for the city, and an Arizona-based production company is betting fans will pay more than $100 for the "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" to rub elbows with some of the stars of these shows.

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Warning: The following contains MAJOR spoilers from Tuesday's season premiere of Chicago Fire. If you have yet to watch, head to a different TVLine story. Everyone else, read on... RELATED Fall TV Spectacular: Exclusive Scoop and Photos on 42 Returning Favorites, Including Chicago P.D.
Chicago Fire fans, have you wiped away your tears yet over Tuesday's heartbreaking demise?

If not, executive producer Matt Olmstead tries to provide some solace below, with a bit of tough love thrown in - "You mourn it and move on," he says - as he explains why Shay (played by Lauren German) had to die.

But don't get too down - there's some hope for a possible reappearance!

The EP also responds to fan reaction over the shocking twist and reveals that someone else was under consideration for a visit from the Grim Reaper.

TVLINE | I was surprised because I didn't think the death would be someone as central of a character as Shay.
That was the intention. Going into it, we knew if we were going to do it, it had to be someone who was going to give us a big impact, as opposed to going for a lesser-known character, which would equate to a pulled punch. So, as opposed to approaching it with timidity, we thought we'd go for it.

TVLINE | Not to put a target on anybody else's back, but you have a very big cast. Did you ever consider killing off a different character?
We did. In the writers' room, we have [photos of] all the actors in character lined up just as a visual reference. We went down, one by one... It's like a roster of a sports team when you're having to make a cut. You're having to weigh the pros and cons of each one. Some we moved off in two seconds, said that wasn't going to happen. Others we debated, but we gave everybody a day in court. We came back to Shay because it affected the most people.

TVLINE | How far in advance did you tell Lauren the news? And how did she react?
There was some discussion that this might be happening, and she was very professional about it. She joked that she wasn't going to miss the Chicago winters. She's a California girl. So it was nice to know she was able to joke about it a little bit. My experience, having done this a couple times, is you're expecting the worst and then you're relieved [by] the professionalism and the graciousness of the actor. They almost know that you're feeling worse than they are. It sucks, but it's a job and a craft. This is what happens sometimes. You mourn it and move on.

RELATED Chicago Fire Premiere Recap: The Fallen

TVLINE | She still got to work on the season premiere in those flashbacks. Was that a welcome treat for Lauren? Or was it sad having to film those scenes, knowing she was leaving the show?
It's the definition of bittersweet when you get to come back and see everybody, your extended family, but then you realize are you not going to see the people you work with, at least for a while. The character's dead, obviously, so there's no coming back. You're also filming some emotional scenes... It was an emotional set in a lot of different ways.

TVLINE | Shay's dead, but might we see her in more flashbacks?
There's no flashbacks. When Derek [Haas] and Michael [Brandt] created the show, keep in mind, the show came on the year after Rescue Me ended. They were as cognizant as I was coming in as the showrunner that we didn't want to draw too many comparisons to that show. One of the hallmarks of that show was the flashbacks and talking to ghosts and people who died before. So we weren't going to go that route. At the end of the episode, Severide has a DVD of some of their memories, and for our purposes, there's plenty of DVDs they recorded [of] their friendship and their life as roommates. Who knows down the line when he might pop one in to remember her when he needs to?

RELATED Chicago Fire Taps Graceland Beauty Serinda Swan to Romance [Spoiler]

TVLINE | Some fans are miffed because Shay was one of the few female characters on the show and she was also a lesbian. Was that something you took into consideration when making the decision?
No, there was no agenda either way. All the characters were assessed on equal footing, so there wasn't any kind of, "Let's not do this for this reason, not do that for that reason." As storytellers, you have to be unsentimental sometimes. Having done it before, when characters have been killed, absolutely, initially, there's a very strong reaction, especially from the faction that was really into that character. My policy is really not to go right away and read the comments moments after. You've got to let it set a little bit and trust that strong storytelling is going to be strong storytelling.

By way of example, the first gig I ever had was on NYPD Blue a long time ago. There was an arc of the death of Jimmy Smits' [character Bobby Simone]. It was unbelievable arc in terms of a death of a character, written by David Milch. At the outset, if you would have polled all the viewers, nobody wanted to kill Bobby Simone. He was a beloved character. But what it gave them emotionally and in terms of storytelling and then thereafter was worth it. Sometimes, you have to do that to bring more storylines into a show, and that's what we decided to do.

TVLINE | From a writer/producer standpoint, what are you going to miss about Shay?
What I'm going to miss about Shay is what I'm going to miss about Lauren German, which is an extremely talented actress who can play both heavy dramatic scenes, but had a light touch and was funny and just likable. Having gone through a lot of casting sessions, a lot of shows, for whatever reason, only a few people really have it in terms of that kind of magical combination. She definitely has it. What's great about her is you could write anything to her, knowing she would be able to hit it out of the park, whether it was heavy or that rascal-y aspect of her character. She was really a can-do-it-all actress.

Stay tuned to TVLine for Chicago Fire scoop on what's ahead for Dawson, Severide, Casey and the rest of the team.

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Chicago Fire Boss on [Spoiler]'s Death, Fan Outrage and a Possible Return

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Warning: The following contains MAJOR spoilers from Tuesday's season premiere of Chicago Fire . If you have yet to watch, head to a different TVLine story. Everyone else, read on... RELATED Fall TV Spectacular: Exclusive Scoop and Photos on 42 Returning Favorites, Including Chicago P.D.

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The show has sustained its viewers after 5 years.

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NBC's Chicago Fire returned from a five-week break to 8.7 million total viewers and a 1.7 demo rating ( per finals), up 12 percent and a tenth from its last fresh outing to deliver its best audience since its Dec. 8 midseason finale and its best demo number since Feb. 9.

RELATED 2016 Renewal Scorecard: What's Coming Back? What's Getting Cancelled? What's on the Bubble?

Similarly, Chicago Med (8.7 mil/1.8) returned up 30 and 23 percent, also to its best tallies since Dec. 8. The Voice opened the Peacock's night with 11.1 mil and a 2.4, up in eyeballs but down a tenth week-to-week.

RELATED Keep or Cut: These Are the Shows YOU Most Want to See Renewed!

Elsewhere in the ratings....

ABC | Leading out of a steady Fresh Off the Boat (4.6 mil/1.2) and Real O'Neals (3.8 mil/1.0), Agents of SHIELD (3.2 mil/1.0) ended a three-week skid by posting upticks of 12 percent and a tenth. Beyond the Tank (2.1 mil/0.5) dipped a tenth.

THE CW | Coming off his donuts-and-ice cream hang with Supergirl, The Flash (3.4 mil/1.3) rose 13 percent and two tenths. iZombie (1.3 mil/0.5) was steady.

VIDEOS Jennifer Lopez Joins James Corden on Carpool Karaoke Special

CBS | The Late Late Show With James Corden's primetime Carpool Karaoke special drew 4.2 million viewers - The Late Late Show 's second-largest audience ever, trailing only its post-Super Bowl berth (4.9 mil) - and a 0.9 rating.
Want scoop on any of the above shows? Email insideline@tvline.com and your question may be answered via Matt's Inside Line.
FOX | New Girl (2.2 mil/0.9) ticked down to new lows, while Brooklyn Nine-Nine (2 mil/0.9) rose a tenth.

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Ratings: Chicago Fire, Med Return Up, Best Audiences Since December

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NBC's Chicago Fire returned from a five-week break to 8.7 million total viewers and a 1.7 demo rating (per finals), up 12 percent and a tenth from its last fresh outing to deliver its best audience since its Dec. 8 midseason finale and its best demo number since Feb. 9.

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NBC took the night in the key adults 18-to-49 demographic (2.1 rating) and total viewers (6.9 million) thanks to original outings from its entire Wednesday lineup. Whitney, up 29 percent to a 1.8, hit its highest rating since its Wednesday debut in January 2012. Guys With Kids (1.7) was up 21 percent to a series high, not including its sampling at the beginning of the season. Law and Order: SVU (2.1) grew half of a point and matched its best demo showing since November 2011, and at 10 p.m., Chicago Fire, also jumping half a point, pulled a 2.4 -- a series high.

Airing encores until a Nashville clip show (1.1), ABC pulled a 1.5 rating in adults 18-to-49 for the night and 5 million viewers. CBS aired repeats of Mike & Molly, Criminal Minds and CSI, also pulling a 1.5 in the demo and earning 6.4 million viewers.

Mobbed returned to Fox with back-to-back original specials. The first pulled a 1.0 rating, while the second grew to a 1.1. Both were down from the series' last outing in February 2012. The block averaged a 1.1 rating and 2.9 million viewers.

Repeats of Arrow and Supernatural pulled a 0.5 rating and 1.8 million viewers on The CW.

Univision had a 1.6 for the night, topping all broadcast networks but NBC.

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TV Ratings: 'Chicago Fire' Hits Series High as NBC's Wednesday Lineup Grows

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NBC took the night in the key adults 18-to-49 demographic (2.1 rating) and total viewers (6.9 million) thanks to original outings from its entire Wednesday lineup. Whitney, up 29 percent to a 1.8, hit its highest rating since its Wednesday debut in January 2012.

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Dawson and Casey salute during the funeral of Leslie Shay.

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Severide and Shay in a flashback, creating their roommate contract video.

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Boden and rival house 105's Lieutenant Welch face off at the scene of the fire.

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Close-knit community of Chicago franchise fans.

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Used by the show to live-tweet and interact with fans during the show.

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Tweets by NBCChicagoFire

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Meet the cast from Chicago Fire on NBC.com.

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Chicago Fire - The Season 2 Finale Cliffhanger (Episode Highlight)

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Watch the chilling final moments of Season 2. " Subscribe for More: http://bit.ly/ChicagoFireSub " Chicago Fire Returns Thursday January 4 10/9c on NBC!

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TVLine hits rewind on the TV season's biggest "What Happens Next" finales, then invites you to predict the cliffhanger outcomes

So went Chicago Fire's Season 2 finale, which saw a burning building explode with almost the entire cast of characters inside of it.

With an eruption that huge, "someone has to die. [And] someone does," executive producer Matt Olmstead tells TVLine.

RELATED What Happens Next: Is The Blacklist's Red Really Liz's Father?

As a result, the catastrophic event has "a lot of ramifications in terms of not everybody makes it, and those who do make it, their lives take some turns because of it," teases the EP.

So who does not emerge out of the rubble alive? In previewing the aftermath for Firehouse 51's bravest, Olmstead ruled out some possible casualties. Severide, for one, will deal with the consequences in a possibly self-destructive manner.

"As we've established on the show, he's prone to going off on his own and having a few cocktails when things don't go his way," describes the EP. That in turn, "might cause a problem with him and [ Chicago P.D. 's] Lindsay. The thing we like about him and Lindsay is they're cut from the same cloth. They don't judge each other. No one's ragging on the other person for not being available. They're really similar."

But with Severide in a "separate headspace" because of the explosion, "there's a complication going forward" with the couple. ( Another pair, however, looks likely to be getting engaged.)

One of the other characters facing a "big turn" in the wake of the destruction is Mills, so we can put him on the Survivors List. And the presence of Yuri Sardarov, who offered the following teaser at NBC's TCA Summer Press Tour party, also bodes well for Otis: "The cliffhanger is going to force a few things into perspective, and everything is going to be revealed in the first episode. I just read it, and I was tearing up. It's beautiful. It's incredible."
So now that you have all the evidence, rewatch the explosive moment below, then review our poll options and share your predictions for who will be saying goodbye.
Take Our Poll

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What Happens Next: Who Survived Chicago Fire 's Explosive Finale?

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TVLine hits rewind on the TV season's biggest "What Happens Next" finales, then invites you to predict the cliffhanger outcomes Boom! So went Chicago Fire's Season 2 finale, which saw a burning building explode with almost the entire cast of characters inside of it.