‘The Chi’: Barton Fitzpatrick Teases A Comeback

The Chi has just returned to television for Season 3, and Barton Fitzpatrick is already teasing a possible comeback, according to a report from Distractify.

The series follows a group of people living in a neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago. During the first two seasons of the show, Fitzpatrick played the role of Reg Taylor, a popular local gang leader raising his little brother, Jake, played by Michael Epps. At the end of Season 2, Reg was shot and fans assumed he had died, but based on Fitzpatrick’s recent tweets, the character could be making a return to the series.

“Y’all crying over Reg like y’all actually saw him get buried or an obituary,” he tweeted.

It was rumored that Fitzpatrick was originally written out of the series because he refused to play a character who is in a relationship with a trans woman. These rumors have not been confirmed or even addressed, but the show did just introduce its first transgender character, Imani, played by Jasmine Davis.

Season 3 also introduced newcomer Luke James as Victor “Trig” Taylor — Jake and Reg’s older brother. Trig is currently in a relationship with Imani, but he’s struggling to fit in with her LGBTQ friends and worries people might assume he’s gay. During last week’s episode, the couple went for drinks at a gay bar, where a man approached Trig. The man aggressively questioned why a straight man would be in a gay establishment and Trig became defensive.

It’s possible this role was originally intended for Fitzpatrick, but there has been no official confirmation.

In an interview with UPI, the show’s creator Lena Waithe described Season 3 as the “gayest season ever.” She mentioned the fact that the season began with two Black women getting married, and went on to share her excitement about bringing Davis into the role of Imani. She said it will be known that Imani is trans, but it won’t be the focus of the character’s storyline.

“We make sure to not point a finger or shed too much light on her being trans,” she said. “She’s an amazing woman, she’s an interesting character, and I’m excited that we finally get to do that this season.”

In this week’s episode, the community will come together to save Keisha, played by Birgundi Baker. The teenager was last seen sitting alone at a bus stop but hasn’t returned home for several days. Her little brother Kevin, played by Alex Hibbert, believes she might be trapped in her boyfriend’s house and he enlists the help of Jake and Trig to go investigate.