Boris Kodjoe’s ‘Station 19’ Character Is at a Crossroads Near the End of Season 6

Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for Station 19, Season 6, Episode 14.

Characters are always at threat of leaving Station 19, which honestly mimics reality. Firefighters often come and go from fire stations, and in long-running series' like Grey's Anatomy and Station 19, actors must come and go due to scheduling conflicts and other issues. In the case of Lieutenant Robert Sullivan (Boris Kodjoe), it feels like he's always on the edge of leaving the station.

Now in Season 6, Sullivan is caught in a secret affair that could jeopardize his career. So is Sullivan (and by association, Boris Kodjoe) leaving Station 19? Or will he stick around a little while longer?

Sullivan first arrived in the Season 2 premiere as the station's new chief, and then he even became the battalion chief overseeing multiple stations. But pretty quickly, Sullivan was nearly fired for stealing drugs and lying on Station 19. He suffers a leg injury during a windstorm when the station’s aid car is pushed down a cliff with him and Andy (Jaina Lee Ortiz) inside.

He avoids paralysis, but he has months of painful therapy and lingering after-effects throughout Seasons 2 and 3, and he eventually starts stealing fentanyl from the station’s medical supplies and lies about the fentanyl inventory count to Ben (Jason George).

The jig is up, however, when Emmett finds Robert overdosing in his office. By Season 4, Robert is married to Andy, so things seem steady. But he also faces a disciplinary hearing, where almost all of his colleagues testify that he’s a man of good character. The commissioners allow Robert to stay a firefighter but strip him of his rank, making him a “probie” firefighter again.

By Season 6, Sullivan and Andy have divorced, and Sullivan has moved on to a relationship with Seattle Fire Department Fire Chief Natasha Ross (Merle Dandridge). However, because of the ramifications their relationship could have on both their jobs, they keep their relationship a secret. Later in the season, Maya finds out about Sullivan and Ross, and her intel could ruin their affair and careers.

Sullivan has not had an easy go of it over the past few seasons, and clearly, it's not getting any better. When there's a vacancy as interim captain in the fire department, Ross passes over Sullivan and gives the job to Theo Ruiz (Carlos Miranda) without even speaking to Sullivan first.

He's frustrated by the decision. So in Episode 14, he retaliates by letting Andy tell Ross that Sullivan applied for a job on the other side of Washington as a Battalion Chief.

Ross admits that she's in love with Sullivan and is worried that this means they're breaking up. As their miscommunication comes to a head, it's unclear if Sullivan will actually move across the state and if he and Ross are ending their relationship for good.

In 2020, Boris told Sports Illustrated, "My perspective is that of a Black man walking the Earth, and I’ve been blessed with a lot of opportunities. Station 19 is another one that allowed me to portray a real-life hero, somebody who puts his life on the line every day for people, which is very timely because we are living in a pivotal point in our history. To be able to use the platform that we have to speak on those issues is tremendously important."

He went on, “I got to give thanks to [executive producer and showrunner] Krista Vernoff, the writers’ room and [executive producers] Paris Barclay and Shonda Rhimes, who have taken this very seriously in creating storylines on the show that allow us to speak on those issues and create dialogue across the world. … It’s a tremendous honor for me to play Robert Sullivan on the show and to be a part of that.”

In 2022, Boris told People that his job was "a dream come true." So we doubt that he's leaving in the near future — if he does, it'll be a major surprise for Station 19 fans everywhere.

New episodes of Station 19 air every Thursday at 8 p.m. EST on ABC.