“FBI” fans went into the Season 8 premiere expecting a character would die — but probably not guessing the person who did.
At the end of Season 7, Special Agent Isobel Castille’s (Alana de la Garza) fate was left up in the air after she began stumbling over her words then fainted. When her colleague Jubal (Jeremy Sisto) checked on her, he discovered that she didn’t have a pulse, according to Entertainment Weekly.
Viewers had to wait until the end of the Season 8 premiere to learn what happened to Isobel. Per TV Insider, Jubal contacted Isobel’s husband Philip (Tom Cavanagh) to tell him that she had to undergo an emergency craniotomy due to a brain bleed. Luckily, Isobel made it through.
The episode also put two other characters — Maggie (Missy Peregrym) and OA (Zeeko Zaki) — at risk when they traveled to an island while working on a case. When the two were held hostage, Scola (John Boyd) and Dani (Emily Alabi) went to save them.
Earlier in the episode, Dani had been shot. She thought her bulletproof vest had shielded her from a wound. However, she later collapsed and died.
“Her death is a reminder of the grave stakes that (the agents) face day in and day out — trying to protect people in a world that is changing fast, with new threats always lurking around the corner,” showrunner Mike Weiss told TV Insider
When asked if he ever considered killing off Isobel, Weiss offered the following response.
“Every year, at the start of a new season, we, the writers, ask ourselves, ‘What is the current dynamic in the show? What happens if it shifts slightly?’ Isobel holds the entire team together in a lot of ways. We love Alana and her character so much, we never considered writing her off the show,” he said.
At the same time, the writing team did enjoy playing with the dynamics of having Isobel be “absent from the office, even briefly.”
“How does the team react when they lose that center of gravity? Who steps in to fill the void? And of course, we’re thrilled to be welcoming her back to 26 Fed, when she’s ready,” Weiss said.
Looking ahead, Weiss said Isobel will find herself in a transitional period after almost dying.
“Isobel is the steady heart and soul of the 26 Fed office. This near-death experience weighs on her in the background but never deters her drive to lead our FBI team and keep New Yorkers safe. It’s that quiet strength that everyone admires about her,” he said.
As for Dani’s death, the tragedy will definitely impact Scola, her partner.
“Losing a partner is always a tough thing. And Scola is going to be feeling the loss of Dani for a while. But Scola joined the FBI after the loss of his brother. He’s a character who finds ways to grow and honor everyone he’s lost in his daily life as an agent. It’s what makes him an extraordinary asset to the team,” Weiss said.
