Max Thieriot Officially Reveals Why ‘Fire Country’ Season 5’s Shorter Episode Count Is a Good Thing [Exclusive]

Fall is a season of change, and that’s especially fitting for Fire Country this year on CBS. The procedural has been one of the network’s most consistent hits since it launched in 2022, following the life of Bode Donavan as he seeks redemption through a prison-release firefighting program in California. Yet as Season 5 nears this October, the series has undergone serious upheaval, losing showrunner Tia Napolitano and being one of several series to have its episode count trimmed down considerably from 20 to just 13. The former has been addressed with the addition of former Hawaii Five-0 and Magnum P.I. showrunner Eric Guggenheim at the helm, but the latter necessitated a bit of creativity to capture the same action and impact in a shorter storyline.