CBS‘s popular sophomore drama Fire Country is gearing up for a return to television, but the network may have bigger plans beyond Bode Donovan (Max Theriot) and the prison release firefighting program. Deadline reported today that Deadpool star Morena Baccarin will add some extra star power to an upcoming episode, playing a sheriff’s deputy who could eventually receive her own series. The proposed offshoot, also produced by CBS Studios, would star Baccarin as a regular following her introduction later in the new season.
The planted spinoff episode would take attention away from Bode slightly to focus on Baccarin‘s character Mickey. A sheriff’s deputy of 15 years in the town of Edgewater, she knows the place and its many residents like the back of her hand. She’s also fiercely protective of her home, and the spinoff would likely follow her efforts to keep everyone safe from the troubles that stroll into town. Notably, the episode will not be a backdoor pilot, meaning there’s more development to be done before anything can move forward. How well Baccarin‘s appearance is received, however, could determine if and how CBS keeps moving forward with the spinoff.
It’s no shocker that CBS wants to continue building on the world of Fire Country. Season 1 earned the show a swift renewal after it became the most-watched new broadcast series on television, averaging 8 million viewers per episode and 10 million in live+35 multi-platform viewing. Adding Baccarin to this world should only help to build the buzz. She’s currently set to return to her beloved role as Vanessa Carlysle in the hotly-anticipated Deadpool 3, but her overall big-screen resume is impressive too, with memorable turns in V, Serenity, and Greenland. On television, she’s also an Emmy nominee for her role in Homeland and she more recently spent her fair share of time on The CW‘s The Flash.
What’s Next for Bode and Edgewater in ‘Fire Country’?
Baccarin will join Fire Country amid a tense Season 2 that will deal with the fallout of Bode’s confession in the season finale. The convict was attempting to earn a reduced sentence and redemption by fighting fires with the California Conservation Camp Program in the series written and developed by Thieriot alongside Tony Phelan and Joan Rater. He was doing well too, until drugs made their way into Three Rock, and he willingly confessed to being responsible for it all to save his friend. Now back behind bars, it’s clear there will be no early release for Bode.
Fire Country returns to CBS on February 16. Stay tuned here at Collider for more on the potential Baccarin-led spinoff. It appears to be only one part of CBS‘s plan to build on its existing franchises, as spinoffs of NCIS and Young Sheldon are also in the works, following a young Gibbs and Sheldon’s older brother respectively.
via Collider