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That was fast! Lisette Olivera, who joined the cast of FBI as a series regular in Season 7, is leaving the CBS show, Deadline reports. The episodes she has filmed will air as planned.
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Why Is Lisette Olivera Leaving FBI?
According to the October 31 Deadline report, Olivera was cast as Syd Ortiz, a “trained Behavioral Analysis Unit Agent who joins FBI’s New York field office criminal division.” She is set to make her first appearance in Episode 4 this season.See AlsoMeet Actress Lisette Olivera! Her Age, Parents, Measurements – Internewscast Journal
Ortiz would be the new partner for Stuart Scola (John Boyd), following the exit of Katherine Renee Kane, whose Special Agent Tiffany Wallace left in the Season 7 premiere. Since Wallace’s departure, Scola has been trying out different partners, with Ortiz joining the list.
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Deadline also reports that, according to sources, “Olivera’s departure is not a reflection of her work but stems from how the character fits into the show.” She “may have been miscast” because she “played too young for an FBI Special Agent, an authoritative figure requiring gravitas that comes from life experience.”
Does Olivera’s exit mean that Wallace could return to the show? Kane joined the series in Season 3 as a replacement for FBI Special Agent and Intelligence Analyst Kristen Chazal, who left after Season 2. It seems unlikely that Kane’s Wallace would return, given her statement to Deadline in August 2024 that confirmed her departure. “It was time to look towards new creative endeavors. I’m excited for the future and wish the show all the best,” she said at the time.
Ebonee Noel, who portrayed Kristen Chazal, shared an Instagram post on November 18, 2020, honoring her character. “There is nothing like you. There was nothing like you, and there shall be nothing like you.’ – a message from the Universe for my girl Kris delivered via last night’s Yogi Tea. Here’s to Boss Women like Kristen Chazal. May we know them, may we be them, may we raise them and to quote the icon @itsgabrielleu may we ‘Lift her in the light of goodness and hold her there.’ #WCW #FBIFam #KristenChazal,” she wrote in the caption. Her character was mysteriously written off the show with no explanation, so it seems unlikely she would return.
So far, it’s unknown if the show will have a permanent partner for Scola this season.
In an October 16 interview with The Wrap, Boyd explained how he would be moving on after Wallace’s exit. “It’s a tough day to lose a partner. But, there’s some interesting stuff in the pipeline about Scola finding a new partner and what he’s ready for and not ready for,” he shared. “We get to see him struggling with someone that’s really not right for the team. There’s definitely some fallout after Tiff’s exit. He’s devastated. I don’t think he’s really registered that [she’s gone]. They didn’t really get a total wrap up goodbye.”
Showrunner Mike Weiss explained how Syd would fit in on the new season. “Lisette Olivera is joining the team and we’re really excited about the character. It’s a very different type of partnership for Scola. She’s not a trained field agent,” he said. “Every FBI agent has some amount of field training, but she’s spent most of her professional life in the dungeon of the BAU (Behavioral Analysis Unit). She brings a profiler’s psychological insight to the cases, but on a tactical level, she’s got a lot to learn about intense, heavy-duty field work.”
Boyd noted that Syd’s profiler background would prove “interesting” for his character. “It’s going to be really interesting to explore for him, how he comes to trust that, whether he thinks that that’s a liability or an asset. Scola is a seasoned investigator that relies on the methods that have proven to break cases and save lives, and there’s a part of him that doesn’t trust the hocus pocus of someone who’s so smart they can tell you what’s going to happen,” he said.
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