Editor's note: The following contains major spoilers for Season 4 of Fire Country.]
In the Season 4 premiere of the CBS series Fire Country, entitled “Goodbye for Now,” Bode (Max Thieriot), Sharon (Diane Farr), Station 42, and the town of Edgewater are left reeling after the death of Vince Leone (Billy Burke). Grief can both bring people together and tear them apart, test the loyalty of friends and family, and push fellow firefighters to their limit. And with a new battalion chief (Shawn Hatosy) in charge and doing things not only his way but differently from Vince, clashes are bound to happen.
During this one-on-one interview with Collider, Thieriot discussed the loss of Vince in Bode’s life and the absence of Burke from the series, how surprised he was to learn that the death was revealed in the Season 4 trailer, the new double feature with Sheriff Country, which he appeared in the premiere of, future crossover appearances, how Hatosy’s character Brett Richards will be shaking things up, getting Bode and Gabriela back to a place of friendship, and whether they still could end up together in the future.
Losing Vince Leone in ‘Fire Country’ Will Be Felt Throughout Season 4
"A decision like that is not one that is easy for anybody."
Collider: It feels like if Vince were going to die in a fire, he would want it to be saving and protecting his family. Who made the decision about what would happen to that character? What were those conversations like? How did you feel about saying goodbye to the character in that way?
MAX THIERIOT: I think it was a big group decision. A decision like that is not one that is easy for anybody. It’s so layered and it’s such a process. No one is above the show and everything is about the greater good of the show itself, what makes the show better, and what allows us to push these stories further, and create good television, good drama, and character growth. It was a long process of coming to this conclusion. I don’t know that there was one person who was like, “This is what we need to do.” But eventually it just became clear to everyone and the writing was on the wall that this was the way things would probably and should probably go. It was also a weird and difficult conversation to have because Billy [Burke] is so loved and such an incredible actor and scene partner. This crew loves him. He really is like a family member and a father figure on set. The hardest thing is separating the personal from the work part of everything, especially because you spend so much time with these people every day. On a personal level, it becomes really difficult, and it becomes really personal.
For me, the hardest thing to digest was not working with this guy every day. I think that was hard for everyone. The other thing is, if you look at it and go, “Okay, if this is the decision that we’re going to make, we have to really service this story and we have to honor this character, and we have to be true to this job and the reality of the stakes of this job.” Nobody knows the stakes of this job better than firefighters, and what their families can possibly go through. It was important to show that not only did he really care about this community and fighting fires, but at the center of that, he cared about his family the most. That was the center of his world. So, we had to show that he was willing to put his own life at risk for those people, and everyone and everything that he believed in and stood for and everything that he loved.
We also felt like it was really important to have a big impactful scene, coming back in the season, that represented how much this character and this figure of this town is loved, and how important he was. It’s multifaceted and it’s hard. Moving forward, you’re constantly going, “Okay, how do we continue to honor this character? How do we continue to find growth and story for all these characters moving forward and what they all go through and what this community goes through with losing this figure?” We have to find a way to make it a central part of this season while not making the central focus of the season be about grief. It’s that fine line between those two things. I think the writers are doing a great job. We’re always getting better and trying to push it. We have some really talented, smart folks in there who sit in a room every day and put their heads together and try to come up with the best thing.
Were you surprised that spoiler was revealed in the Season 4 trailer? Is it better to just rip off the Band-Aid?
THIERIOT: I was surprised. It was a conversation that we had. From a producing/cliffhanger standpoint, you look at it, and you go, “You just revealed the thing.” At the same time, I also have great respect for them doing that because I think a big part of making that decision was about honoring and respecting the character to a point where you’re not just trying to use a central character’s death as a cliffhanger and as a gimmick. There’s a weird fine line there. As an audience member, you’re craving that reveal of, “Oh, gosh, what’s going to happen?” But then, at the same time, you don’t want to feel like you’re selling the character short, by any means, and using their death for other reasons. I didn’t know how to feel about that. Ultimately, the loss of that character is obviously a huge, pivotal thing for the show. Any time you lose a character that people love, and that I love, frankly, the audience is going to be gutted and can be looking and going, “Okay, well, now what? How come? Why?” You know that moment is coming, regardless of where you find out about it.
Along with the return of Fire Country, you’re also in the season premiere of Sheriff Country. Was that something you intentionally wanted to do at the start of that series?
THIERIOT: I think it was intentional to do it at the start of the series, being on the same night. Obviously, the sheriff’s office is in the same town. We felt like one of the things that’s really important to the show is that we get to feel this sense of small town and small community, and we want to really make them feel connected right beyond some of the character relationships. You want to feel like you’re in Edgewater, and we feel like a very important piece of that is showing our characters in that world, so that when you watch, your head is in that place going “Okay, I’m in Edgewater. I get it.” We want you to really feel that overlap, so doing that right out of the gate was something that we talked about being important. We want to allow the audience to feel like they’re still in Edgewater when they go from 8:00 to 9:00. We’re just watching somebody else’s job now and we’re following some different people as they navigate it, and we’re getting to see different sides of Edgewater.
Honestly, I can’t wait for that show to come out as well because I think people are going to love it. It has so much of the DNA of what makes Fire Country different and a show that people love, but it’s also its own show and it has a different mechanism to it. The police work that sheriffs do is so different from firefighting, and there’s so much more of an investigative mystery, problem-solving aspect that is layered throughout each episode, and the whole season. The drama is laced throughout the show in a much different way because it’s a slower burn, but always on the go. Things are always slowly evolving and happening around our characters. Just given the nature of the people that our sheriffs are dealing with, there’s a lot more characters who are gray. You don’t really know whether you can trust these people or not, if they’re good or if they’re bad. There are a lot more layers to a lot of the folks that we come into contact with, which keeps you always on the edge of your seat. But it still has a lot of the same heart and family element and small town piece that makes Fire Country what it is.
It Was Important to Max Thieriot to Get Bode and Gabriela to a Better Place in ‘Fire Country’ Season 4
"Gabriela always holds a piece of Bode's heart."
Max Thieriot as Bode with Stephanie Arcila as Gabriela standing outside a fire in Fire Country Season 3
After Vince’s death, Bode and Gabriela actually become friends again, which is nice to see. Was it important to get them back to a better place with each other before she also leaves the series? Do you also hope that she will reappear at some point?
THIERIOT: For sure, yeah. That was a big piece that was really important to us. When a character goes away and it’s not completely out of the blue, you go, “Well, why are they gone?” It was important to us to show the growth that she is seeking and explain why they are at the place they’re at. Having gone through all the things, including the stuff that happened at the end of Season 3 with Finn, and a lot of the trauma that these characters have experienced, they both need to find growth. It was also important that they do leave off in a place where Gabriela could very much come back. Gabriela always holds a piece of Bode’s heart, and vice versa, so we felt that door should never be closed for us. There should always be something lingering and questioning what the future holds.
Do you feel like Bode and Gabriela could still end up together somewhere down the road, even if it’s in the last episode ever of the series?
THIERIOT: I do, yeah. We set something up in the pilot episode that shows that there was instantly something between the two of them that is undeniable. That potential makes for really exciting stuff in the future. Everybody says that everything happens for a reason. Even in the television landscape, as you’re developing shows and creating drama and you arc out these character stories, that’s also true. The more that you keep them apart, the more that you want to see them back together. Holding onto that possibility and just trying to figure out if, when and where that’s a possibility is a really exciting thing that would be a surprising, in a great way, episode of TV. I think it leaves it in a place where it really could go in any possible direction. It leaves us with so many different avenues and opportunities to explore in the future because they’re at that place emotionally.
New Battalion Chief Brett Richards Will Be Shaking Things Up at Station 42 in Season 4 of ‘Fire Country’
"Station 42 is broken."
Shawn Hatosy standing over Max Thieriot as Bode and Jordan Calloway as Jake kneeling in Fire Country
With Vince gone, obviously that will shake things up a bit, but then you’re also bringing in a character that is intentionally going to shake things up, with Shawn Hatosy. What can you say about how his character will fit in? How will he be shaking things up?
THIERIOT: He’s definitely going to shake things up. It’s not that we have one person who needs direction at this moment and you’re bringing in someone to mentor them. Station 42 is broken, and it’s broken because it lacks leadership and that key voice of reason and that’s someone that everybody looks to. Bringing in Shawn is also complicated because he comes in at a really difficult and complicated time for all of these people. They’re really just trying to pick up the pieces. He’s a character that is incredibly smart and methodical and has been doing this job for a long time. But our characters and the station are still reeling, and they don’t know how to put one foot in front of the other yet. Anybody coming in, at that point in time, is going to feel like they’re trying to erase the past and take the place of somebody. That’s going to create friction that doesn’t necessarily need to be there and isn’t necessarily warranted. As we all know, when people are going through really difficult times, they react maybe not in the best way, just because of where they’re at, personally and emotionally, and we get to really see that. These people just want things to be back to the way they were, but that isn’t the reality anymore.
Shawn is there for a while in the beginning, and then he’ll be coming back. We will also get to experience real growth, not in his character as much as our characters and the way that we view him, which will be really fun and exciting. We’ll get to see sort of a different version of what 42 looks like with that person and how our characters adjust to a different way of things. And with Hatosy, I love the dude. He’s an incredible actor. I’ve been a huge fan of his, since forever, even back to The Faculty. He’s been doing incredible work for so many years. It’s really cool to see him finally recognized. He’s a guy who shows up and puts in the work and really delivers, every time, whatever it is that he has. It’s not that he’s gone under the radar but maybe hasn’t been given as much recognition as he probably deserves over the years, for the great work that he’s done, with Animal Kingdom, Southland, and Alpha Dog. You watch a couple things that that dude’s in and you’re like, “Oh, man, this guy can act.” So, I couldn’t be more thrilled to have him be a part of the show.
Have you already done more appearances in Sheriff Country, or is that something that you haven’t done yet but are still open to doing, at some point during the season?
THIERIOT: I’ve done the first one, and there will be more coming up. We haven’t filmed those quite yet, but soon. You will see some of our other characters from Fire Country over in the Sheriff Country world. You’ll get to see Kevin Alejandro over there, and Diane [Farr]. You’ll get to see some of those characters in our world. You’ll get to see some more of Mickey and Wes. There will constantly be really fun and interesting ways of overlapping our people from the shows, in cool, natural, and organic ways that honestly makes sense because it’s a small town.
Fire Country airs on CBS and is available to stream on Paramount+. Check out the Season 4 trailer:
