The creator of Countdown wants to set up a One Chicago crossover for season 2. Debuting on Prime Video this past June, with Jensen Ackles in the lead role, the ten-episode action drama kicks off as a Department of Homeland Security officer is killed, and an investigation is launched. The series takes plenty of turns from there, with the fate of Countdown season 2 unknown.
Standing out as Ackles’ first leading role on TV since the end of Supernatural in 2020, Countdown is also notable because it hails from creator Derek Haas. It is the first show to come from Haas since he left One Chicago, the NBC procedural franchise that he co-created back in 2012. It includes Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med.
In comments to TV Insider, Haas shared that he got to revisit another show he co-created. The prolific television producer revealed that, while filming Countdown in Budapest, he got to reconnect with the cast of FBI: International, which is connected to the One Chicago universe:
“Now the cool thing that I got to do is when we did the Europe scenes for Countdown, we shot in Budapest, and I got to go hang out with all the International people. I knew [him] really well from Chicago P.D., so we got to have a nice — I got to have a little bit of closure before that shut down, but I don’t know why. You never know these things. It’s like the powers that be make these decisions. I loved the show, too. I thought it was really fun and cool.”
Haas then talks about bringing One Chicago alum Jesse Lee Soffer in to join the Countdown cast, drawing on his history with procedurals and using One Chicago as an example of how one new actor could potentially alter the dynamic of an entire series:
“Believe me, that’s crossed my mind. I don’t know that we can get him, but that would be really fun. I guess he was an Army Ranger also, and it’s like maybe he and Meachum (Ackles) were in the same unit. It was like a Halstead Meachum reunion. That sounds awesome. Crossover!”
“I learned that doing the Chicago shows. Anytime you bring in somebody new, you get a whole new dynamic shift in the traits of the group. I always loved that on Chicago Fire. I think about Stella Kidd on that show. She came in season 3, now she’s the star, front of the poster of that show. So it just feels like we’ve got worlds that we could still explore on this one. So fingers crossed.”
What Soffer’s Addition Would Mean For Countdown
Jesse Lee Soffer as Jay Halstead in Chicago PD season 2, episode 7
NBC via MovieStillsDB
If it’s the case that Soffer did end up on Countdown, it might be easier to have the actor play a new character because of the continuity issues and potential legal hurdles of bringing in a protagonist from another series. But it would be meaningful to have Soffer play Jay Halstead again, largely because of Halstead’s controversial One Chicago departure.
Fans felt that Halstead was too hastily written off, damaging the character and ruining a fan-favorite couple in the process. But even if Soffer managed to pop up as his character from FBI: International, that would also be significant since the cancellation of the FBI spinoffs has also proved controversial.
Our Take On What’s Next For Countdown
Countdown cast walking together
Before any reunions happen, a second season would have to be renewed. The show got off to a strong start, making Nielsen’s Top 10 list. But as Haas himself recently clarified in interviews, there is no word yet on the status of a renewal.
Countdown has to address its massive cliffhanger, as well. After that, especially if the action drama runs for multiple seasons, Haas will likely have plenty of opportunity to lean more into his One Chicago connections.
8/10
Release Date
June 25, 2025
Network
Prime Video
Showrunner
Derek Haas
