Spoilers for Fire Country Season 3, Episode 3 are ahead! If you aren’t caught up, you can stream the series with a Paramount+ subscription.
The episode of Fire Country that aired on the 2024 TV schedule this week might not have had a big incident, but it was certainly full of explosive personal developments. While we saw Bode in training and dealing with his relationship with Gabriela, we also witnessed the return of Vince’s dad Walter Leone. The mix of these things led to an important conversation between Billy Burke’s Vince and his father, and I spoke to Diane Farr about its significance and how it could impact the rest of the season.
Diane Farr Opens Up About The Significance Of Billy And Walter’s Conversation
After Jeff Fahey appeared in a Season 1 episode of Fire Country, he returned as Vince’s father Walter in Season 3 to support Bode during his training. However, he wasn’t exactly helping his grandson. He was giving him a cheat, and Vince got mad about that, opening the floodgates for other issues the two have with each other. After the fight, Vince returned home to find that Walter had accidentally started a fire in their home.
So, while talking to Farr, who plays Sharon and directed this episode, I asked about all this, and she broke down the significance of it, saying:
As soon as I got the script, I called Billy, and I said, ‘You're going to be so excited. You have all the things, all the things that we talk about all the time. It's all character and minimal incident.’ That's our dream as actors on a highly fire-heavy show. And he was asking and he was asking. And then when I got Billy and [Jeff] together, I basically said, ‘This is the changing of the guard. This episode is Walter acknowledging that he's no longer in charge of the family, but Vince not really understanding it yet.’ Like one generation can see what's happening and the next one can't.
When Walter left, his final words to Vince were to help Bode find success. He noted that Max Thieriot's character has his grandfather’s fire, and Burke’s parental figure shouldn’t try and dim it. As he walked out the door, Vince was left to think about what he was going to do next after this fiery and potentially life-changing interaction with his father. Farr confirmed that it will impact what’s to come, as she said:
I was just so excited to show the vulnerability, and I think they were too. We all leaned into it, and the repercussions of that play through the whole season like it never stops ending between exactly what you said, grandfather, father, son, and in a lot of it, I'm the witness.
Farr went on to note that she loves seeing this dynamic play out, and I do too. Season 2 of Fire Country ended with Bode talking about pursuing his Leone legacy, and it’s clear that Vince is struggling to figure out how to help him do that. I think this conversation will help him immensely as we move further into Season 3.
How This Conversation Could Impact Vince As We Move Further Into Season 3
For what feels like the majority of Fire Country’s run, Vince and Sharon have been trying really hard to figure out how to support Bode while not over-parenting him.
In fact, in this episode, they acknowledged that they bought Smokies as a way to move their urge to help away from Bode and onto something else. However, they obviously love their son and want to assist him.
The hurdle I think Vince is frequently facing is finding a balance between taming Bode’s fire and letting that spontaneous and impulsive energy work in his son’s favor. While Walter seems to know that he's not in charge anymore and he sees his grandson's potential, Vince is still trying to figure out how to lead his family. I think this conversation will force him to reflect on how he's parented his son, and that will hopefully send him in a good direction.
Now, there is also the challenge of Manny declaring to Vince and Sharon that they shouldn’t let Bode and Gabriela get together. So, I think we will still see all these parents trying to tame their kids. However, I think this confrontation between Walter and Vince will change the way Billy Burke’s character approaches it all, and I’m excited to see it.
To see how this big moment impacts Vince and his family’s story during Season 3, you can catch new episodes of Fire Country every Friday on CBS at 9 p.m. ET or the next day on Paramount+.
