What's It Like To Not Have To Worry About Your Show Getting Canceled? Sheriff Country's Matt Lauria Told Me

We’ve reached the point in the 2026 TV schedule where final calls are being made about renewing or canceling network shows. However, for viewers of various CBS projects, they didn’t have to worry at all this season. That’s because the network picked up two shows in late 2025 and ten more at the start of this year. Ultimately, only a few series got axed. So, with all that in mind, I asked Sheriff Country’s Matt Lauria about not having to worry about the future of his show, because he knew he was getting Season 2.

While network TV shows provide great job security for a given season, seeing as they constitute months of work, it’s not guaranteed year-to-year. It’s always possible that a show could wind up on the list of series ending in 2026. However, in Sheriff Country’s case, they got a Season 2 pickup a couple of months into Season 1. So, they knew they were coming back very, very early. When I asked Matt Lauria, who plays Boone on the Fire Country spinoff, how that felt, he told me:

We were elated. [Showrunner] Matt Lopez pulled Morena [Baccarin] and I off set. We were working on a scene, and he pulled us off set, and he's like, ‘Hey, don't tell anybody.’ But we all started, like screaming.

I’d be screaming too. Under any circumstances, news like this would be marvelous. However, Sheriff Country’s situation is truly ideal. The show was picked up for Season 2 on December 3, 2025. That was less than two months after its premiere, signifying the confidence CBS has in it.

So, now the cast and crew of this series can go into their next season on a very high note. They also got to finish out their first season riding this high, too. Lauria made it very clear to me that they really do love working on this series, so knowing they’d get to come back for their sophomore season was wonderful:

We're having a really, really good time. It's hard work. As you know, network dramas are long hours, and you're away from your family a lot, but we have such a great group, and our crew is incredible, an incredible family. And I spend all day with Morena, and we get along like gangbusters. And so, you know, it's a happy place of work.

Paramount+: from $8.99 a month/$89.99 a year

Paramount+: from $8.99 a month/$89.99 a year
Between the Essential plan running $8.99 a month and the ad-free Premium option at $13.99 a month, there's plenty to choose from with Paramount+. This includes Sheriff Country and Fire Country.

Well, I’m very happy that Lauria and Morena Baccarin, who leads Sheriff Country as Mikey Fox, get along so well, because they’ll be working together again very soon. I’d also guess that the series stands a good chance of going on past Season 2, too. That’s because its franchise’s flagship program, Fire Country, is in its fourth season, and a fifth is on the way. It’s never shown signs of slowing down, and it would seem that the spinoff is doing the same thing.

Now, obviously, with good news comes bad news. While CBS renewed a ton of its programs fairly early this year, sadly, DMV and Watson were canceled. Although it is wonderful that the network ultimately renewed the majority of its scripted programming.

So, with all that said, Sheriff Country and a lot of shows get to celebrate now, as they finish out one season and head into another. Meanwhile, you can catch new episodes of the Fire Country spinoff every Friday at 8 p.m. ET or with a Paramount+ subscription the next day.

Riley Utley
Weekend Editor

Riley Utley is the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. She has written for national publications as well as daily and alt-weekly newspapers in Spokane, Washington, Syracuse, New York and Charleston, South Carolina. She graduated with her master’s degree in arts journalism and communications from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University. Since joining the CB team she has covered numerous TV shows and movies -- including her personal favorite shows Ted Lasso and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. She also has followed and consistently written about everything from Taylor Swift to Fire Country, and she's enjoyed every second of it.

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