Fire Country has faced numerous surprising cast — and crew — changes over the years.
The CBS series, which premiered in 2022, introduced Us to the town of Edgewater after inmate Bode (Max Thieriot) returned home and began volunteering for the California Conservation Camp Program. By season 2, a backdoor pilot set up the world of Sheriff Country, which is centered around Sharon’s (Diane Farr) estranged sister Mickey (Morena Baccarin) as she solves crimes in town.
Fire Country later went through shocking shakeups when budget cuts led to Billy Burke and Stephanie Arcila‘s exits in season 3. The show continued to have characters come and go before news broke that showrunner Tia Napolitano was departing after four seasons.
“Tia has been instrumental in helping both build and steer Fire Country, which not only became a top series, but is also the foundation of a growing universe,” CBS Entertainment President Amy Reisenbach and CBS Studios President David Stapf said in a joint statement in January 2026. “We’re grateful for all her contributions and tireless work, and look forward to collaborating with her on future projects.”
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Keep scrolling for a guide to other surprising exits:
Stephanie Arcila as Gabriela
After playing the Cal Fire firefighter turned paramedic, Arcila’s Gabriela was written off in season 4.
“I had no idea ever. But at the same time, I know that this is the nature of the industry that I’m in, and I have accepted the flow of release and acceptance throughout my journey and knowing that when one door closes, another one always opens,” Arcila exclusively told Us Weekly in April 2025. “We have this beautiful eternal door of revolving desires in what we love in life. I believe that if we put resistance towards that, sometimes it stops us from fulfilling other things that we love.”
Arcila called the news of her exit “a complete shock.”
“The minute that they told me [Gabriela wouldn’t return as a main character], I accepted it. I was like, ‘OK, I’m going to put Gabriela in this beautiful little drawer of fulfilled dreams and let the universe take over,’” she recalled. “I respect every department in our industry, and I know that we all know what we’re doing and have a way with storytelling. It’s a collaborative process. I have no idea [where Gabriela’s story] would go from here, but you never know [about a possible return].”
Billy Burke as Vince
Burke has yet to break his silence on his exit following alleged budget issues. Napolitano, meanwhile, defended the decision to kill off Vince, a main character since the show debuted on CBS.
“It’s a fire show. Anyone can go at any time,” she told Us in October 2025. “But in terms of losing people, we’re also adding some really fun guest cast. It’s a revolving door of people from Sharon’s past and new faces that are exciting to bring conflict and secrets and twists and turns.”
Napolitano teased how the show will have to balance “really spicing it up” while still walking a “fine line” of paying tribute to the loss.
“What we’ve done is really thread the needle of honoring — especially Vince — because Gabriella is gone, but she’s gone to a happy and successful life. She’s still out there. But we really walk this line of honoring Vince while also finding hope rather quickly,” she noted. “Looking forward, the theme of the season is rising from the ashes and recovery.”
Napolitano continued: “How do you recover from something like this? And we’re really going to see everybody rise to the occasion, in celebration of Vince, of his life and in honoring the sacrifice that he made.”
W. Tré Davis as Freddy
Davis played a crucial role in season 1 of Fire Country but only made a guest appearance one year later. His character leaving Three Rock caused the fan-favorite role to disappear.
Fiona Rene as Rebecca
Rene was killed off Fire Country after playing a big role in season 1. She subsequently became a lead on Tracker.
Sabina Gadecki as Cara
“If I had any involvement, I would be not dead,” Gadecki, who played Cara, exclusively told Us in April 2024 after her character got into an ambulance accident that resulted in a brain injury and her eventual death before her boyfriend, Jake (Jordan Calloway), could proposer.
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Rafael de la Fuente as Diego
After Gabriela broke off her engagement to Diego in season 3, her almost-husband was written off the show.
Alix West Lefler as Genevieve
Cara’s daughter, Genevieve, was meant to play a big role as Jake’s adoptive daughter before she left for another state.
Leven Rambin as Audrey
After Gabriela’s exit, Audrey was Bode’s one and only love interest — only to be written off the show before season 4 came to an end.
Jared Padalecki as Camden
Padalecki was introduced in season 3 as a potential subject for another Fire Country spinoff. He only appeared in a few episodes and no news has been announced about his potential appearance on another show.
Shawn Hatosy as Brett
Hatosy had a guest star role in season 4 but his character’s arc died down several episodes in.
