Tonight, Celeste returns and we see that Atwater (LaRoyce Hawkins) and Celeste have become a couple, the only problem is that he still hasn’t told her the truth: He’s a cop, because he knows how she feels about the police. That runs parallel to Atwater’s case for the night, in which he has been undercover trying to bring down a drug dealer who is peddling lethal fentanyl and, in order to bust the drug dealer, Atwater has been lying to someone he hopes to turn into a CI. The end results are disastrous. Parade.com spoke to Hawkins about Atwater’s struggles to reconcile his personal and professional life in the episode, appropriately entitled “Lies.” Atwater seems to be struggling. He likes being a cop; it’s his job, but he’s having problems with what it represents. What’s going through his mind these days? The case of the week. I think he’s found a balance between being able to give the energy that every case needs in order to solve cases, but also the balance of the energy that it also takes to save lives. I think, for Atwater, he’s doing his best to find that quotient—if that makes sense. Saving lives is a priority for him. That’s obviously the intention. If we can save a life within a case, then from Atwater’s heart, that’s more valuable than even solving the case itself. He’s trying to hold on to that part of himself because we see what can happen if the case is more important than the life. And I think he’s trying to hold on to that old-school way of policing. And not even that, I guess, really a new-school way of policing—the way that we can reimagine policing where the life is more important than the case. And, I think, that’s the example that he’s trying to set, even for his team. Atwater represents Black policing on this series as the sole Black character on the team. How big of a responsibility do you feel for that? I feel a very similar responsibility that the late and the great Sidney Poitier felt being a Black actor in the ‘60s, trying to put the Black male lead in the position of power. That’s the responsibility I take very specifically. In this niche genre of filmmaking, I find myself responsible for at least that small part. And I think that a little light goes a long way. So, whatever I can do to tell authentic stories and to throw a little light around, that’s what I’m here for. How does Atwater deal with living a lie? That has to be hard. Yeah, yeah, it’s extremely difficult. I think every day we look for those windows to be better. Everyday we look for those opportunities to practice better habits. And I think that’s what Atwater is doing a little bit. He leaned into that safe space and there’s a part of him that feels like if he’s too vulnerable or if he expresses himself almost too much that the space might become unsafe. Because it’s happened to him historically; he’s been scarred from the past. So, he makes a mistake. He doesn’t use his better judgment on how to handle this situation. But imagine how a cop feels in that moment where he doesn’t use his better judgment based on the facts he’s given and the circumstance where somebody’s life is on the line. And that’s what I think is dope about the way that [executive story editor] Ike Smith crafted this story because it’s a very, very, very specific and, I think, a vibrant way to get people to relate to both sides of the coin. What about Celeste? How long can he lie to her? Until he can’t no more. And I think we see that. They catch up to each other when he sees how important it is, how lies can cost a life. It was because he had lied to Jimmy for so long, that made it hard for Jimmy to believe him later, and somebody’s life was lost because of that. And so, when he thinks about the foundation of their relationship, which involves dishonesty, he thinks about the direction that it’s going, which involves more dishonesty. That ain’t the kind of cat that he wants to be. He wants to look himself in the mirror. You were born and raised in Illinois. What does it mean to you to have a show like Chicago PD that highlights your hometown? To me that was the original inspiration. That was the part that made it feel like more than a job, but like an assignment, if that makes sense. When I knew that I [as Atwater] was close enough to be able to connect to my hometown, the town that I think deserves just as much hope as any other neighborhood, to be in a position to be able to provide that, I think it’s a great responsibility but also, I’m honored. We watch people like Sidney Poitier, who come from his small town in the Bahamas, and I’m pretty sure that small town in the Bahamas has a certain pride about what they’re capable of, about how far they can go, about who they represent. And I have the same opportunity to give to this small town outside of Chicago. This has been an interesting season. Voight and Upton came in with the guilt of what they had done at the end of last season, and Halstead figured it out. Do you think it’s affected the team so that everybody feels something is going on? Has anything changed for the team this season? And then Upton and Halstead got married. Atwater knows exactly what’s going on. Atwater is aggravated about that. We knew that they were probably going to get married and there were conversations about the wedding. Atwater was supposed to host it. What people don’t know is that Atwater was actually taking classes to be ordained so that he could do the marriage ceremony. And then all of a sudden, smack dab in the middle of the case, Atwater learned that y’all went and just got married off, regardless, and didn’t tell anybody. He acted cool in the moment. But Atwater is aggravated. Did the team pick up the vibe that there was a problem at the beginning of the season? Absolutely, they picked up the vibe, you know what I’m saying? I think if we’re honest with ourselves, we are family, but you don’t always like the decision that everybody in your family makes. That doesn’t mean that you’re all not family and that you don’t still have a relationship with that person and not a simple job to do. And so, I think the Intelligence Unit on Chicago PD is that very authentic and perfect example of family, about how they communicate, how they have each other’s backs, how they grow with each other. So, that’s what you see. You’re going to see us in our growing pains. And, hopefully, we can continue to find transparent ways to keep it real with each other. Chicago P.D. airs Wednesday nights at 10 p.m. ET/PT on NBC. Next, Check Out Our Arresting Guide for Season 9 of Chicago PD
