Spoilers ahead for the Season 4 premiere of FBI: Most Wanted on CBS, called “Iron Pipeline.”
FBI: Most Wanted returned to primetime with a Season 4 premiere that finally introduced Sheryll Barnes (after taking time off for maternity leave) to new team leader Remy Scott, but there was still a hole in the ensemble despite her return. Ivan Ortiz was nowhere to be seen, as actor Miguel Gomez was cut from the cast over the summer hiatus. Here’s how “Iron Pipeline” explained why Ortiz was suddenly gone!
News broke that Miguel Gomez would not be back as a series regular in Season 4 back in June, after Ortiz did not appear in the highly dangerous Season 3 finale. The reasoning at the time was that the agent was in Los Angeles to help his unwell father. So, the reason that Most Wanted presented for his absence in Season 4 makes sense. Early in the premiere, right after Remy and Barnes met, he gave her an update:
Ortiz transferred to L.A. Father is having health problems.
And with that, Agent Ortiz is gone from FBI: Most Wanted! Remy didn’t make a big deal about it, but Barnes said that she’d already heard and plans to reach out to him about it. He didn’t get a dramatic farewell like Kenny did a season earlier after actor Kellan Lutz decided to leave, and he also didn’t get a permanent farewell like Jess LaCroix last season when Julian McMahon decided to leave.
Hana and Barnes have both returned after long absences; could the same be true for Ortiz? Fans can only speculate about that for now, but a lot of people had thoughts after the news of Gomez’s exit. Most Wanted did find a new star to bring into the fold, and he’ll be a familiar face from elsewhere in the nine-show Dick Wolf TV universe.
Chicago Fire alum Edwin Hodge is on board to play a cop-turned-FBI agent who will join the unit. The show is moving onward without Ortiz, and it’s a little bit of a bummer that he didn’t get one more episode after he didn’t appear in last season’s finale. Viewers didn’t know they were seeing the last of the character back when what turned out to be his final episode aired!
FBI: Most Wanted has actually had a fair amount of cast turnover over the years, at least compared to the other FBI shows. Of the original core cast, only Roxy Sternberg and Keisha Castle-Hughes remain as Barnes and Hana, respectively. After a reduced presence in Season 2, Nathaniel Arcand was officially out as Clinton Skye ahead of Season 3. Kellan Lutz was gone early in Season 3 after Kenny was shot (although his character survived), and Julian McMahon left before the third season ended.
Alexa Davalos was brought in as Kristin Gaines in Season 3 to fill a vacancy, and Law & Order: Organized Crime’s Dylan McDermott came to CBS to play the new leader of the team. It remains to be seen if the cast will go through another major change (beyond the addition of Edwin Hodge) as the fourth season continues.
Tune in the CBS on Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET for new episodes of FBI: Most Wanted Season 4 to close out a full night of FBI action in primetime. FBI: International (which airs at 9 p.m.) also lost a character over hiatus and used its fall premiere to deliver an update on what happened, The original FBI got off to an explosive start in the 8 p.m. hour, with actor Zeeko Zaki opening up about its effects on OA.
