Who plays Nina Chapman in Chicago PD? Everything you need to know
Chicago PD is a police drama in the One Chicago franchise that examines the lives of the officers and detectives of the Chicago Police Department's 21st District. It features uniformed patrol officers and the elite Intelligence Unit investigating crimes in the city.
Sara Bues plays the role of Nina Chapman in Chicago PD. She appears as an Assistant State's Attorney in Chicago PD season 9 for the first time. She is very active in the prosecution of cases dealing with the intelligence unit. Her character has been involved with some of the major plotlines, such as her leadership encounter with Sergeant Hank Voight.
Sara Bues's role as Nina Chapman in Chicago PD
In Chicago PD, Nina Chapman works as a legal staff member and coordinates closely with the intelligence unit. She becomes a key character dealing with confrontations between law enforcement officials and the judicial system. Her character mostly clashes with Sergeant Hank Voight’s unconventional style while still getting along with her work environment.
In You and Me (season 9, episode 22), Chapman is introduced as the head of the Complex Prosecution office. She works with Sergeant Hank Voight to get search warrants for crime boss Javier Escano. She later began working with other units and with the Intelligence Unit.
In The Ghost in You (season 10, episode 13), Chapman asks Voight to help her with a case of drug runner Arturo Morales after her informant, Tom Villar, goes missing. The case ran into problems because of secrets from Chapman’s past, which threatened the entire case and her career.
In Survival (season 11, episode 6), Chapman helps Voight with the Noah Gorman kidnapping and torture case. She uses questionable tactics like deceiving a judge to issue a warrant, leading to a confrontation with Voight.
In The After, in season 12, episode 4, Chapman returns to help the Intelligence Unit with a sensitive investigation that stirs troubling memories for Voight. Their teamwork deals with the tangles of their relationship even more. This is where she reveals that she is in love with him right before she leaves for a federal RICO case in Denver.
Recent development and showrunner perspective
In season 12, episode 15 of Chicago PD, Greater Good, Assistant State's Attorney Nina Chapman returns to Chicago, having finished one of the cases she was working on. She meets up with Sergeant Hank Voight, and they are set to enjoy each other's company.
Unfortunately for them, gang violence on the West Side escalates, and a bus driver named Walter James is killed. Chapman works with Voight and the Intelligence Unit to understand why the violence is happening and how to control it.
In an interview with Screen Rant on January 14, 2025, Chicago PD showrunner Gwen Sigan stated that Chapman's appearance would affect the show's plot in a significant way starting from the second half of the season, especially regarding Sergeant Hank Voight. She said:
"Yes, she's coming back in Episode 15, and then she'll be with us for a lot of the back half of the season, and we sort of pick right back up where we left off with her and Voight and see how that time apart has kind of morphed them now they've had some time to think about things and just where that relationship will grow and how it keeps changing for the two of them."
Early life and career of Sara Bues
Sara Bues is an American actress raised in Long Island, New York. She earned a degree in acting from Syracuse University’s Department of Drama after completing the prestigious Tepper Semester. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.) in Acting, which qualifies her with professional training and experience.
Bues has performed in some of Chicago's most prominent theaters. Her work with the Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre, and Chicago Shakespeare Theatre has earned her recognition for her stage performances.
Before her role on Chicago PD, she appeared as a guest in several television series. In Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, season 20, she played Bethany Fisher in an episode about a convoluted criminal investigation.
Additionally, she guest-starred in FBI season 2, portraying Gayle Dixon, an intense character involved in one of the unit's intense cases.
Bues also had a recurring role as Tess Freda on the crime drama City on a Hill. Set in Boston, the show deals with the themes of corruption and the law, and her character adds to the show’s already intense narrative.
Watch new episodes of Chicago PD every Wednesday on NBC at 10 pm ET, which are available to stream on Peacock the next day.
