Sharon Leone (Diane Farr) is facing an unimaginable battle of grief this season on Fire Country.
She lost her daughter years ago, and after reconciling with her estranged son Bode (
There have already been massive challenges, including Vince’s nemesis Brett Richards (Shawn Hatosy) temporarily taking over Station 42 to make Vince’s former crew improve their relationship with safety protocols. Richards has moved on, and Manny (
However, time is moving on, and even more pressing matters require Sharon’s attention. Cal Fire has deduced that the Zabel Ridge fire was caused by arson. That means there is a person to blame for Vince’s death. If that wasn’t enough for Sharon to process, Bode presented her with a note at the end of Friday night’s episode that reveals Sharon’s mother was blackmailing Vince before he died.
Parade caught up with Diane Farr to talk about Sharon’s journey through grief, her upcoming family reunion, and what she wants most for her character at the end of this very tough season.
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What has it been like filming the show without your usual scene partner, Billy Burke?
It’s been harder, a little sadder in my heart. I was nervous to go back. It felt like I lost half of my own character without the two of them as a unit. I’m finding a new center. I think most of the storyline is supposed to be about her figuring out how to be a one when she’s been part of a two for longer than she was a single person before. It was heartbreaking to lose him, and I’m finding a new way now.
Grief isn’t a linear process. So how are you mapping Sharon’s progress through this, and what does that journey look like?
I have been trying to look at the five stages of grief. If it were up to me, I’d cry for three years on the show, non-stop. I don’t think people want to see that in development for television. I think people have spent a decade trying to figure out how to do a show about cancer because it affects all of us so much, but no one has ever quite found the balance of how to show loss and grief and fear without it being an albatross to the viewer. So Tia [Napolitano, executive producer] and I have talked about the five stages of grief. Every week, Sharon is moving through a different one. It’s not linear, so she goes back through them. But anger is really active. And bargaining with God, is there anything sadder? It’s a little bit of an exercise in madness, so that’s mostly what I am working through.
Speaking of anger, there’s been a lot of emphasis on how Bode is going to react to the fire that killed Vince being started by arson. What can you say about Sharon processing that news, that there’s going to be a person to blame for her husband’s death?
When we begin, Sharon is first and foremost, his mother. Brett Richards comes in saying, “I think that’s going to be your biggest problem.” Her whole focus is “just let me make sure my kid doesn’t ruin his life.” I literally cannot lose another family member right now. There’s going to be a shift, because Bode and I are in this parallel grief. We’re not really helping each other. There’s not enough bandwidth. We’re just sort of taking care of each other. It’s almost like, as soon as he’s okay, Sharon becomes more immature this season in ways that I could not have seen coming. She’s just really not as honorable as her needs get a bit haywire because she can’t see straight.
She definitely has a hard time being mature about Manny’s first day. Do you think that she’ll be able to stay at Station 42, considering how much it reminds her of Vince?
There are times when I wonder if Sharon should really be at work right now. Is this okay? Is she really in a position to lead anyone to anything? The pieces with Manny are the most fun in this episode. It is the surprise I didn’t see coming. I was worried that he would almost become like a surrogate husband, and I’d be putting soft things on him. That is absolutely not where they went. They’re kind of like brother and sister fighting in the dirt. It’s so much fun. It’s such a surprise as an actor. Keven Alejandro has such a hard job. Vince is so beloved. How do you come in and make another character do the same job? He has picked a totally different path. He’s a totally different kind of leader, and I’m honestly having a great time with him.
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Billy Burke as Vince Leone on ‘Fire Country.’CBS
I don’t think trying to be Vince 2.0 would work.
No, and I didn’t even realize what a trap that was right there waiting for him. I said to him after I saw the episode, “You really made such. Different guy. It didn’t even occur to me that you were going to have to make such a choice that’s defined by your predecessor.” And he was like, “Thank you, I did.” He was aware of that burden before it even occurred to me.
Sharon has a hard road this season. What do you want most for her by the end of Season 4?
I would really like to see her keep working on herself and not lose that energy into just overprinting or looking for a partner. We all have this trap of wanting to mask pain with something else. God forbid it’s a bottle or a gambling addiction, but I also don’t want it to be a man, overworking, or overprinting. I hope she’s going to figure out who she is by herself.
It can be hard playing someone in this level of grief for so long. How are you finding the joy in playing Sharon?
As an actor, we dream about the high drama more than the exposition. I don’t mind her being so sad. I find great joy in it. There’s an episode coming up with me and Jeff Fahey [who plays Walter], where he and I go through the gamut. We’re at each other’s throats. We find something deep. We’re back at each other’s throats. It was a day of filming that was the most satisfying that I’ve had in years. It was like doing a play over the course of a day.
Sharon teases the arrival of her mom at the end of this episode. She’s the one who was blackmailing Vince. What can you say about when she comes to town?
We’re going to see Sharon be a lot less honorable than she’s been in the past. She’s really has a trigger about her mother, which might be the writer just knowing me personally. For someone who can stand up and do the right thing, a lot of that’s going to go away with her mother and her sister. I learned so much from Christine Lahti. From the very first day I show up as a guest on somebody else’s show, I always treat it like it’s their house and I am there for a short time. What do they need? My character is generally there to illuminate their character. I’m a little different that way. Christine Lahti made such a strong character. She never gave me a second of, “this is about you,” which gave me so much more to play with.
So it’s not a happy reunion?
No. It is never happy with Sharon’s mother.
Cory Wharton, a beloved figure from
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