'Chicago Fire' gets full season order

Fans of 'Chicago Fire' rejoice! After airing five episodes of the initial seven-episode order, NBC has decided to move forward with the action-drama series and has placed an order for a full twenty-two episode season. The remaining fifteen episodes of the season will go into production as soon as possible.

NBC has essentially left this decision to the very last minute; after deciding to pick up ratings-hit 'Revolution' quite swiftly, 'Chicago Fire' has taken a few weeks to find its audience. However, recent ratings indicate a trend of ratings growth on the ensemble series. That evidence, coupled with the incredible track record of producer and showrunner Dick Wolf ('Law and Order: Special Victims Unit') has apparently added up to increased confidence on behalf of the NBC suits.

This is very good news for NBC, as a massive marketing campaign ran for weeks preceding the premiere of 'Chicago Fire.' The series debut to mixed critical reception and a luke-warm audience response, throwing the future of the Jesse Spencer series in doubt. This week's fifth episode, "Hanging On," was the highest rated episode of the series to date; just as Wolf has said in interviews, he was confident 'Fire' would find an audience if the network gave it the opportunity. It would seem the Wizard of Law & Order has done it again.

“We all love this thrilling new drama with its sexy breakout cast,” said Jennifer Salke, president, NBC Entertainment. “We are excited to see it gaining traction on our schedule. Executive producer Dick Wolf and all the producers have done an amazing job developing a high-stakes series with lots of great heroic characters whose exploits are depicted in Dick’s typically epic storytelling style. We are incredibly invested in this one and can’t wait to hear about their plans for [episodes to come].”

'Chicago Fire' airs Wednesdays on NBC.