Tracy Spiridakos is on her way back to the small screen in the 2026 TV schedule, but not to return to One Chicago as Detective Hailey Upton. The former Chicago P.D. star is moving over to USA Network to star as the titular character in Anna Pigeon. She'll be playing a law enforcement officer again, but she's a park ranger in rural Washington this time around. While Anna will have some demons in her past, Spiridakos' description of a more "light-hearted" show make me think this could be what Upton deserved to end her story on P.D.
Upton had a rough last couple of seasons on Chicago P.D. (all of which are available streaming with a Peacock subscription now). After having to process the abrupt departure of her husband (played by Jesse Lee Soffer), she latched on to her shifty sergeant as her new confidant. While Upton got to leave her unit on her own terms in the Season 12 finale, fans never really got to see her truly happy again from Season 10 onward.
Anna Pigeon, on the other hand, features a much more light-hearted character for Tracy Spiridakos to play, as she told Deadline:
I read the pilot and just completely fell in love with Anna. I love that there are similarities to Upton in certain things, but they’re also really different in a lot of ways. The tone of the show is totally different; it’s much more light-hearted and fun, fun in a different way. [Laughs] I was just really drawn to her grit, and also her sense of humor and sarcasm, and all the other characters all around. I was really excited to get to jump in.
As if that's not enough of what Upton deserved after leaving all of her heartache behind in the Windy City, the Anna Pigeon teaser even includes Spiridakos saying "Out here you can leave your past behind" and "I like new places." Upton seemed open to continuing law enforcement after CPD; why can't we imagine that she found peace in the middle of the Washington state wilderness?
That's not to say that Anna is without her demons, with Spiridakos describing her new character dealing with "loss and trying to find her footing again in who she is" and find her "identity again after such a big loss." She went on to describe the format of Anna Pigeon, which seems to balance the crime-solving with some "levity." She said:
We will be solving the crime of the week, or the mystery of the week, and all the characters are rooted in this really human, emotional journey and depth. On top of that, we don’t take ourselves too seriously. So there’s some levity, and some jokes, and we tease each other, and Anna makes fun of herself. Hopefully, audiences will feel that it’s this fun adventure that they’re along for the ride with us.
Honestly, this sounds like a fun follow-up to Chicago P.D. for Spiridakos, even if Anna's life in Washington isn't what Upton got after her depressing final seasons of One Chicago. Anna Pigeon even led her to a new love of horses. I do get a kick out of the actress' reveal that "Anna’s on and off again" relationship is with a character named Jesse, after she spent much of her screen time opposite Jesse Lee Soffer as Detective Halstead in One Chicago. Check out the teaser for the upcoming series:
The USA series is based on a book series by Nevada Barr, so it remains to be seen how accurate the show is to the source material vs. going its own direction. Tracy Spiridakos shared that she could "absolutely see myself playing her for a long time," so perhaps Anna Pigeon will be similar to Will Trent in taking the spirit of the original while delving into new kinds of cases for the show.
USA Network hasn't announced a premiere date for Anna Pigeon just yet at the time of writing, but the series will arrive at some point in 2026. In the meantime, you can always revisit Tracy Spiridakos' time on Chicago P.D. streaming on Peacock. You can even avoid some of Upton's most depressing final arcs on the streamer, if you so wish!
