Colin Donnell was familiar with, but had never watched an episode of "Chicago Fire" or "Chicago P.D." before booking his role on the NBC franchise's third series, "Chicago Med." He quickly rectified that situation, bingeing first on "Chicago Fire" with his wife.
"I was thrilled that I was being invited to be a part of such a cool series and being a part of the Dick Wolf universe," said Donnell, who plays Dr. Connor Rhodes, in a conference call with reporters. "Right after this all happened, my wife and I went back to the very beginning of 'Chicago Fire,' Season 1, episode one, and we were like, 'Let's just watch some.' And we got hooked!"
In only their fifth episode, Donnell and his "Chicago Med" co-stars got the chance to play opposite their fellow Chicagoans in last week's three-part crossover event. Rhodes faced the tough task of treating Herrmann (David Eigenberg) of the "Fire" crew following a knife attack. It also didn't help that some of Rhodes' fellow doctors, most notably Dr. Will Halstead (Nick Gehlfuss), believed he should have operated earlier.
"[Rhodes and Halstead] certainly have two opposing viewpoints on how they approach medicine," Donnell said. Their civil disagreements could become more contentious in the near future. "Next week, you see things get a little bit more aggressive between the two."
Rhodes also has to deal with his wealthy father, Cornelius Rhodes (DW Moffet), coming back into the picture. The two butted heads over the treatment of a close family friend in episode three and daddy dearest tried to bribe the hospital to take his son off the surgery in exchange for a large donation.
His father does make a sizable donation to the hospital for a new psych ward in the next episode, which will force dark family secrets to the surface. Rhodes left the family business to pursue his medical degree and then worked in the Middle East for a few years before coming home to Chicago.
"You're going to see why there is such animosity between Connor and his father," Donnell said. "Some really cool stuff is coming up for Connor."
"Chicago Med" will return with a new episode Tuesday, Jan. 19, at 9 p.m. ET, on NBC.
