CBS Drama ‘Fire Country’ Is Ready to Burn up Your Friday Nights
Published Oct. 7 2022, 3:56 p.m. ET
Given the wildfires ravaging the country, Fire Country probably could have had its pick of filming locations in the western United States. But instead, the new CBS show filmed north of the border, picking a popular Canadian production hub as its home base.
That’s just one of the details we’ve rounded up about Fire Country. “Blaze” through the article below to learn more about the action-packed drama.
Where was ‘Fire Country’ filmed?
The cast and crew of Fire Country is filming the show in the area of Vancouver, British Columbia, where production was slated to begin on July 21 and run through Dec. 9, according to Hollywood North Buzz.
Locals who tune into Fire Country might recognize a street in Fort Langley, B.C., as the main street of fictional Edgewater, Calif., in the TV series. And a building in Anmore, B.C., provides the exterior for the Edgewater Fire Station.
What is ‘Fire Country’ about?
Firefighter TV shows are all the rage — check out Station 19 or Chicago Fire, for instance — but Fire Country pairs the explosive action with a quest for redemption.
“Bad choices don’t make a bad man. At least that’s what Bode Donavan’s been told,” CBS says. “Midway through a five-year prison stretch, he’s been trying to convince himself of it, too. He gets the chance to prove it, signing on to an unconventional prison-release program: In exchange for reduced sentences, convicts are paired with firefighters battling Northern California wildfires.”
But “the heat is turned up,” the network adds, when Bode gets assigned to battle blazes in his rural hometown, “the place where all his troubles began.”
Who’s in the ‘Fire Country’ cast?
Max Thieriot (SEAL Team) leads the Fire Country cast, playing Bode. Billy Burke (Twilight) plays fire chief Vince in the show, while Dianne Farr (Numb3rs) plays division chief Sharon. The cast also includes Jordan Calloway (Black Lightning) as Jake, Jules Latimer (Guilty Party) as Eve, Kevin Alejandro (Lucifer) as Manny, and Stephanie Arcila (Penny Dreadful: City of Angels) as Gabriela.
What do critics say about ‘Fire Country’?
So far, the show has a middling 40% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on five reviews. The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review says Fire Country “rise[s] slightly above the middle of the pack among CBS procedurals,” but the Los Angeles Times says it is “too much of a piece with other shows of its ilk to feel new and exciting.” The Wall Street Journal has a harsher assessment, calling the show “the flambé version of a hundred other entrees on the TV menu.”
Variety, meanwhile, points out that the show “isn’t all too concerned with the realities of the program it’s using to boost Bode’s story of loyalty, redemption, and walking out of roaring fires a hero.” And AV Club bemoans the “painfully thin set of characters who lack the chemistry necessary for weekly appointment television.”
Catch new episodes of Fire Country Fridays at 9 p.m. ET on CBS.
