‘Fire Country’ Showrunner Tia Napolitano to Step Down After Season 4 at CBS

Tia Napolitano is exiting her role as showrunner of CBS’ hit drama Fire Country after four seasons. She’ll step away at the end of the current season and shift her focus to development projects under her overall deal with CBS Studios, which produces the series. A search for a new showrunner is expected to begin soon.

Napolitano boarded Fire Country immediately after the pilot, joining as executive producer and showrunner. The series was created by star Max Thieriot alongside writers Tony Phelan and Joan Rater, and Napolitano has guided the firefighter drama since its earliest days on the network.

The show wasted no time catching fire. When it debuted during the 2022–2023 season, Fire Country ranked as the most-watched new series of the year and was quickly flagged by CBS executives as a potential franchise starter.

Now in Season 4, the drama remains a reliable Friday-night winner, averaging 8.1 million Live+35 multi-platform viewers to date. Its success has already sparked expansion, helping launch spinoff Sheriff Country, which is on pace to mirror Fire Country’s achievement as the most-watched freshman series of its season.

“Tia has been instrumental in helping both build and steer Fire Country, which not only became a top series, but is also the foundation of a growing universe,” CBS Entertainment President Amy Reisenbach and CBS Studios President David Stapf said in a joint statement. “We’re grateful for all her contributions and tireless work, and look forward to collaborating with her on future projects.”

Napolitano’s journey with the creative team goes back years. Her first television job was as a writers assistant for Grey’s Anatomy showrunners Phelan and Rater, and she was approached for the Fire Country showrunner role early in development—before the pilot was officially ordered to series. During her tenure, she steered the show through major challenges, including the writers strike, the L.A. fires, and the recent exits of original cast members Billy Burke and Stephanie Arcila at the end of last season.

“I am beyond proud of the past four seasons of Fire Country,” Napolitano said. “All of my gratitude to our cast, crew, writers, producers, fans, and of course CBS and CBS Studios. It’s been a beautiful ride!”

Before Fire Country, Napolitano served as executive producer and showrunner on Freeform’s Cruel Summer. Her additional writing and producing credits include Grey’s Anatomy and its spinoff Station 19.

Fire Country Season 4 returns with new episodes on February 27.