CBS dropped a dramatic trailer for Fire Country Season 4 on Tuesday (September 23, 2025), which confirmed the exit of one major character, Billy Burke’s Vince Leone.
Fire Country Season 4 premieres Friday, Oct. 17, 2025, 8–9 p.m. ET/PT on CBS and Paramount+; beginning Friday, Oct. 24, the series airs in its regular 9 p.m. slot.
It is revealed that Vince doesn’t survive the life-or-death cliffhanger of the Zabel Ridge fire from the Season 3 finale. The trailer then shows his son Bode (played by Max Thieriot) bidding goodbye to his father (Vince) with a eulogy at his father’s funeral, saying, “I’m going to spend the rest of my career protecting my father’s town, my father’s station, my father’s mission.”
Vince’s demise shook the community and left Station 42 looking for a new battalion chief, a position that Bode believes should be his, declaring, “It’s my birthright, and I’m coming for it.”
Amid the chaos at Station 42, the firefighters are suspended from active duty and are warned. Before the trailer ends, Bode vows to continue his father’s mission, adding, ‘It’s what my dad would do.
The creators (executive producers) of the show, Joan Rater and Tony Phelan, said that they decided to share Vince’s death before the premiere of Season 4 out of care for the character. Joan was quoted by TVLine as saying, “We want to be respectful of what he means to our fans, what he means to us.”
Tony explained that they wanted the trailer to highlight the true focus of Season 4, which is Station 42 facing the aftermath of this loss together. Also, Vince’s death (in the show) serves as a reminder of the real-life dangers firefighters face. Given the high-risk nature of the job and the need to keep the storytelling authentic, Joan felt it was important to depict the loss of a firefighter by Season 4.
Joan also mentioned that although Billy’s departure is “a big, huge, emotional loss to the show,” the tragedy may not be entirely unexpected, as it was reported in April (2025) that Billy would exit the CBS drama.