Diane Farr is posing a question to Fire Country fans following a major character death in the season 4 premiere.
On Saturday, Oct. 18, Farr shared a message on Instagram acknowledging that fans were upset over the on-screen death of Station 42 Battalion Chief Vince Leone (played by Billy Burke), which took place during the show’s season 4 premiere on Friday, Oct. 17.
During the episode, which picked up with the cliffhanger from the season 3 finale, which found Vince unable to make it out of a burning memory care facility. The episode revealed he died as a result of the blaze.
Farr, 56, later wrote that she knows “some of y’all are angry” over what the loss means for the show and her character, Sharon Leone. “I see those notes also. And I FEEL you,” Farr wrote.
“But let me ask an honest question,” she added. “If we only show the risk in this vocation, week after week, without at least attempting to portray the profound loss that comes to both a firehouse and a family when a key player — when one of their own — falls … wouldn’t we be skipping the deepest part of portraying firefighters?”
Farr — who plays Vince’s wife in the CBS series — added that the character is “not going away easily or silently” and that Fire Country writers “have more to share” as they intend to honor “the impact this character and this actor has made.” Along with her caption, Farr posted screenshots of direct messages fans have been sending her since the episode aired last week, including loved ones of fire fighters who said the storyline hit “close to home” and that Farr properly portrayed a “widow’s anger.”
The final photo in Farr’s carousel post featured an American flag hanging at the funeral of her uncle, “a firefighter who died peacefully in retirement long after he served his community,” she wrote.
“I offered it to our showrunner to share how big this loss is in every town in America when someone gives their life to service,” she added. “You might see the photo is matched pretty closely in last night’s premiere.”
“Big feelings for the exit of Billy and Vince are a testament to his beautiful work,” Farr concluded. “We have filmed half of season 4 so far and we are honoring it all year long. 🧡🚒”
Vince’s death was previously confirmed in the season 4 trailer for the series, as it was revealed he didn’t make it following the cliffhanger from the season 3 finale. The trailer gave a glimpse of Vince’s son Bode (Max Thieriot) giving a speech in his honor, as well as a look at how the character’s death sent ripples throughout the community, which is now in search of a new battalion chief.
Showrunner Tia Napolitano told Deadline last week that the family “will continue to deal with” the death throughout the season.
“The entire series, in small ways, we are still recovering from the death of Riley, and that was years ago. Now we’ve lost Vince, who is much more on screen in our lives. It’s a huge loss,” she said. “That being said, the season does not wallow in grief there.”
Napolitano added, “There are consequences for the death of Vince, both emotional and action wise, but Fire Country, as you know and love it, will return to your screen this season. It’s just we both honor the death and are able to, life moves on.”
