‘It Doesn't Not Hurt:’ Fire Country Star Told Me How They Found Out About Their Character’s Death And How They Handled The News
This Fire Country star candidly spoke about their character's fate with CinemaBlend.
MAJOR spoilers for Fire Country Season 2, Episode 5 are ahead. If you are not caught up, you can stream the episode with a Paramount+ subscription.
Tragedy struck Edgewater after a firenado overtook the town and Bode, Cara and Diego ended up in an ambulance crash. With the entire Fire Country cast in danger, they didn’t all make it out of the episode, and sadly Cara, Bode’s ex, Jake’s girlfriend and Gen’s mom, died after getting injured in the crash. It was a truly sad moment, and Sabina Gadecki, who plays the ER nurse, opened up to CinemaBlend about how she learned about her character’s fate and how she handled the news.
While Sabina Gadecki told me that it was not easy to find out about Cara’s fate, she made it abundantly clear that she was grateful for her character’s arc and the fact that she found out about it right as Season 2 started filming. Speaking about the conversation she had with showrunner Tia Napolitano about Cara, the actress told me:
I can’t imagine getting a call like that. It seems like a very intimidating conversation to have. Plus, while Gadecki had a hunch this sad news was coming, she told me there was a small part of her that hoped this meeting would be better news, explaining:
Continuing to break down what she and Napolitano talked about, Gadecki told me that the showrunner laid out Cara’s arc for the first five episodes of the season. That, of course, included her romance with Jake, her trying to figure out if Bode is Gen’s dad, and if she trusted him to be around her daughter. The actress explained that she was told Cara would get “a really beautiful story arc,” and she did. However, saying goodbye to a character you love is difficult, as she said:
Max Thieriot and Jordan Calloway were also saddened by Cara’s death, and they both told me they’d miss Sabina Gadecki greatly. Candidly, the actress explained that she was “thankful” for the arc she got in Season 2, and it reassured her that she wasn’t being written off because of her performance:
Cara truly got a wonderful story. While it’s tragic that she’s gone, I’m positive her legacy will live on. Moving forward, Jake and Bode will likely be taking care of Gen, and through the three of them, I’m positive we’ll still be able to feel the presence and impact of Sabina Gadecki’s character.
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For the actress, she ultimately hopes that her character’s story will have an impact on viewers, and I know it had one on me. Sweetly reflecting on her time on Fire Country and her character’s fate, Gadecki said:
It was “memorable,” and I think her passing will ripple through Fire Country moving forward, especially now that it’s been picked up for Season 3 by CBS and it feels like Bode and Gen’s relationship is only going to grow.
To go back and see Sabina Gadecki as Cara in Fire Country, you can stream the episodes that have already aired on the 2024 TV schedule on Paramount+. To see how her character’s death impacts the series moving forward, you can catch new episodes every Friday at 9 p.m. ET on CBS.
Riley Utley is the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. She has written for national publications as well as daily and alt-weekly newspapers in Spokane, Washington, Syracuse, New York and Charleston, South Carolina. She graduated with her master’s degree in arts journalism and communications from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University. Since joining the CB team she has covered numerous TV shows and movies -- including her personal favorite shows Ted Lasso and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. She also has followed and consistently written about everything from Taylor Swift to Fire Country, and she's enjoyed every second of it.