Spoilers for the Season 4 premiere of Fire Country are ahead! If you haven’t seen it, you can stream it with a Paramount+ subscription.
After a summer of wondering who died on Fire Country at the end of Season 3, it was sadly confirmed at the start of Season 4 that Bode’s dad, Vince, didn’t make it out of that last fire. This is easily one of the most tragic events that has happened on the CBS show, and it’s bound to impact the characters as new episodes air. So, when I had the chance to interview the showrunner, I had to ask her why they decided to kill off Vince Leone.
In the lead-up to Fire Country’s premiere on the 2025 TV schedule, I spoke with showrunner Tia Napolitano about the show’s fourth season for CinemaBlend. Obviously, I had to start our conversation with the biggest shakeup of the premiere, so I asked why they decided to kill Billy Burke’s character, Vince. In response, she explained just how dangerous firefighting is and the inevitability of something tragic like this happening:
I mean, the truth is, firefighters risk their lives to do their jobs. That's just the truth of it. And honoring that authenticity, we have always weighed the possibility of going there, and Season 4, it felt like it was time to do something fresh. The character’s events was so important to the show and to so many of our characters that the impact of losing him was so great, it felt like a great opportunity for stories that are fresh, that are new.
She makes a good point. The danger of firefighting is real, and up to this point, no major Fire Country characters had died. So, this (and Stephanie Arcila’s Gabriela leaving for a new job) easily marks the biggest change this show has ever experienced. That means the CBS series now has the opportunity to tell a totally new story and really shake things up.
Losing a character like Vince is a very big deal. While we were waiting for Season 4, I questioned how Bode and everyone at Station 42 would handle a change like this.
From a professional point of view, Burke’s character’s death leaves a big hole in the station and brings up a question about who will replace him. Meanwhile, from a personal perspective, Vince’s death will obviously impact Bode and Sharon, his son and wife. However, he was also a paternal figure, mentor and friend to the vast majority of the characters. So, this loss is terribly tragic.
To that point, Napolitano told me why this loss will be something felt by every character and the audience as Season 4 goes on, explaining:
The show started so rooted in the death of Riley. This is a loss that our audience can feel alongside of our people and present time. [It] felt like it was time to go there and shake things up in Season 4.
Remember, at the start of the show, we learn that Bode’s sister, Riley, died. That death and the grief that came with it were a major point of Fire Country’s first few seasons. However, we didn’t see her go. We did see Vince’s final moments, and we know and love him. So, his death does indeed “go there and shake things up” in big ways, and that’s why they did it.
Now, to see how Vince’s death continues to impact Fire Country, you can catch new episodes every Friday at 9 p.m. ET on CBS and you can stream them the next day on Paramount+.
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