'Fire Country' Casts 1st Series Regular After Cast, Showrunner Changes
After going through several shocking cast exits, a showrunner change and a reduced episode order, Fire Country has cast its first series regular.
Olivia Thirlbywill be joining season 5 as a new firefighter, CJ, according to Deadline. The new addition is described as "a quick-witted, fiercely independent, blue-collar, decorated urban firefighter who bolted her station house and city for mysterious reasons."
"After six months on the road, trying to outrun whatever happened, and herself, fate strands her in Edgewater where she crosses paths with Bode," the character description continued. "Despite having no experience fighting woodland fires, Bode believes CJ has something to offer Station 42. And despite the serious culture shock, this fish out of water comes to believe rural Edgewater has something to offer her."
Before Thirlby, 39, kept its original main cast for three seasons until Billy Burke and Stephanie Arcila‘s departures New series regulars were not added to the show until now - with Thirlby joining OG cast members Max Thieriot, Kevin Alejandro, Jordan Calloway, Jules Latimer and Diane Farr.
Fire Country, which premiered in 2022, follows inmate Bode (Thieriot) as he attempts to shorten his prison sentence by volunteering for the California Conservation Camp Program. By the third season, Bode is out of prison and determined to prove himself at Cal Fire.
The hit series previously went through a shakeup when news broke in April 2025 that budget cuts led to Burke and Arcila being written off.
"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, 36, 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."
Showrunner Tia Napolitano, meanwhile, defended the decision.
"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."
Napolitano has since exited the show and won't be returning for season 5.
"I am beyond proud of the past four seasons of Fire Country," she said in a January statement. "All of my gratitude to our cast, crew, writers, producers, fans, and of course CBS and CBS Studios. It's been a beautiful ride!"
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This story was originally published June 30, 2026 at 10:16 AM.