Fire Country season 3 stars Diane Farr and Billy Burke discuss how Bode’s release from prison impacts the hit action drama. When it returned to CBS, season 2 saw Bode (Max Thieriot) behind bars. That changes by the end of the season, with Fire Country season 3’s opening episode largely focusing on the disaster that occurs at the wedding of Gabriela (Stephanie Arcila) and Diego (Rafael de la Fuente). But with Bode now a free man, his future and relationships with those around him gain a larger spotlight.
In an exclusive interview with Screen Rant, Farr and Burke were asked about how Bode’s new status will reverberate throughout the series. Farr agrees that Bode’s release from prison will impact Fire Country greatly. The actor, who plays Bode’s mother Sharon, explains how the change impacts production and storyline in tandem since Bode’s release means that Bode is free to appear in more scenes:
Diane Farr : It affects everything so much just from the production standpoint. We are the only show I’ve ever even seen where the protagonist, your number one, the star of your show, couldn’t go to the main set. He was never allowed in the firehouse, so it kind of fragmented the show in a lot of ways. You were working on his set or the fire set or we were in a fire in the field together.
We were all excited about what it was going to open up for us. For Sharon, it begs this question of legacy, which I think is the theme of the whole season. If my job isn’t to save my kid who’s failing, what is my job? We’re all firefighters, and like in real life, we all have passions outside of it. I think Sharon had to come to the reckoning of, “I can’t get this involved in his life anymore. I’m going to stall him. So who am I going to be if that’s not my heart’s focus?”
Burke, who plays Billy’s father Vince, says the same. He also touches on the ways that the early episodes of season 3 will work to bring Bode back into the community and what audiences should expect in terms of how Bode’s newfound freedom will unfold on-screen:
Billy Burke: It obviously gives us the ability to go so many more places with Bode’s character, for sure, and the ongoing miasma of the Leone family unit and all those dynamics. These first few episodes have really been about how to integrate him back into the community, back into the family, and at the same time, having him do what he does this season.
What Farr & Burke’s Comments Mean For Fire Country Season 3
Bode’s Own Life Will Get Some Focus
Fire Country season 3 episode 1 is a hectic installment. Written by Tia Napolitano, with Bill Purple directing, Bode can barely start to consider his next moves as a free man before a helicopter disrupts the proceedings at Gabriela’s wedding. Given that Bode has history with Gabriela, but also just in general, the focus naturally turns to dealing with the aftermath of the crisis. But there’s a lot more of the season still to unfold.
Fire Country season 3, which airs Fridays at 9 PM ET on CBS, is expected to be a full season, after the previous installment was shorter due to the impact of the writers and actors strikes. The comments from Burke and Farr promise that the series will eventually widen its scope beyond the immediacy of the Bode and Gabriela tension to see what it means for Bode to have such a significant shift. After typically only seeing Bode in limited locations, his newfound free range is primed to give way to tension with the rest of the Fire Country cast.
Our Take On The Massive Bode Change
It’s A Bold Move
Fire Country season 4 is not confirmed yet. But it’s looking likely, given the show’s success for CBS. Some shows would wait before pulling the trigger on a premise-altering shift to the story, but the team behind the popular drama is not holding back, arriving relatively early to the question of what life would be like for Bode as a free man. It’s a significant shift that makes the upcoming episodes more intriguing.