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Powell, Kellet, Gaines, Forrester. The list goes on when it comes to recent FBI franchise exits. But is Sheryll Barnes leaving FBI: Most Wanted another departure fans should prepare for?
FBI: Most Wanted is CBS crime series following the personal and professional lives of special agents at the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s New York Fugitive Task Force, which tracks and captures notorious and dangerous criminals on the FBI’s Most Wanted list. The series — which was created by Dick Wolf, the same mind behind the One Chicago and Law & Order franchises — is the second series in CBS’ FBI franchise, which also includes FBI and FBI: International.
Sheryll Barnes (played by Roxy Sternberg), an FBI Special Agent and the second in command of the Fugitive Task Force, is one of two original characters left on FBI: Most Wanted, along with Hana Gibson, played by Keisha Castle-Hughes. However, that could all change. Read on for why fans are worried Sheryll Barnes is leaving FBI: Most Wanted and what could happen to Roxy Sternberg’s character.
Is Sheryll Barnes leaving FBI: Most Wanted?
Is Sheryll Barnes leaving FBI: Most Wanted? FBI: Most Wanted sparked speculation that Roxy Sternberg, who plays Barnes, was leaving the series after the Season 5, Episode 11, “Radio Silence,” which showed Barnes shot by who Special Agent Ray Cannon described as a “psycho targeting cops.” In the preview, Barnes runs to help a civilian injured on the ground as Supervisory Special Agent Remy Scott yells, “We’ve got pedestrians in the line of fire!”
When Barnes reaches the civilian, she’s shot herself as Special Agent Nina Chase yells out to her and Barnes lays on the ground as she’s struggling to breathe. The preview hinted at Barnes’ death with a clip of her hugging her daughter, Anais Barnes Gaines, as a voiceover from her says: “We leave for work in the morning. You say goodbye. It could be he last time.” Barnes, however, survives the shooting, though she’s hospitalized and seriously injured. The final scene of the episode shows Barnes’ daughter visiting her at the hospital, as she assures her that she’ll be OK. The last moments of the scene show Barnes watching her daughter leave the hospital room as Barnes takes a deep breath and has a serious look on her face.
So is Barnes leaving FBI: Most Wanted? While Sternberg hasn’t announced her exit from FBI: Most Wanted, fans speculate that she could be taking a break from the series due to her current pregnancy. “There’s someone else joining the party in approximately 12 weeks🤰🏾🙌🏾,” Barnes shared an Instagram photo of her in a swimsuit holding her baby bump in March 2024. The photo was posted on March 5, 2024, which means her due date would be around the week of May 28, 2024, two weeks after “Radio Silence” airs.
“Again? Does this mean another extended absence from FBI? Between you and Missy Peregrym, I’m beginning to think the DickWolfVerse is the world’s biggest soap opera! Anyway, congratulations,” a user commented on Sternberg’s Instagram post, referencing Missy Peregrym’s (Maggie Bell) break on FBI. Another user commented, “So this means you gonna be gone from the show again 😢😢.”
Sternberg revealed in an Instagram post on May 6, 2024, that she was three weeks away from her due date, which also confirms that she could be taking a break from FBI: Most Wanted. “3 weeks to go… ❤️ is it a Boy or a Girl?,” she captioned the post.
Sternberg confirmed to Cinemablend in March 2024 that, while she’s pregnant in real life, Barnes is not pregnant in FBI: Most Wanted, which means she’s had to hide her baby bump while on set. “We’ve reached a point now where I’m showing. For a while you couldn’t see, and now there’s polite [comments] kind of like, ‘I wouldn’t stand like that’ or ‘Maybe we’ll wear a jacket,’” she said. “There’s a few polite kind of utters of ‘I can see a belly, I can see a baby right now.’ There’s that obviously, but other than that, nothing really changes. We’re not including it in the character. It wouldn’t make sense for many reasons. So business as usual, just a little bit more tired than normal. I never know whether I blame that on the 4 a.m. pickups or the baby. I don’t know what to blame. I’m tired even when I’m not pregnant. [laughs] I’m just tired.”
Sternberg was previously pregnant while filming FBI: Most Wanted Season 3 in 2022, where she also hid her baby bump until her ninth month. Due to her pregnancy, Sternberg was missing from the second half of Season 3, with Barnes not returning until Season 4. If Sternberg follows the same timeline for her current pregnancy, fans could see Barnes take a break from the FBI at the end of Season 5 and not return until later in Season 6.
FBI: Most Wanted was renewed for a sixth season in April 2024. Spin-offs FBI and FBI: International were also renewed for ninth and fourth seasons respectively. If Sternberg was to leave, she would follow a string of FBI actors who have exited in the past year, including Scott Forrester from FBI: International and Kristin Gaines from FBI: Most Wanted.
FBI: Most Wanted is available to stream on Paramount Plus.
