How ‘Chicago Fire’ actor Daniel Kyri brought ‘justice’ to his character’s coming out story
After establishing himself on the Chicago theater scene in local productions such as “Hamlet,” “Macbeth” and “Objects in the Mirror,” Daniel Kyri has successfully transitioned to episodic television, with the stars Darren Ritter, an openly gay black firefighter, on the hit NBC procedural drama “Chicago Fire.”
It was an experience that Kyri, who identifies as gay and grew up on the South Side of Chicago, described as “a little bit magical” in a recent interview.
“In many ways, it really feels like that, because throughout history, how often have people like us told our stories?” he say. “Of course, my story is not exactly like Ritter’s, but… for me it is special. It holds a place of honor in my life and I don’t think that will end as long as I’m lucky and can immerse myself in this role.”
In the summer of 2018, Kyri was playing the title character in “Hamlet” — reimagined by a group of Black artists — when he received an audition for a possible recurring role in the second season. seven of “Chicago Fire. ” With a grueling performance schedule weighing on him, he is planning to take a break from acting to focus on writing, as he and writing partner Bea Cordelia have just launched a web series (“The T” ) about the time between a white transgender woman and a black gay man in Chicago. But he still felt compelled to audition for his first television role, even when he soon discovered that he was the only black person in the waiting room.
“Honestly, one of the things I remember most is walking into a room and seeing a type of person who doesn’t look like me among my fellow actors and thinking to myself, ‘Wow, there’s no way I understand this.’ “, Kyri said. with a smile. “And interestingly, that opened up the opportunity for me to play a little more and put all the work I had done on the side. I made a number adjusted to the director’s instructions and found something even more profound. Then, no pun intended, it went straight into the fire.”
While his arc was said to only last two to three episodes, Kyri began appearing again heavily in the firefighting drama over two seasons, appearing in a total of 36 episodes before being promoted. into a television series last August. During that time, he was able to work “organically and collaboratively” with the writers — who, he says, “are very good at creating a lovely tone that balances comedy drama and drama, between everyday life and adrenaline- drag” — to incorporate parts of his own identity and life experiences into his groundbreaking role.
As the writers continued to write him into major storylines, Kyri discovered that his character would come out as gay at the beginning of the eighth season. After using his web series to explore the intersection of various identities, including his identity as a queer Black man, the actor immediately understood the importance of the plot and feel a certain responsibility to get it right.
