Not Him! Fire Country Lays the Groundwork for Manny’s Exit as His Portrayer Teases ‘More Rock Bottom’ to Come
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Is Manny Perez leaving Fire Country in Season 3? In Season 2, there was a warrant out for Manny’s (Kevin Alejandro) arrest for aggravated battery and reckless endangerment. In the finale, he was arrested after he walked Gabriela (Stephanie Arcila) down the aisle. What will happen to Manny?
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Is Manny Perez Leaving Fire Country?
In Season 3 Episode 2, Gabriela bailed Manny out and, rather than go to prison for three years, Vince (Billy Burke) proposed that Manny stay at Three Rock as an inmate firefighter, a departure from his role as the captain, where he was in charge of the prison inmates.
Given that Alejandro has been promoting Fire Country recently on social media and has discussed Manny’s upcoming journey in Season 3, it seems to confirm he isn’t going anywhere. The actor has also discussed Manny’s “path of redemption,” which fans will likely see play out as he joins Three Rock as an inmate firefighter.
In an October 22 interview with Cinema Blend, Max Thieriot, who plays Bode, shared that Three Rock still plays a big role this season, so it’s clear that we’ll be seeing a lot more of Manny — and very soon. Thieriot revealed, “maybe episode three and moving forward.”
“You know, the campus will always be a focal point of the show. Obviously, it’s such an important piece of Edgewater, in this town and all of these characters in this community,” Thieriot said. “And so while Bode, you know, isn’t an inmate right now, we have other people who will be involved with the camp that bring him sort of into the fold.”
Before Manny’s redemption story unfolds, however, Alejandro said that Manny will face more challenges. In a May 2024 interview with Us Weekly, Alejandro teased that Manny’s arrest wasn’t his character’s “rock bottom,” hinting that fans will see more of Manny’s journey unfolding in Season 3.
“I think there’s a little more rock bottom that could come. But definitely, for this season, it is definitely a rock bottom in this situation,” he explained. “But our writers are really good at creating [and] recreating rock bottoms.”
He added, “I don’t really know what Season 3 looks like. But I just have a feeling there’s gonna be more of, ‘Oh, Manny. What are you doing?’”
At the time, Alejandro also discussed the possibility of Manny returning to Three Rock as an inmate. “It would be interesting to see the Manny that we imagined. Because he went to the program, he succeeded and became a captain,” the actor explained. “Now we get to visualize what he looked like in orange and what he looked like in that world. I think that’s an interesting take. I’m not sure exactly all the rules on how you get to enter Three Rock or if it even makes sense. But I would be really interested to see if that story line were able to be told.”
More: A Fire Country spinoff? Here’s everything you need to know
Ultimately, he said that Manny will travel a road of redemption. “I really do believe that [Manny] does represent redemption. Especially now that he has the opportunity to correct a big mistake,” Alejandro saod. “I really hope that they take him on that road and continue that path of redemption. We’re gonna fall down and we’re gonna make mistakes a hundred million times in our lives. But correct them by adding a certain strength to yourself that gets you over that next level.”
In a May 2024 interview with TV Insider, Alejandro discussed how Manny went MIA when there was a warrant out for his arrest because he wanted to walk Gabriela down the aisle. “Honestly, he wants that final moment to see her in her dress and tell her how proud he is of her, how much he loves her, and to give her the confirmation that he will always be there, no matter how difficult it may or may not be,” Alejandro explained. “That’s really all he wants is just that final moment, that ‘I love you, mija’ moment.”
As for his character’s decisions, Alejandro remarked, “Manny’s tortured and flawed and he makes decisions led by impulse. And those are unfortunately and fortunately real impulses that we all have as human beings, which is one of the reasons why I think Manny’s one of my favorite characters because they don’t shy away from his struggle to deal with his own decisions, take in responsibility for those choices.”
Alejandro also shared that he hopes Manny “finds a sense of belonging again and finds a sense of who he truly is and never shies away from his responsibilities as not only a firefighter, but as a father and just as importantly as a friend. And I hope that he gets some sense of who he was. When we first met Manny, he was so in charge and so it felt like he just had it figured out, and I would love to see more glimpses of his strength.”
Fire Country is available to stream on Paramount Plus.
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