Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive show news, updates, and more!
Is Chicago P.D. Based on Real Life? How The Show Sticks True to Reality
"The more authority our show has, the more credibility we have with our audience," P.D. showrunner Rick Eid said.
For over 12 seasons and counting, Chicago P.D. has taken viewers into the intense lives of the Chicago Police Department's fictional Intelligence Unit, a team tasked with tackling the city's most brutal crimes.
Before launching P.D., Dick Wolf built a legacy through his Law & Order franchise, applauded for its ripped-from-headlines formula set within New York City's criminal justice system. Law & Order's relatable plotlines have led many One Chicago fans to wonder how much of Chicago P.D. is based on real life. It's obviously impossible to solve a massive investigation within an hour, but P.D. draws heavy inspiration from the spirit of law enforcement in Chicago. Officers struggling to balance their family lives with the grueling nature of the gig is very realistic, while an Intelligence Unit at the center of a shootout is much less likely to happen.
RELATED: Is Chicago Fire Based on Real Life?
But how much of Chicago P.D. is based on real life, and how much is fictionalized for televised flair? Which Chicago P.D. details stick true to reality? While the cases seen in each episode may be dramatized, Chicago P.D. sticks true to reality in many fascinating ways.
Is Chicago P.D. based on real life?
While it is undoubtedly inspired by the inner workings of the Chicago Police Department, Dick Wolf's Chicago P.D. is not technically based on any one true story. The show's cases and storylines don't come from actual events but are pulled from broader criminal themes and urban issues that cities like Chicago deal with often. Real-life details like petty crime, organized gangs, drug trafficking, and the difficulties of policing in a major city are central to what makes P.D. such an infectious watch.
RELATED: Is Chicago Med Based on Real Life?
Chicago P.D. also spends a significant chunk of its airtime shining a spotlight on the lives of those who have planted roots in the CPD, and those storylines often mirror reality. From building families outside of the squad room to struggling with PTSD from a harrowing case, the officers' day-to-day lives outside the Intelligence Unit are rooted in the authentic experience of making a living in law enforcement.
“Our goal is to show the audience what it’s really like to be police officers in Chicago in 2021 (within reason, of course),” Chicago P.D. showrunner Rick Eid told APB in 2021. “To do that, we need to make the show — and the issues and dilemmas police officers face — feel authentic. The more authority our show has, the more credibility we have with our audience. At the end of the day, that’s our currency — credibility.”
A retired Chicago Police Department veteran serves as a Chicago P.D. producer
Sure, Chicago P.D. isn't based on a true story, but adding to the series' authenticity is its longtime technical director and producer, Brian Luce, a retired Chicago Police Department veteran. Since P.D.'s 2014 debut, Luce has dished stories from his life on the job and provided notes on the scripts to make it easier for audiences to suspend their disbelief. And the little details matter.
“Brian is amazing. He’s a huge reason the show is so successful,” Eid told APB. “He has three very important jobs: he helps the writers with story ideas, he helps the directors choreograph action scenes, and he helps actors look, move, and talk like real cops.”
RELATED: Did You Know This Chicago Fire Star Is a Real-Life Firefighter?
“For example, the very first script I wrote, I kept referring to the ‘bad guy’ as a perp,” Eid recounted. “Brian said, ‘In Chicago, we don’t call them perps; we call them offenders.’ It shows how thorough he is in reading the scripts and how accurate we try to be with our dialogue.”
Chicago P.D. has utilized actual CPD officers as extras
Sure, the white-knuckled cases the Intelligence Unit navigates in each P.D. episode may be fictionalized, but that doesn't mean these P.D. fan favorites aren't brushing shoulders with actual police officers.
"We have a database of police officers registered in the city and their availability. It's for background non-speaking roles, but they're paid just like any other extra would be," former P.D. casting assistant Cassie Gorniewicz told NBC 5 in 2013.
"We're looking for authenticity, to provide a good representation of what they can bring to the table," she continued. "They'll wear their actual uniforms, so that will be authentic. The duties of a police officer are so specific to their lifestyle and the things they come across every day, and it's that kind of police training experience that we'd rather not fake."
A member of the Chicago P.D. cast is played by the daughter of a Chicago police officer
While the white-knuckled action of Chicago P.D. is typically thanks to the mighty pen of One Chicago writers, that doesn't mean there aren't some connections to the Chicago Police Department. Case in point: Season 12 newbie Toya Turner is the daughter of a real Chicago police officer. And according to P.D. fan favorite LaRoyce Hawkins, the Chicago Police Department is stoked to see Turner settling into the fictional squad room.
"I've been getting calls from other cops saying, you know, look out for her because [her] dad is a great guy," LaRoyce Hawkins told NBC Insider. "In the way that she pulled up, just so confident and ready and unafraid, that's the type of team member I think we gravitate towards."
Chicago P.D. is actually filmed in the Windy City
One of the primary elements lending authenticity to P.D. is its commitment to filming entirely in Chicago. The cherished grit of P.D's urban setting is not a creation of CGI magic but thanks to the series' Chicago-based production and crew, adding a layer of believability to its portrayal of Windy City police work.
External shots of the 21 District Station are filmed at the University of Illinois Chicago Police Station on Maxwell Street. Similarly, the One Chicago watering hole Molly's — the establishment frequented by Firehouse 51 on Chicago Fire and Gaffney doctors on Chicago Med — was initially filmed at an actual bar in Bucktown: Lottie's Pub.
Nowadays, most of Chicago P.D.'s internal shots are filmed at Cinespace Studios. Still, attention to detail is paramount when crafting these Windy City sets. For example, the Maxwell Street Station was built in 1888, so the Cinespace version of the 21st District was constructed to reflect the Chicago squad room's old-school architecture and live-in environment.
"Realism is the watchword when it comes to Chicago P.D. sets," P.D. production designer Gregory Van Horn told APB in 2021. "The design wants to keep the viewer engaged in the police story and not take them out of it... I drive the carpenters crazy when I ask for walls to be slightly crooked or make the set dressers throw file boxes around so they are dented. The painters might spend a full day adding rust stains and scuff marks to a room with a new paint job."
Part of what makes the One Chicago universe so thrilling is that these first responders are anchored to an actual, tangible city with all the grit and complexity a procedural demands. Chicago P.D. leverages its sprawling city landscape to see the Intelligence Unit leave the bullpen to navigate a vast lineup of emergency scenarios, so Chi-Hards never know where the action will take the officers next.
"I am happiest with the design when it works seamlessly with the fabric of our backdrop, the city of Chicago," Van Horn continued. "When a viewer can’t figure out what is a set and what is a real location — which has happened a few times, even with our producers! — I find that very satisfying. I hear through Brian Luce when local cops really dig a set for being completely realistic. Those are the best compliments.”
So, while P.D. often veers into television drama territory to deliver the signature thrills of a Dick Wolf procedural, the setting and details of the officer's day-to-day lives are heavily rooted in reality.
Watch Chicago P.D. on NBC.
