Chicago Med’s Nick Gehlfuss Says Will’s Ready To Be a Father To Natalie’s Son — Meet His Real-Life Family

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We know Nick Gehlfuss as Dr. Will Halstead, the talented doctor on Chicago Med. But to Gehlfuss’ family, he’s just known as their Dad. Who is Nick Gehlfuss’ children? Learn about Will’s family in real life.

Chicago Med, NBC’s medical drama, follows the personal and professional lives of doctors and nurses in the emergency department of the fictional Gaffney Chicago Medical Center. Created and produced by Dick Wolf’s Wolf Entertainment, the series debuted in 2015 and is the third spin-off in One Chicago, which also includes Chicago Fire and Chicago P.D. Chicago Med was renewed in April 2023 for a ninth season, according to our sister site Variety.

From 2015 to 2023, Nick Gehlfuss played Dr. Will Halstead, a former plastic surgeon who is promoted to the Emergency Department supervising attending physician at Gaffney. In the Chicago universe, he’s also the brother of Detective Jay Halstead (Jesse Lee Soffer) from Chicago P.D. During the Season 8 finale, which aired on May 24, 2023, Gehlfuss revealed that he was leaving the show for good. In the episode, “Does One Door Close and Another One Open?,” Will decided to leave the hospital to be with his ex-fiancée, Natalie Manning, who made a surprise return to the medical show for the finale.

Gehlfuss hinted that Will had remaining feelings for Natalie in an interview with TV Line in 2022. “Will wants to settle down in a way,” he said. “I think he was ready to be a stepfather to Dr. Manning’s child. And I think he’s ready to commit to someone if that is the case. But I think you have to start out dating no matter what so it’d be interesting to find out how he gets to that point of settling down. I think it’s a whole journey.”

Will Halstead, Chicago Med

Gehlfuss also spoke with Variety on May 24, 2023, about why he decided to exit Chicago Med after all these years. “It was a difficult decision, but ultimately, I felt I’d taken Dr. Halstead as far as I can go with him. I think that comes down to a creative part of you, or the energy or spirit you have that you’re either built for a very long time with one person or not. I am attracted to the profession for the variety in it, and eight years is a long time. It’s two college degrees! I’m joking now that I basically have a doctorate in television.”

The actor moved to Chicago eight years ago to star in the first season of Chicago Med. We learned from Gehlfuss’ wife, Lilian Matsuda, that she “moved across” the country with him so that he can be on the show. “Congrats to you we moved across the country for this job eight years ago, and it has been a wild ride. You work so hard. I’m so proud of you. Thank you for being you. Love you so much @nickgehlfuss,” his wife wrote in an Instagram caption alongside a photo collage of her husband on the Chicago Med set.

Gehlfuss married Matsuda in May 2016. Gehlfuss told People that he and Matsuda eloped in a “big wedding in Ohio.” She is currently the Director of Advocacy for the Illinois Action for Children, which provides support and resources for childcare and early learning programs. She started as a policy advocate for the IAC in 2021 and formerly worked as a marketing executive for brands like Viceroy Hotel Group and SVEDKA Vodka. We couldn’t find information about how the couple met, but we know that they started dating more than eight years ago.

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The Chicago Med star also revealed in the People interview whether any of his One Chicago costars attended the ceremony. “I wanted to invite a lot of my cast mates, but, because we’re a franchise, I would have had to invite the entire Chicago franchise. I started on P.D. and I went to Fire, and now with Justice, it would have been crazy,” Gehlfuss explained. “It rained that day in the morning, which is good luck. And then it was perfect after that. And it was on Friday the 13th, and the next day it dropped twenty degrees and then Sunday, blizzard, snowing on the way here.”

So, does the couple have any kids together? Keep reading to find out about Nick Gehfuss’ children.

Who is Nick Gehlfuss’ children?

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Who is Nick Gehlfuss’ children? Gehlfuss and Matsuda have one child together who was born sometime at the end of 2021. We don’t know the child’s name or gender as the duo has decided to keep their family life out of the public eye. His wife shared some photos throughout pregnancy on Instagram, as well as a few of pictures of the newborn without revealing their face for privacy.

In May 2023, his wife shared an Instagram photo clutching her baby bump while Nick held her from behind. “Happy weekend from us three and this here bridge #fiveyears,” she wrote in the caption. She also shared a photo of her and Will sitting on a picnic blanket enjoying a concert, where her baby bump was on full display. “Dear Bebe, you will be very loved by this family. Hope you enjoyed your first live concert thanks, fam, for making this a great weekend,” the caption read.

We also saw a photo of their baby on May 15, 2023, when Matsuda posted an Instagram post for Mother’s Day. She dedicated the post to her late mother and her child. “Happy belated Mother’s Day to those who are missing mamas no longer with us. The day kinda sucks, but we get through it. Or maybe your relationship with your mom is a hard one, and this day is still kinda weird. Some of us are still celebrating our survival of postpartum depression without breaking all the glass in our house. I hope you can give and receive love today and every day in the way it works for you.”

Chicago Med is available to stream on Peacock.

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For more on the One Chicago franchise, check out our photo gallery on the most shocking exits on Chicago Med.

1/8

Paging One Chicago fans! Since Chicago Med premiered almost a decade ago, there have been dozens of doctors, nurses, patients and characters who have come and gone through the doors of Gaffney Chicago Medical Center. But <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/tag/chicago-med/" target="_blank">who’s left Chicago Med</a> and why did they leave? We break down the most shocking exits ahead. Chicago Med is NBC’s medical drama following the personal and professional lives of doctors and nurses in the emergency department of the fictional Gaffney Chicago Medical Center. The series — which premiered in 2015 and is created by Dick Wolf, the same mind behind the<a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/tag/law-order-svu/" target="_blank"> Law & Order</a> and <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/tag/fbi/">FBI</a> franchises — is the third spin-off in NBC’s One Chicago franchise, which also includes <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/tag/chicago-fire/" target="_blank">Chicago Fire</a> and <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/wp-admin/_wp_link_placeholder" target="_blank">Chicago P.D.</a> At a press event in 2015, Wolf explained how Chicago Med is differrent than P.D. and Fire. “This is different than when we did that,” he said via the <a href="https://observer.com/2015/11/dick-wolf-cast-crew-share-why-chicago-med-is-unique-in-the-medical-genre/" target="_blank">Observer</a>. “People don’t remember that Law & Order had been on for nine years before we launched SVU and then Criminal Intent. So this is happening a lot faster.” Chicago Med showrunner Diane Frolov continued, “Dick said that he wanted to do a show that was smart and dealt that with medical issues and ethical issues with strong characters and that’s something that we love to do, so we were onboard right away.” Showrunner Andrew Schneider continued, “When you’re in a hospital situation the stakes are already very high. There‘s this confluence of emotional stories already inherent that have political, financial, and moral ramifications. The delivery of medicine itself is a very complex thing so we knew there was a lot to mine from this setting.” After more than a decade on television, Chicago Med has become a mainstay in the One Chicago franchise. But <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/soaps/news/673071/natalie-manning-come-back-chicago-med/" target="_blank">who’s left Chicago Med</a> over the years? Read on for the most dramatic exits we’re still not over.

2/8

Nick Gehlfuss starred as <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/soaps/news/672972/will-halstead-leave-chicago-med/" target="_blank">Dr. Will Halstead</a>, a supervising attending physician at Gaffney’s emergency department, from Seasons 1 to 8 of Chicago Med. He left in Season 8, Episode 22, “Does One Door Close and Another One Open?” which sees him resign from Gaffney after his issues with O.R. 2.0 (a high-tech surgical operating room), and move from Chicago to Seattle to be with his ex-fiance, Dr. Natalie Manning, who left in Season 7, and her son, Owen, whom she shared with her late husband, Jeff Manning. In an interview with <a href="https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/nick-gehlfuss-exits-chicago-med-torrey-devitto-returns-interview-1235616959/" target="_blank">Variety</a> in May 2023, Gehlfuss explained that he left Chicago Med because he felt he took Will “as far as” he could go with him “It was a difficult decision, but ultimately, I felt I’d taken Dr. Halstead as far as I can go with him,” Gehlfuss said. “I think that comes down to a creative part of you, or the energy or spirit you have that you’re either built for a very long time with one person or not. I am attracted to the profession for the variety in it, and eight years is a long time. It’s two college degrees! I’m joking now that I basically have a doctorate in television.” Gehlfuss also explained his “difficult decision” to leave Chicago Med in an interview with <a href="https://tvline.com/2023/05/24/chicago-med-nick-gehlfuss-leaving-will-halstead-season-8-finale/" target="_blank">TV Line</a> at the time. “It was a difficult decision, but I felt, maybe like a few months ago, that I was getting to the point of taking Dr. Halstead as far as I could go with him,” he said. “A difficult decision because, of course, I have for the last eight years grown with a fantastic group of people, and they have become a family, they really have. We use that word a lot, but it’s the only one that makes sense, and it’s also a community of artists.” He continued, “And so, I’ve laid roots in this town. Chicago was never on my radar, and it’s become home. So it’s difficult to think about leaving something that’s so comfortable… [When] an actor gets involved in this profession, we’re attracted by the variety, and eight years is a long time with one character, and I felt as if I went as far as I could go with him, and that was that, really.” Gehlfuss also revealed that he let the writers of Chicago Med decide how they wanted to write off his character, though he preferred for his character to live so he could return in the future. “I called [executive producer] Dick Wolf first and then I ended up talking with [executive producer] Peter Jankowski and Andy and Diane, and they asked me if I had any ideas, and I did not have anything,” he said. “I said, ‘Whatever makes most sense for you guys. I would like to preserve the possibility of coming back for important events or in whatever capacity makes sense,’ and they all felt like that was appropriate.” He continued, “So the idea to kill Will off or go out in a blaze of glory, as Peter Jankowski joked around about, was not something we were going to do. This universe has become so big, and these shows are going to go on for a long time, and who knows what would make sense in the future. We all wanted to preserve that possibility, and I was happy that they were on the same page with that.”

3/8

Brian Tee starred as Dr. Ethan Choi, the Chief of Emergency Medicine at Gaffney and a former lieutenant commander with the United States Navy Reserve, from Seasons 1 to 8 of Chicago Med. Ethan left Chicago Med in Season 8, Episode 9, “This Could Be the Start of Something New,” which sees him resign from Gaffney to open a mobile medical clinic for underserved communities with wife, April Sexton. “I think Choi wanted more. I think he needed to help the people he felt needed him the most,” Tee told <a href="https://www.nbc.com/nbc-insider/brian-tee-reveals-why-dr-choi-needed-to-leave-chicago-med" target="_blank">NBC Insider</a> in April 2023. “I think he loved Chicago Med, but he had a higher purpose in the sense of really trying to heal a city that is wounded. Especially in the inner cities, especially those that, you know, may be struggling either financially or situationally.” He continued, “I think he [Choi], being from Chicago, has this urgency to want to help and heal, especially those that need him the most. And I think that’s why he chose this particular path and why he left Chicago Med.” Tee, who has returned to Chicago Med to direct episodes, also told NBC Insider that his door is “always open” for him to come back as Ethan. “I leave the door always open. Chicago Med has been an incredible experience and ride for myself personally. And I’ve made some wonderful friends that I hold near and dear to my heart,” Tee said. “And going back just to work — not even being in front of the camera — going back to work, and seeing and working with the cast and crew would just be a joy to do.” He continued, “So as far as story, and what it would take, it’s hard to say because my heart will still always be on that set with the people that I’ve worked with. So in that context, you know, if there ever is an opportunity to come back and again, play with my friends, I absolutely would probably jump at the opportunity.” In a statement to <a href="https://deadline.com/2022/10/chicago-med-brian-tee-exit-nbc-series-will-return-to-direct-1235141643/" target="_blank">Deadline</a> in October 2022, Tee called playing Ethan a “gift and a blessing.” “Playing Dr. Ethan Choi on Chicago Med has been such a gift and a blessing. I am forever grateful to our fans and my colleagues both in front of and behind the camera as I embark on a new journey. I am forever indebted to Dick Wolf, NBC, and Universal Television for choosing me,” he said. “What we’ve been planning for Dr. Choi’s sendoff is fitting, and it’s beautiful. I think the fans are going to absolutely love it. It’s going to bring a little bit of the new Ethan and a little bit of the old. Know that episode 9 is going to be an amazing one.” He also told the magazine what it meant to play an Asian American character on primetime television. “I’ve thought a lot about what Dr. Choi represents. As far as my career path, it was the school of hard knocks for a long time,” he said. “I took what the industry granted me as far as opportunities were concerned. At that time, the box I was allowed to play in around 20-plus years ago, was very limited; it was very stereotypical, and cliche like playing the Asian bad guy archetype. I have nothing against it; I was able to build a career but it never propelled me to a level of which I knew I was capable. Then literally, as I’m playing Shredder in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the villain of all Asian villains, my phone rings and it’s my agent asking me if I want to go to Chicago.” He continued, “Ethan Choi represents to me the first time I’ve actually played a protagonist in such a strong way and he catapulted me into a different arena, one where I feel the perception of not only myself but Asian Americans had been changed. Just having an Asian face as a leading man was a stepping stone if not the ladder.”

4/8

Torrey DeVitto played <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/soaps/news/673071/natalie-manning-come-back-chicago-med/" target="_blank">Dr. Natalie Manning</a>, a pediatrician at Gaffney’s emergency department, from Seasons 1 to 7 of Chicago Med. She left in Season 7, Episode 1, “You Can’t Always Trust What You See” after she was fired from Gaffney for stealing pharmaceutical drugs for her sick mother, Carol Conte, and leaves Chicago to move to her hometown of Seattle with her son, Owen, whom she shared with her late husband, Jeff Manning. She returned to Chicago Med in Season 8, Episode 22, “Does One Door Close and Another One Open?” in which she reunited with her ex-fiance, Will Halstead, after he resigns from Gaffney. In an interview with <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/chicago-med-season-8-finale-1235500302/" target="_blank">The Hollywood Reporter</a> in May 2023, DeVitto explained that she left Chicago Med to “move on” and “grow” without Natalie, but she was always open to returning, especially to continue Will and Natalie’s story. “I feel like I left the show on such a good note — it was just time to move on and time to go and time to grow, really. But it was always one of those things where I knew that if they asked me back, I would enjoy going back,” she said. “Because, I mean, I love my cast so much. And especially, you know, Nick Gehlfuss and I had such an intense storyline together for six years. I wasn’t expecting this call at all, but when they did call me and told me what the premise of the storyline was going to be, and that I would be coming back to support Nick and his journey on his way out, it was just a no-brainer for me.” She continued, “I do feel like the fans never got what they wanted with Natalie and Will, and to be honest with you, Nick and I never even got the ending that we felt we deserved for our two characters. To be able to come back and give that to not just the viewers that love the show so much and really rooted for these characters, but also to give it to me and Nick, who really wanted this ending for our characters was really so beautiful. He’s like a brother to me, so to be able to come back and support him in this way was just so much fun.” DeVitto also told The Hollywood Reporter about how natural it was to play Natalie again after almost two years away from the character. “She’s a character that is more like me than any other character I’ve ever played,” she said. “And because Nick and I have such great chemistry as actors together, and we have such a friendship, it honestly felt like stepping into a pair of shoes that still fit perfectly. It was so great seeing the crew.” She continued, “When I got out of the van [after arriving on set], everybody started clapping, which I got a little flushed about [Laughs.], but it felt like coming home. It felt like coming home to somewhere I lived for so long. And it was really beautiful. It was short and sweet, and then I was out and on my way again.”

5/8

Yaya DaCosta starred as April Sexton, a nurse at Gaffney’s emergency department, from Season 1 to 8 of Chicago Med. She left as a series regular in Season 6, Episode 16, “I Will Come to Save You” after she’s accepted into a nurse practitioners program and resigns from Gaffney. She returns as a recurring character in Chicago Med Season 8 as she marries her now-husband, Dr. Ethan Choi. At a Television Critics Association panel in 2021, DaCosta explained that she left Chicago Med after she was offered the lead role in FOX’s drama Our Kind of People, which was cancelled after one season. “My exit from Chicago Med and the arrival of this show happened really simultaneously. There isn’t much to say about it. There was a window opening and a question mark as to whether I should stay or go,” she said. “And in that window, I fell in love with Our Kind of People and I jumped at the opportunity to work with Lee Daniels again. I first worked with him years ago on The Butler.” She continued, “The show is a dream in so many ways and it’s saucy and so much fun! And there’s so much about my character that I felt was really important to bring to the forefront of our discussions. We’re just playing with these serious themes and we’re making them fun.”

6/8

Colin Donnel starred as Dr. Connor Rhodes, a cardio-thoracic surgeon at Gaffney, from Seasons 1 to 5 of Chicago Med. He left in Season 5, Episode 1, “Never Going Back to Normal,” after he resigns from Gaffney and leaves Chicago for a fresh start following the murder of his father, Cornelius Rhodes, and the suicide of his ex-girlfriend, Ava Bekker, who murdered Cornelius as a way to win back Connor after their breakup. A source told Deadline in April 2019 that Donnel — as well as Norma Kuhling, who played Ava, and Jon Seda, who played Detective Antonio Dawson on Chicago P.D. — left Chicago Med over creative differences related to their characters’ stories. “Sorry to say that this is true. I love my #ChicagoMed #OneChicago family dearly. And a special thank you to all the fans that have made these last four seasons so amazing,” Donnel tweeted at the time with a link to Deadline’s article. He continued, “It’s been an honor to be a part of such a great trio of shows and in the @WolfEnt family. I know that there’s great things coming for Season 5 and I can’t wait to see what they are along with all you fans. xoxo C.” Donnel reacted to how Connor was written off in an interview with <a href="https://deadline.com/2019/04/chicago-jon-seda-colin-donnell-norma-kuhling-exit-chicago-pd-chicago-med-chicago-fire-nbc-1202599095/" target="_blank">Us Weekly</a> after his last episode on Chicago Med. “I was happy for the conclusion, to get some clarity to how season 4 had ended,” he said. “I think it’s always emotional when a character dies. It’s always tough on a set because we’re saying goodbye to this person in a very real way. I loved working with Norma. She’s amazing. She did a wonderful job navigating what was a very layered and troubled character.” He continued, “He left on his own terms, which I thought was really lovely for the character and for me personally,” the former Affair star says, adding that he’s thrilled the ending was open-ended. Despite <a href="https://deadline.com/2019/04/chicago-jon-seda-colin-donnell-norma-kuhling-exit-chicago-pd-chicago-med-chicago-fire-nbc-1202599095/">Deadline</a>’s report, Donnel called Chicago Med “one of the bestworking experiences” of his life. “It’s one of the greatest things about for Dick Wolf and [producers] Andy Schneider and Diane Frolov. One of the best working experiences of my life was being a part of Med and that was, in large part, due to the leadership at the top,” he said. “I would love to go back. I would love to pop in here and there, and I sort of have a history of doing that now on shows! It probably won’t be as wild of ways as I do on Arrow, but I’m really very happy and thankful to them that they gave me the exit that they did so that the door is open for the future.” Donnel also denied reports he had a “negative” experience while working on Chicago Med. “I can’t say anything negative. They let me know that they were going to move in a new direction and I went, ‘Thanks for an awesome four years,’” he said. “A couple days later, I was starting rehearsals for the workshop for Almost Famous so it was like, onto the next, this is cool. It’s sort of like living the gypsy life that I’m used to it.”

7/8

Norma Luhling starred as Dr. Ava Bekker, a trauma surgeon at Gaffney’s emergency department, from Seasons 3 to 5 of Chicago Med. She left in Season 5, Episode 1, “Never Going Back to Normal,” after she committed suicide following the death of her ex-boyfriend Connor Rhodes’ father, Cornelius Rhodes, whom she murdered as a way to win back Connor. “Thank you Chicago Med for two amazing years! Really going to miss this family, but feeling nothing but gratitude. A huge thank you to @nbc and @dickwolf for bringing me on board, to the best cast and crew imaginable, and finally to the fans for making these shows what they are. Can’t wait to cheer #OneChicago on in its future seasons with you!” Kuhling captioned an <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BwddPASjhdS/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_rid=d46c64f9-5e51-474f-8cd8-2f45ed5fbdad" target="_blank">Instagram</a> post after her last episode on Chicago Med.

8/8

Rachel DiPillo starred as Dr. Sarah Reese, a fourth-year medical student at Gaffney’s emergency department, from Seasons 1 to 3 of Chicago Med. She left Chicago Med in Season 4, Episode 1, “Be My Better Half” after she transfers from Gaffney to Baylor when her mentor, Dr. Daniel Charles, finds out her father is a suspected serial killer and two have a falling out. In an interview with <a href="https://onechicagocenter.com/" target="_blank">One Chicago Center</a> in 2019, Chicago Med’s executive producers Andrew Schneider and Diane Frolov hinted that DiPillo didn’t choose to leave Chicago Med, but the writers wanted to write Sarah off in a way that could allow her to come back in the future. “She’s a great actor and a great character,” Schneider said. “If we can find a good way to bring her back later, we’ll entertain that.” Frolov continued, “We wanted to leave that open so she might come back.”

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