Sheriff & Fire Country's Crossover Filming Challenges Have One Silver Lining

Despite Sheriff Country and Fire Country season 4 facing filmmaking challenges in a potential crossover, there might be a silver lining in those challenges. Both dramas take place in the same fictional town of Edgewater, California. The picturesque small town is supposed to portray a close-knit community, where the residents know each other's names.

It would be believable for Bode Leone (Max Thieriot) and the rest of the firefighters from Station 42 to cross paths with Sheriff Mickey Fox (Morena Baccarin) from time to time. Unfortunately, due to behind-the-scenes choices, the two series crossing over will be challenging. However, that lack of crossover could secretly benefit Sheriff County, which recently released its first trailer.

The Distant Filming Locations Make Sheriff Country & Fire Country Crossovers Difficult

One Shoots In Vancouver, The Other In Toronto

Although Fire Country is filmed in Vancouver, Canada, the team behind Sheriff Country knew right off the bat that they couldn't also film there. Baccarin revealed she had hesitations about signing on as a series regular, so in order to be closer to her family, production of Baccarin's Sheriff Country moved to Toronto. With the productions of the shows taking place in two different locations, the distance between them makes it difficult for any characters to cross over between the two.

Production-wise, it does seem odd that the two shows are filmed in separate locations, especially since they are supposed to take place in the same setting. Story-wise, viewers will start to wonder why Sheriff Mickey isn't more present in the life of her half-sister, Sharon Leone (Diane Farr), and vice versa. There could be one thing that makes the strange lack of crossover worth it, though.

One Silver Lining Is That It Will Force The Sheriff Country Spinoff To Stand On Its Own Two Feet

It Can Be Its Own Separate Thing

In the teaser trailer for Sheriff Country, there are hints of the close-knit ambiance in Edgewater. During the standoff, Mickey has her firearm drawn at the gun-wielding criminals. Mickey reminds them both how she shot her target from 30 yards away. In a hilarious moment, the sheriff also recognized Dale just by the sound of his voice, as if she had arrested him one too many times.

One might expect Bode and the Fire Country character to show up, as well. However, the separation allows the spinoff to avoid relying too heavily on constant cameos from Fire Country. Other franchises, such as the One Chicago universe, frequently feature characters from one show appearing on another. While it works for that franchise, it sometimes runs the risk of each show feeling the same.

Although having crossovers from the Fire Country universe could be beneficial ratings-wise, Sheriff Country is better off standing on its own for now and establishing itself before the crossovers start. The CBS spinoff has its own stories to cover about the criminal underbelly of Edgewater. Hopefully, if viewers give it a chance, Sheriff Country will be just as well-loved as its predecessor.