Fire Country

Fire Country is an American action drama television series created by Max Thieriot, Tony Phelan and Joan Rater for CBS, starring Thieriot.^[1] It is produced by Jerry Bruckheimer Television and CBS Studios.^[2] The series premiered on October 7, 2022. On January 6, 2023, the series was renewed for a second season, which premiered on February 16, 2024.^[3][4] In March 2024, the series was renewed for a third season which premiered on October 18, 2024.^[5][6]

Bode Donovan is a young convict with a troubled past. Hoping to redeem himself and shorten his prison sentence, he volunteers for the California Conservation Camp Program in which prisoners assist the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, known as Cal Fire.^[7] He ends up getting assigned to his hometown in Northern California where he must work alongside former friends, other inmates, and elite firefighters putting out the huge fires that plague the region.

• Max Thieriot as Bode Leone (formerly known as Bode Donovan), a former inmate firefighter seeking redemption ^[8]
• Kevin Alejandro as Manny Perez, Gabriela's father and a Cal Fire firefighter, formerly Captain of Three Rock
• Jordan Calloway as Jake Crawford, ex-boyfriend of Riley and Gabriela, a Cal Fire firefighter, now Station 42 Captain
• Stephanie Arcila as Gabriela Perez, Manny's daughter, a Cal Fire firefighter and paramedic
• Jules Latimer as Eve Edwards, Bode and Jake’s best friend, and a Cal Fire firefighter, now Captain of Three Rock
• Diane Farr as Sharon Leone, Bode and Riley's mother, Vince's wife and a Cal Fire firefighter, formerly Division Chief
• Billy Burke as Vince Leone, Bode and Riley's father, Sharon's husband and Cal Fire Battalion Chief

• W. Tré Davis as Freddy "Goat" Mills (season 1; guest season 2), a former inmate firefighter and Bode's friend^[9]
• Michael Trucco as Luke Leone, Vince's brother and Cal Fire Battalion Chief
• Jade Pettyjohn as Riley Leone (season 1), Vince and Sharon's deceased daughter, Bode's younger sister and Eve's best friend
• Fiona Rene as Rebecca Lee (season 1), female inmate and former attorney
• Sabina Gadecki as Cara Maisonette (season 1-2), Bode's ex-girlfriend and an aspiring ER nurse
• Zach Tinker as Collin O'Reilly/Alex Shawcross (season 1),^[10] a probationary firefighter
• Katrina Reynolds as Cookie (season 1), Freddy's girlfriend^[11]
• Karen LeBlanc as Dr. Lilly Crawford (season 1), Jake's mother and a cardiothoracic surgeon in LA
• Jeff Fahey as Walter Leone, Vince and Luke's father, and Bode's grandfather
• Barclay Hope as Father David Pascal
• Rebecca Mader as Faye Stone (season 1),^[1] the CEO and founder of a private concierge firefighting company, Nozzle
• Kanoa Goo as Kyle Ferguson (season 1),^[1] a diving friend of Gabriela's
• Crystal Balint as Erika Snow (season 1), a Cal Fire Assistant Chief
• Riley Davis as Troy Elliott (season 1), a young inmate firefighter
• Rafael de la Fuente as Diego Moreno (season 2-3),^[12] a Cal Fire paramedic
• Tye White as Cole Rodman (season 2), a former MMA fighter who is Bode's cellmate
• Jason O'Mara as Liam (season 2), a handsome firefighter who is a former colleague of Sharon's
• Alix West Lefler as Genevieve Maisonette (season 2–present), Cara's daughter
• Catherine Lough Haggquist as Governor Kelly (season 2)
• Leven Rambin as Audrey James (season 3),^[13] an ex-con
• Jared Padalecki as Camden Casey (season 3),^[14] a SoCal firefighter and maverick with a surfer swagger

Guests

• April Amber Telek as Retired Fire Chief Dolly Burnett (season 1), Bode's honorary aunt
• Aaron Pearl as Retired Fire Chief Paulie Burnett (season 1), Bode's honorary uncle
• Kane Brown as Robin (season 1),^[15] a train hopper who helps Cal Fire with victims of a train crash
• Michael O'Neill as Harlen Denbo (season 1)
• Morena Baccarin as Mickey Fox, an Edgewater County Sheriff's Sergeant, and Sharon's step-sister^[16]
• Paola Núñez as Roberta, Gabriela's mother and Manny's ex wife^[17]

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In November 2021, CBS announced it was developing a series with Thieriot, Tony Phelan and Joan Rater, based on Thierot's experiences growing up in Northern California fire country. The potential series was then known as Cal Fire.^[59] In February 2022, a series pilot was green-lit.^[60] The pilot was written by Phelan and Rater, with Thieriot as co-writer, and directed by James Strong. In May 2022, CBS picked up the series, now titled Fire Country.^[2] Tia Napolitano would serve as the series showrunner.^[61] On October 19, 2022, the series received a full season order.^[62] On January 6, 2023, CBS renewed the series for a second season.^[3] On March 12, 2024, the series was renewed for a third season.^[5]

Filming for the first season began on July 21, 2022, in Vancouver, Canada, and concluded on April 5, 2023.^[63] The series uses the nearby village of Fort Langley to portray the fictional Northern California town of Edgewater.^[64] Additionally, establishing shots for the city of Edgewood were filmed in Rio Dell, in Humboldt County, California, where the show is set.^[65] Filming for the second season began on December 11, 2023, and concluded on April 4, 2024.^[66] Filming for the third season began on July 11, 2024, and is scheduled to conclude on March 3, 2025.^[67]

In February 2022, it was announced that Thieriot would star in the series.^[68] In March 2022, Burke and Alejandro were given lead roles in the pilot.^[69] A few days later, it was announced that Farr, Calloway, Arcila, and Latimer would be appearing as series regulars.^[70] In September 2022, it was announced that Trucco would be joining the show in a recurring role.^[71] In January 2023, it was reported that Zach Tinker joined the cast in an undisclosed capacity.^[10] In March 2023, it was announced that Rebecca Mader and Kanoa Goo were cast in recurring roles.^[1] In December 2023, it was reported that Rafael de la Fuente joined the cast in a recurring capacity for the second season.^[12] On December 15, 2023, it was reported that casting was currently underway for a new character in Season 2 (a female sheriff), who may possibly be the main character in a spinoff (or become a series regular).^[72] On December 19, 2023, it was reported that Tye White and Jason O'Mara would also join the cast in a recurring capacity for the second season.^[73] On August 1, 2024, Leven Rambin was cast in recurring role for the third season.^[13]

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Fire Country premiered on October 7, 2022, on CBS in the United States.^[74] It was also available on Paramount+ via subscription and on Pluto TV for free. The second season premiered on February 16, 2024.^[4] The third season premiered on October 18, 2024.^[6]

Simulcasting in the United States, the series aired on Global in Canada and was available in a StackTV package from Amazon Prime Video. It also aired on Noovo, as a French-speaking program.

Outside the United States, the series was distributed by Paramount Global Content Distribution. The series premiered on December 20, 2022, on Fox in Portugal.

In Italy, it premiered on Rai 2 on January 8, 2023, but it was then pulled from Rai 2's schedule on January 22, 2023, after three episodes due to low ratings. It begin airing on Rai 4 on July 24, 2023.

In Australia on January 11, 2023, on Network 10.^[75]

In New Zealand, the series is available on TVNZ 2.^[76] Every episode is still available on TVNZ+.

In Croatia, it premiered on February 28, 2023, on Star Channel (Formerly FOX).

In Serbia, it premiered on February 28, 2023, on Star Channel (Formerly FOX).

In Bulgaria, it debuted on March 7, 2023, on Fox and credited to the Bulgarian studio Pro Films.

In Norway, it was available on TV 2 Play. It was later added to Strim.

In Sweden, it was added to TV4 Play on August 28, 2023.

In Poland, it premiered on Viaplay.

In Germany, it premiered on September 11, 2023, on Universal TV.

In Latin America and Brazil, the series premiered exclusively on the Pay-TV Sony Channel on September 18, 2023.

In the United Kingdom, the show premiered on Sky Witness on January 24, 2024.

In Brazil, the show is available on Netflix.

In Southeast Asia, it premiered on HITS NOW.

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 50% approval rating with an average rating of 4.3/10, based on 8 critic reviews.^[77] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 55 out of 100 based on 5 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".^[78]

Katie Dowd, writing for SFGATE, accused Fire Country of being exploitative and "inaccurate."^[79]

Prior to the show's release, Cal Fire Chief Joe Tyler released a statement denying any involvement in the creation of the show, saying that "this television series is a misrepresentation of the professional all-hazards fire department and resource protection agency that Cal Fire is." Particular objection was made to a scene in the series' trailer involving an inmate fighting a member of Cal Fire.^[80]

Tim Edwards, the president of Cal Fire's union, Local 2881, added that "we have spoken with our legal team, and we cannot prevent the series from airing or using the Cal Fire name." An attempt was made to legally require a disclaimer before and after each episode that disavowed involvement from Cal Fire, but was unsuccessful.^[80] After seeing the full pilot, Edwards continued to disapprove of the show and added criticism over inmates not being punished for multiple rule violations that would normally result in an immediate return to prison.^[81]

Showrunner Tia Napolitano replied to the criticisms saying "I had almost no response. I know we are making an entertainment show. It's not a documentary. We do our absolute best." Jeff Snider, a retired firefighter and one of the show's consultants, noted the New York City Police Department did not comment on the realism of Law & Order and said Cal Fire's unusual response was because "just in general with firefighters, we are very good at finding the flaw with each other."^[81]

On January 23, 2024, it was reported that a proposed spin-off of Fire Country would be introduced via back-door pilot episode in season 2 with Morena Baccarin attached to lead.^[93] The episode titled "Alert the Sheriff" introduced Baccarin's character Mickey Fox. On May 2, 2024, it went straight-to-series order, with CBS Studios joining the production of the series and later titled Sheriff Country.^[94]

• Official website
• Fire Country at IMDb