Amid the blood-pumping investigations and action-packed criminal takedowns of Chicago P.D. Season 13, a heartwarming friendship has bloomed between Dante Torres (Benjamin Levy Aguilar) and Intelligence Unit newcomer Eva Imani (Arienne Mandi), a bond that is echoed behind the scenes between the One Chicago stars.
How to Watch
Watch Chicago P.D. Wednesdays at 10/9c on NBC and next day on Peacock.
It’s a small world after all, as the longtime friends reunite on Season 13 of Chicago P.D. as Eva Imani settles in at her new post at the Intelligence Unit. The P.D. co-stars knew each other well before either hopped aboard the NBC nail-biter, and it’s led to some magnetic moments as Torres and Imani tackle whatever heinous case lands on their radar next.
When did Benjamin Levy Aguila and Ari Mandi become friends?
Aguilar and Mandi first met when they both lived in Los Angeles, first connecting in a 2020 Jiu-Jitsu class. NBC paid homage to their fateful friendship in a heartwarming video shared to Instagram, where Mandi and Aguilar fought back giggles while recounting their friendship origin story.
“I’d been there a few times prior to him joining, and he joined, and he was late,” Mandi said. “He was late every single time. Then we became training partners, and we both realized that we were both actors, and we loved working out. So, we joined basically every gym in Los Angeles. And, yeah, just became the best of friends.”
“And now we’re here, in Chicago P.D.,” Aguilar continued with a laugh. “The first time we did a scene together, we couldn’t lock eyes because it was, like, chaos.”
RELATED: A One Chicago Crossover Event Is Coming to NBC in March! Everything to Know (DETAILS)
“We can barely keep a straight face right now, so you can imagine us in a scene together?” Mandi teased.
Mandi echoed the fondness over her fateful first meeting with Aguilar in a 2025 interview with NBC Insider, calling her P.D. co-star one of her “closest” friends.
“We realized we have the same sense of humor, and obviously, we were both actors, so we started hanging out, helping each other with self-tapes, training a lot,” Mandi revealed. “We were kind of just very kindred spirits. I guess you could say we just had a blast together and became the closest of friends.”
Aguilar and Mandi team up as Dante Torres and Eva Imani on Chicago P.D.
Mandi and Aguilar’s friendship lore goes so far back that Mandi can even remember the moment when her training buddy got the call that he’d landed his role as Torres on Chicago P.D. Season 9. After bidding farewell to her L.A. friend for his new chapter in the Windy City, Mandi and Aguilar hoped they’d connect behind the scenes down the line sometime.
“I remember when he booked the show, and he gave me the news, and he was so excited,” Mandi told NBC Insider. “He’s like, ‘I’m moving to Chicago, it’s so crazy!’ And, you know, as friends, you always say, ‘One day we’ll work together.’ And it sort of just happened for real. Which was nuts.”
As fate would have it, they’d reunite in Season 13 after Eva Imani arrived to shake things up for Hank Voight (Jason Beghe) and the steadfast squad. Imani and Torres teamed up for a nail-biting criminal takedown in Season 13’s “Faith” after Imani weighed in on a cold case with no leads in sight. Instead of shrugging away Torres’ renewed interest in the murder, Imani helped comb through the previous investigation with new eyes, ultimately helping him track down a murderous cop.
RELATED: Chicago P.D.’s Arienne Mandi Was “Blown Away” By This Kind Gesture From Jason Beghe
Mandi reveals that her friendship with Aguilar only made her One Chicago arrival more exciting. “I reached out to him, and I was like, ‘This is so crazy, what if it happened?'” Mandi told NBC Insider. “And then shortly after the first read, I met with [P.D. showrunner] Gwen [Sigan] and a few other people, and it just fit like a glove.”
“It made the welcome to Chicago just that much warmer. You know what I mean?” Mandi said of her cherished bond with Aguilar. “You never know coming onto Season 13 of a show what it’s gonna be like. And having him here was really special, because there was someone that was familiar… It was just such a great reception.”
Catch more of Torres and Imani by watching Season 13 of Chicago P.D. on Wednesdays at 10/9c on NBC and the next day on Peacock.
