When Fire Country season 3 came to an end, we knew we were likely to lose someone important to the series. Well, it didn’t take long after the episode to get the confirmation.
Throughout the summer, we knew that we would lose Vince. Even if it wasn’t permanently in the fire, we knew that Billy Burke was being written out of the show ahead of Fire Country season 4. It told us everything we needed to know during the hiatus, but the series did almost go in a different direction.
Vince almost wasn’t the casualty in Fire Country season 4
According to an interview with TV Insider, executive producer Tia Napolitano shared that there was someone else on the writers’ minds at first. For the longest time, Walter was going to be the person dying in the fire.
Yes, Vince’s dad was supposed to be the victim, and that would have allowed Sharon and Vince to get out alive. However, the problem with that decision is that it would have been the most obvious choice. People don’t tend to expect their favorite main characters to die, unless it’s Game of Thrones, of course!
"We considered every possibility of how to shake things up in Season 4. I think for a long time, it might’ve been Walter [Jeff Fahey], and it felt like that was the expected outcome, and we really wanted the most surprising version."
To bring in something shocking, either Sharon or Vince had to die, and in the end, it was Vince. I will say that if the show really wanted this to be a surprise, nobody should have announced Burke as leaving the series just after the Fire Country season 3 finale. It did leave a bitter taste on everyone’s lips.
There was a consideration of two deaths in Fire Country
It turns out that Vince may not have been the only person to die. Napolitano confirmed that there was a time when they all considered two people dying, which would have presumably been Vince and Walter.
This would have been heartbreaking for Sharon. During the Fire Country season 4 premiere, she shared that it wasn’t just the loss of her husband that hurt her. Vince was a rank below her, meaning that it was her responsibility to get all firefighters out, and she feels like she’s failed that.
If she lost a civilian, even an ex-firefighter, as well, that would have been even more heartbreaking. That would be her failing to do her duty as a firefighter.
Diane Farr has defended the decision to kill off Vince, despite the anger among fans, as it is a much bigger storyline for the entire series. There is the reminder of just how dangerous the work is. However, that doesn’t make it easier, especially when knowing that a different character was considered at first.
Fire Country airs on Fridays at 9/8c on CBS.