Don't worry, Cruz isn't leaving Chicago Fire despite the promo suggesting otherwise
By Cody Schultz
![CHICAGO FIRE -- "Inside Man" Episode 12011 -- Pictured: (l-r) Joe Minoso as Joe Cruz, Hanako Greensmith as Violet Mikami -- (Photo by: Adrian Burrows/NBC) CHICAGO FIRE -- "Inside Man" Episode 12011 -- Pictured: (l-r) Joe Minoso as Joe Cruz, Hanako Greensmith as Violet Mikami -- (Photo by: Adrian Burrows/NBC)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_1000,h_562,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImageExchange/mmsport/280/01hxdk4mpazys869s3zw.jpg)
NBC really chose violence with the promo for the penultimate episode of Chicago Fire! After one of the most intense episodes of the season in which we spent the entire episode worrying about Severide after he was caught up in a dangerous situation, the promo for episode 12 had our heart rates spiking by putting yet another member of 51 in grave danger.
In the promo for season 12, episode 12, “Under Pressure,” we see 51 respond to a call and an alarm begins to go off. We quickly learn that the alarm is Cruz’s and that it’s an alarm that signals he’s out of air, which isn’t good given he’s stuck in a fire! As a distraught Severide calls for Cruz to report, we flash back to Cruz inside the fire without his mask on but it's the ending of the promo that leaves us most concerned.
As the promo comes to a close, Cruz emerges from the fire and quickly collapses to the ground grasping for air in a moment that had fans immediately worrying about whether he was leaving the show. However, we’re happy to report that the promo is a misdirect!
Cruz isn’t leaving Chicago Fire and we know this because he’s in the season 12 finale
The promo for the penultimate episode of Chicago Fire season 12 hinted that Cruz could be in grave danger, and while he does find himself in a dangerous predicament in the episode we can confirm Cruz is not leaving Chicago Fire… well at least not in episode 12.
Cruz is going to have a rough time next week between the call teased in the promo and his relationship struggles with Chloe, who requested they go to couples therapy in episode 11, but we can confirm he does not die on the job and is not leaving the show in the penultimate episode. We know this because Cruz appears in photos for the finale, hinting that he isn’t going anywhere and will be back in action in the final episode of the season.
While Cruz does not come up in the synopsis for the finale, we do get to see him in a pair of photos from the finale in which he appears alongside his fellow 51 members responding to a call. Check out Cruz in action via the finale photos below:
This being Chicago Fire, there’s no telling whether Cruz might leave ahead of season 13, but we have a feeling he could be getting a promotion with Boden primed to enter the race for Deputy Commissioner paving the way for Severide to potentially become the new Chief of 51 should the writers choose to explore that storyline.
We’ll know for certain what the final episodes of Chicago Fire have in store for Cruz as season 12 comes to a close, so be sure to tune into the final episodes of the season to find out!
Chicago Fire season 13: Everything we know so far. Chicago Fire season 13: Everything we know so far. dark. Next