'Sheriff Country' Premiere Shocker: Morena Baccarin Unpacks the Most Emotional Moments (Exclusive) Liam MathewsOctober 18, 2025 at 4:00 AM 0 Sheriff Country's series premiere brings viewers into the world of Sheriff Mickey Fox (Morena Baccarin).
- - 'Sheriff Country' Premiere Shocker: Morena Baccarin Unpacks the Most Emotional Moments (Exclusive)
Liam MathewsOctober 18, 2025 at 4:00 AM
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Sheriff Country's series premiere brings viewers into the world of Sheriff Mickey Fox (Morena Baccarin). Mickey, the stepsister of Fire Country's fire chief Sharon Leone (Diane Farr) and aunt of firefighter Bode Leone (Max Thieriot, who co-created both shows and guest-stars in the Sheriff Country premiere, giving addict-to-addict recovery advice to his young cousin), is the interim sheriff of Edgewater, Calif., the town where she's lived her whole life.
The premiere episode introduces the personal and professional dramas Mickey will face throughout the course of the season. And Parade spoke with Baccarin to break down some of the episode's biggest moments.
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Putting the "sheriff" in Sheriff Country
At the start of the premiere, Mickey isn't sure if she wants to become the permanent sheriff. She's a cop, not a politician, and running for office doesn't come naturally to her. But she doesn't want anyone else to be sheriff, either, because she loves the town and believes in her ability to serve it, and she's upset when she finds out local business leaders are considering backing another candidate.
And when she finds out it's Boone (Matt Lauria), her deputy and friend, she feels betrayed. But as Boone tells her, "It's not about me or you. It's about this town. Edgewater deserves someone who wants to be sheriff. Is that you?"
By the end of the episode, after narrowly avoiding a violent end to a parental hostage situation (that Boone nearly blew up by defying a direct order from Mickey and escalating the conflict), Mickey decides that she wants to be sheriff, and gives a speech to the town declaring her intention to build the community they all want. Boone withdraws his candidacy and gives his two weeks' notice, because he doesn't think he can serve under her, much to Mickey's disappointment, because he's a great cop and they work well together.
Morena Baccarin as Sheriff Mickey Fox and Matt Lauria as Nathan Boone in 'Sheriff Country' Season 1.Brooke Palmer/CBSWhat's going on between Mickey and Boone?
Mickey and Boone's dynamic is one of the most surprising and intriguing parts of Sheriff Country so far. There's mutual respect and mutual resentment. There seems to be a lot that's unspoken between them, both in the sense that they have things they can't say to each other, and things they don't need to say to each other. The look they exchange at the end of the episode says it all, but also makes us wonder, "What was that?"
They're very similar but have differences that make for interesting conflicts. Baccarin says they're both so proud that they both feel like they have to go through with his resignation, even though neither of them really wants him to.
"They're both stuck in their decisions that they made, which says everything about these two people," she says. "They can't get past their pride. They hate being vulnerable in front of each other, particularly being cops, and they're gonna ride out their decisions. And as we get into Episodes 2 and 3, you really see their relationship develop; they both end up kind of conceding — I mean, spoiler alert, he stays, but it's a journey to get them both there."
Boone moved to Edgewater from Oakland, and coming from a big city with a different culture, he has a different mentality about policing from hers, which is very community-oriented based on her experience of knowing everyone in town. "That's where he judges her, and where they butt heads," Baccarin says. "But they both realize that they each have something to offer, and if they work together, they can be a pretty kickass team."
Related: 'Sheriff Country's Morena Baccarin Teases Crime Solving With Soap Opera Twists in 'Fire Country' Spinoff (Exclusive)
What's next for Mickey's family?
Mickey's police work is only half of the episode, though. She also has a lot of family problems to deal with. Her teenage daughter, Skye (Amanda Acuri), is an addict who's struggling to stay sober. Mickey is unhappy with how her ex-husband Travis (Christopher Gorham) is handling the situation — he's even serving as the defense attorney for Brandon, Skye's drug dealer boyfriend who Mickey busted. Not only that, Travis is dating her deputy, Cassidy (Michele Weaver), which she discovers when she goes to his house and Cassidy is there.
Mickey needs backup, so she asks her father, Wes (W. Earl Brown) — a longtime illegal marijuana grower who's just now going legit, "for Mickey and Big Pharma" — to move in with her and serve as a role model for Skye. Mickey and Wes have a complicated relationship and very different philosophies on life — part of the reason why Mickey is so by-the-book now is because of how chaotic her upbringing by her "redneck-hippie" outlaw father was — but Mickey trusts him, and thinks he'll be able to get through to Skye in a way she can't.
Baccarin is having a great time working with Brown, who is best known for his work on the legendary Western series Deadwood. "He's one of those actors where you want him to do his coverage first, because he changes everything all the time, and you're like, 'Wait, I didn't react to that,'" Baccarin says.
"He's so fun. And whenever we have scenes, even scenes that we think are simple and we know what to do, he always brings something surprising to the table, and we end up talking about something. And it just makes it so creative. And the relationships that we're building deepen and deepen with every scene that we do. He's so great, and I love that relationship between [Mickey and Wes]. They need each other. They do things completely differently. He's literally, you know, growing illegal weed, and she's a sheriff — it doesn't get much more complicated than that. But he's her dad, and she's, like, working out her trauma and childhood stuff. And, you know, weirdly, he's the one person who can reach her kid."
Related: Everything to Know About Fire Country Season 4
W. Earl Brown as Wes Fox on 'Sheriff Country.'Sally Montana/CBSA shocking premiere cliffhanger
The episode ends on a shocking note, as Skye comes home covered in blood. She says that Brandon is dead, and she's going to be blamed for it. Wes immediately starts saying that they need to find the knife and escape to Mexico, but Mickey is calm.
"I can only help you if you do not lie to me: did you have anything to do with this?" she asks Skye. Skye says no, and so Sheriff Mickey takes Skye to the station to turn herself in and explain what happened. She's putting her daughter at the mercy of a flawed justice system, but one she has faith in.
"She believes in the system, the one that she is a part of, and now the head of at her office," Baccarin says. "She thinks that if everybody does the right thing and is honest and upfront — she obviously doesn't believe her daughter was involved in the murder — that if everybody just does the right thing, that she will be exonerated and everything will be fine. Obviously, things get complicated, because otherwise we wouldn't have a show. And that thinking gets tested." Baccarin says that in an upcoming episode, Mickey and Wes have a big fight where he criticizes her belief in the system and she criticizes him for always trying to game the system.
"That's where I think putting a character like Mickey, who's so black and white in a world that is very gray, creates really amazing TV drama," Baccarin says.
As for what she would do if it were her daughter in that situation, Baccarin says would do thing differently than Mickey Fox. "I think I would have gotten the hell out of dodge. There's no way in hell. I would go find that murder weapon, or I would take my kid to Mexico or Canada." Sheriff Country airs Fridays at 8/7c on CBS and streams on Paramount+.
Related: What to Know About 'Fire Country' Spinoff 'Sheriff Country' — Including Possible Cameos
This story was originally reported by Parade on Oct 18, 2025, where it first appeared in the TV section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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