Chicago P.D. viewers have already noticed that Ruzek is missing. For years, Officer Adam Ruzek (played by Patrick Flueger) has been a main part of the show. The character has evolved quite a bit, even though he still hasn’t been promoted in 13 seasons.
During Chicago P.D. Season 13, Episode 6 (on November 5), Ruzek was suspiciously absent. No details were revealed during the latest episode — one that featured Officer Dante Torres (Benjamin Levy Aguilar) trying to help an escaped convict clear his name.
Early promotional photos and the Chicago P.D. episode trailer for November 12 also lack any mention of Ruzek. This suggests we have seen him for the last time in 2025, and it’s unclear if Ruzek will appear again in Season 13.
What happened to Ruzek on Chicago P.D.?
As previously reported by Tea on TV, Chicago P.D. Star Patrick John Flueger has taken a leave of absence. At the time, Deadline stated that “the time off comes as Flueger has been going through a difficult period personally, with an instance of alcohol use on set.”
This is a big deal because it means Ruzek will be gone for a bit. Ruzek is married to Detective Kim Burgess (Marina Squerciati) on the show, and they have a daughter, Makayla, whom they adopted a few seasons back. The family dynamic had finally settled, so this news has caused some upheaval in the script writing.
Thus far, there have been no additional updates from Flueger, and he has been absent from social media. His last post was on October 15, when he shared a One Chicago advertisement to get people to tune in. Squerciati thanked him for the post. Other than that, he has been radio silent, likely continuing to deal with his personal matter.
Ruzek is gone for as long as Flueger needs it, and the writers will have to reveal something soon. Maybe Ruzek is undercover, or perhaps he is dealing with his sick father’s health. Either way, it will be frustrating to fans who want to see more of Ruzek helping Intelligence with cases.
Chicago P.D. fall finale at hand
The November 12 episode is the Chicago P.D. fall finale. It means we won’t see Flueger or Ruzek for quite some time. Even in a best-case scenario, it may not be until after the 2026 Winter Olympics. At least he can be seen in older episodes that are streaming on Peacock.
More news and notes from the One Chicago shows
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Chicago Med almost killed off a main character. One of its stars told an intriguing story about how a plot changed. It sheds some interesting light on things behind the scenes.
