Why David Lang From Chicago P.D. Looks So Familiar
"Chicago P.D." — as part of the "One Chicago" franchise — has been captivating viewers since its premiere in 2014. The procedural drama, created by Dick Wolf and Matt Olmstead, follows the officers and the Intelligence Unit of the fictional 21st District of the Chicago Police Department as they pursue criminals and work to keep the city safe.
The lead cast is led by Jason Beghe as Detective Sergeant Hank Voight, with actors such as Jesse Lee Soffer and Marina Squerciati also playing major roles. Previous main cast members include Sophia Bush, Jon Seda, and Elias Koteas. Additionally, the show has seen plenty of actors come in for shorter arcs or guest roles, including Bailey Chase, who portrayed Special Agent David Lang. He appears in just three episodes of "Chicago P.D.," beginning in Season 2 Episode 9, titled "Called in Dead." Lang is a recruiter looking to get Detective Erin Lindsay (Bush) to come work for his global task force.
If you found Chase a bit familiar-looking while watching his "Chicago P.D." arc, you're likely not the only one, as the actor has been showing up in various television shows for years now. Here is a breakdown of some of Chase's most notable roles.
Chase began with TV, including Buffy the Vampire Slayer
The majority of Bailey Chase's filmography is comprised of television roles — and has been since the start of his career in the late '90s (via IMDb). Some of his earliest gigs include guest appearances on shows such as "Baywatch," "Saved by the Bell: The New Class" and "Step by Step." And in 1999, Chase got his first significant role with a 13-episode arc on the ultra-popular supernatural drama "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." Chase played Graham Miller, an agent of the Initiative (a government agency focused on the capture of demons for research purposes). Later on, Graham becomes a supernatural analyst for the government.
In a 2012 interview with Assignment X, Chase reflected on his time working on "Buffy." He said, "It was my first real job as an actor that was any form of consistency [of] character. It went across two seasons with this whole Initiative thing. It was obviously a cult rom-com that turned into something even bigger. So yeah, I've been going to shows' [conventions], and people remember me [from 'Buffy'] and have little trading cards."
Later, in another 2012 interview, this time with Collider, Chase reflected on how being on "Buffy" felt like a turning point in his acting career. "I did have a moment, driving to work one day, of just how cool this is," he said. "By no means, did I have a big part on that show, but just being part of something again that was bigger than myself ... And I got paid for it. I was like, 'Awesome; I'm in!'"
Chase moved on to As the World Turns
In 2003, Bailey Chase entered the world of soap operas with "As the World Turns," which was on the air for a whopping 54 years from 1956 to 2010. The daytime drama followed the personal and professional lives of various doctors and lawyers and the lives of their families. Chase took on the role of Chris Hughes, which nine other actors also played at various times during the show's run. Chase played Chris from 2003 to 2005 for 22 episodes. Chris, son of Bob Hughes (Don Hastings), eventually follows in his father's footsteps and becomes a doctor.
Chase told Assignment X that he learned a lot while working on "As the World Turns," even if the experience was a bit exhausting. He reflected on his arc, stating, "I feel like — for me and probably for most actors – it's boot camp, at least in the beginning. It was a great training ground for me, I logged a lot of hours in front of the camera, and at that point, I felt a real growth, like I got over myself a little bit, my vanity, and things like that. It's about just showing up and the work. I feel like at that point, by the time I was done with that, it was like, 'Okay, I'm a professional actor, this is what I do.' And I felt like I earned it at that point. It's hard doing daytime because of the demands."
He had a leading role in Saving Grace
Bailey Chase landed a lead role on the crime drama "Saving Grace," which ran for three seasons from 2007 to 2010. The series centered on heavy-drinking detective Grace Hanadarko (Holly Hunter), who, after killing a man while drunk driving, is given a chance to redeem her life by an angel named Earl (Leon Rippy). Chase played Butch Ada, a detective in Grace's squad, who works with Grace on various homicide cases. At one point, he and Grace even have a brief affair, which is already a cause for tension in the workplace but is made even more so because of Grace's ongoing affair with married Ham (Kenny Johnson), her police partner.
In a 2008 interview with MovieWeb, Chase discussed what it was like working on "Saving Grace" and how their network, TNT, allowed the series a lot of freedom. He said, "TNT has definitely given us a long leash that way, and we're able to make the show that we want and, as actors, we're able to take things that we wouldn't be able to say on network television. That makes it more interesting for us. Week to week, we get that script, and you really don't know what you're going to get. ... ['Saving Grace'] is more of a show about life [than crime]. It connects, but it's not a straight line. It's all over the place."
Chase played a part on Longmire
Beginning in 2012, Bailey Chase took on the role of Branch Connally in "Longmire," where he remained a leading cast member for the first three seasons. The Western crime drama follows Sheriff Walt Longmire (Robert Taylor) as he investigates crimes in the fictional Absaroka County, Wyoming. Chase's Branch Connally is a deputy from a wealthy local family and has quite the dramatic arc. After a failed run against Longmire for the Sheriff role, Branch is soon shot, after which it takes months to recover. In the end, Branch is shot and killed by his father, Barlow (Gerald McRaney).
In a 2014 interview with Collider, ahead of the Season 3 premiere, Chase discussed his admiration for "Longmire" and his experience playing Branch. Summarizing his time on the show, he said, "I was definitely excited because, creatively, it's been a pretty eventful ride. It's different than anything I've done in my career before." He also noted how much he the directors and the creative team behind the show, stating, "My hats off to our directors and camera department. That is something I will miss after 'Longmire.' I can't imagine working on another show that looks like this."
Chase continued on to 24: Legacy
One of Bailey Chase's most recent noteworthy roles was on "24: Legacy," the spinoff to "24." The series, which lasted just one season, followed war hero Eric Carter (Corey Hawkins) as he finds out he is being hunted down and must fight for his life while also helping to stop terrorist attacks. Chase played the recurring character of Thomas Locke, who is the head of field operations.
In a 2017 interview with HuffPost, Chase discussed his then-upcoming role on "24: Legacy" and his thoughts on the original show. "The original '24' was one of the most famous network shows that I would always watch every week, and you just can't deny that it's the most genius concept — you go away [for] commercial and come back, and it's in real-time five minutes later," he remembered. "The stakes are always going up! What I am continuously impressed by is how the producers and writers keep upping the bar from week to week. We are doing twelve [episodes] this season, so it will be a fun run."
Chase will next be seen in the upcoming FX drama, "The Spook Who Sat By the Door," which is based on the 1969 novel of the same name by Sam Greenlee.