Fire Country

Fire Country is an American action drama television series created by Max Thieriot, Tony Phelan and Joan Rater and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer for CBS, starring Thieriot. It premiered on October 7, 2022. In January 2023, the series was renewed for a second season.

Fire Country
GenreAction
Procedural drama
Created by
Starring
Theme music composerFil Eisler
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes14
Production
Executive producers
Production locationsFort Langley, Vancouver
Production companies
DistributorParamount Global Content Distribution
Release
Original networkCBS
Original releaseOctober 7, 2022 (2022-10-07) –
present (present)

Premise

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.[1] 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.

Cast

Main
  • Max Thieriot as Bode Donovan (aka Bode Leone)
  • Kevin Alejandro as Manny Perez, Gabriella’s father and captain of Cal Fire where Bode is sent
  • Jordan Calloway as Jake Crawford, ex-boyfriend of Riley and Gabriella, and a firefighter.
  • Stephanie Arcila as Gabriella Perez, Manny’s daughter.
  • Jules Latimer as Eve Edwards, firefighter with Jake under Vince's command
  • Diane Farr as Sharon Leone, Vince’s wife, Riley’s mother, Bode Donovan’s mother and Cal Fire Division Chief
  • Billy Burke as Vince Leone, Riley’s father, Bode Donovan’s father and Cal Fire Battalion Chief

Recurring
  • W. Tré Davis as Freddy Mills, Cal Fire inmate and Bode's friend.[2]
  • Michael Trucco as Luke, Vince's brother
  • Jade Pettyjohn as Riley Leone, Vince and Sharon's deceased daughter, Bode's younger sister, Eve's best friend
  • Sabina Gadecki as Cara, Bode's ex-girlfriend
  • April Amber Telek as Dolly Burnet, Bode's aunt
  • Aaron Pearl as Chief Paulie Burnett, Bode's uncle
  • Zach Tinker as Collin O'Reilly, a humble, charming, and talented probie firefighter[3]
  • Katrina Reynolds as Cookie, Freddy's girlfriend[4]

Episodes
No.Title [5]Directed byWritten byOriginal air date [5]U.S. viewers
(millions)
1"Pilot"James StrongTeleplay by : Joan Rater & Tony Phelan
Story by : Joan Rater & Tony Phelan & Max Thieriot		October 7, 2022 (2022-10-07)5.91[6]
2"The Fresh Prince of Edgewater"Dermott DownsNatalia FernandezOctober 14, 2022 (2022-10-14)5.80[7]
3"Where There's Smoke..."Eagle EgilssonDavid GouldOctober 21, 2022 (2022-10-21)5.26[8]
4"Work, Don't Worry"Jacquie GouldTonya KongOctober 28, 2022 (2022-10-28)5.30[9]
5"Get Some, Be Safe"Gonzalo AmatBarbara Kaye FriendNovember 4, 2022 (2022-11-04)5.53[10]
6"Like Old Times"Erica WatsonSara Casey & Manuel HerreraNovember 18, 2022 (2022-11-18)5.47[11]
7"Happy to Help"Antonio NegretDwain WorrellDecember 2, 2022 (2022-12-02)5.46[12]
8"Bad Guy"Kevin AlejandroTia NapolitanoDecember 9, 2022 (2022-12-09)5.59[13]
9"No Good Deed"Sarah Wayne CalliesTia Napolitano & Julia FontanaJanuary 6, 2023 (2023-01-06)6.57[14]
10"Get Your Hopes Up"Laura Nisbet PetersNatalia FernandezJanuary 13, 2023 (2023-01-13)5.95[15]
11"Mama Bear"Anton L. CropperDavid GouldJanuary 20, 2023 (2023-01-20)6.10[16]
12"Two Pink Lines"Dermott DownsJoan Rater & Tony PhelanJanuary 29, 2023 (2023-01-29)10.08[17]
13"You Know Your Dragon Best"Marie JamoraTia Napolitano & Barbara Kaye FriendFebruary 3, 2023 (2023-02-03)6.37[18]
14"A Fair to Remember"Kantú LentzSara Casey & Manuel HerreraFebruary 10, 2023 (2023-02-10)6.49[19]
15"False Promises"TBATBAMarch 3, 2023 (2023-03-03)TBD
16"My Kinda Leader"TBATBAMarch 10, 2023 (2023-03-10)TBD

Production

Development

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.[20] In February 2022, a series pilot was green-lit.[21] 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.[22] Tia Napolitano would serve as the series showrunner.[23] On October 19, 2022, the series received a full season order.[24] On January 6, 2023, CBS renewed the series for a second season.[25]

Filming

Filming of the series began on July 21, 2022 in Vancouver, Canada, and is scheduled to continue until April 5, 2023.[26] The series uses the nearby village of Fort Langley to portray the fictional Northern California town of Edgewater.[27] Additionally establishing shots for the city of Edgewood were filmed in Rio Dell, in Humboldt County, California, where the show is set.[28]

Casting

In February 2022, it was announced that Thieriot would star in the series.[29] In March 2022, Burke and Alejandro were given lead roles in the pilot.[30] A few days later, it was announced that Farr, Calloway, Arcila, and Latimer would be appearing as series regulars.[31] In September 2022, it was announced that Trucco would be joining the show in a recurring role.[32] In January 2023, it was reported that Zach Tinker joined the cast in undisclosed capacity.[33]

Broadcast

Fire Country premiered on October 7, 2022, on CBS in the United States.[34] It aired on Global Television Network in Canada on the same day.

Internationally, the series premiered in Portugal on December 20, 2022 on Fox, in Italy on January 8, 2023 on Rai 2 and in Australia on October 9, 2022 and January 11, 2023 on Paramount+ Australia and Network 10, respectively.[35]

Reception

Critical response

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 50% approval rating with an average rating of 4.3/10, based on 8 critic reviews.[36] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 55 out of 100 based on 5 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[37]

Katie Dowd, writing for SFGATE, accused Fire Country of being exploitative and "inaccurate."[38]

Ratings
Viewership and ratings per episode of Fire Country
No. Title Air dateRating
(18–49)		Viewers
(millions)		DVR
(18–49)		DVR viewers
(millions)		Total
(18–49)		Total viewers
(millions)
1 "Pilot" October 7, 20220.45.91[6]0.32.350.78.26[39]
2 "The Fresh Prince of Edgewater" October 14, 20220.55.80[7]0.32.450.78.25[40]
3 "Where There's Smoke..." October 21, 20220.55.26[8]0.32.140.77.39[41]
4 "Work, Don't Worry" October 28, 20220.55.30[9]0.32.590.87.89[42]
5 "Get Some, Be Safe" November 4, 20220.45.53[10]0.32.450.77.98[43]
6 "Like Old Times" November 18, 20220.45.47[11]TBDTBDTBDTBD
7 "Happy to Help" December 2, 20220.45.46[12]TBDTBDTBDTBD
8 "Bad Guy" December 9, 20220.45.59[13]TBDTBDTBDTBD
9 "No Good Deed" January 6, 20230.66.57[14]0.32.430.99.00[44]
10 "Get Your Hopes Up" January 13, 20230.55.95[15]0.32.460.88.41[45]
11 "Mama Bear" January 20, 20230.56.10[16]0.32.710.98.81[46]
12 "Two Pink Lines" January 29, 20231.910.08[17]TBDTBDTBDTBD
13 "You Know Your Dragon Best" February 3, 20230.56.37[18]TBDTBDTBDTBD
14 "A Fair to Remember" February 10, 20230.56.49[19]TBDTBDTBDTBD

References
  1. Rogers, Nate (November 4, 2022). "'Fire Country,' a new show about Cal Fire, is a hit. Just not with Cal Fire". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
  2. Framke, Caroline (October 4, 2022). "'Fire Country,' CBS' New Drama About Incarcerated Firefighters, Has Some Style, but Its Bravado Is Predictable: TV Review". Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved January 29, 2023.
  3. Cordero, Rosy (January 27, 2023). "'Fire Country' Adds Zach Tinker To Season 1 Cast". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 27, 2023.
  4. https://www.showbizjunkies.com/tv/fire-country-episode-12/amp/
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  6. Salem, Mitch (October 10, 2022). "ShowBuzzDaily's Friday 10.7.2022 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals Updated". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
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