With new episodes just months away from debuting, FBI confirms that a cast member will be leaving. CBS recently unveiled its fall line-up of shows, revealing that FBI season 8 will return on Monday, October 13 at 8 PM. It’s also been confirmed that the show will welcome a new cast member.
Juliana Aidén Martinez, who previously played Detective Kate Silva for a single season of Law & Order: SVU, has joined FBI season 8 in an undisclosed main cast member role. But a surprising cast departure offers a potential clue as to who Martinez might be playing.
TVLine reports that S.W.A.T. and Magnum P.I. alum Emily Alabi will be leaving FBI after recurring in season 8 as Dani Rhodes, one of the partners of John Boyd’s Stuart Scola. The actress will make an appearance to wrap up her character’s story, however.
What This Means For FBI Season 8
The Search For Tiffany’s Replacement Continues
Tiffany Wallace left FBI early in season 7. The departure came as actress Katherine Renee Wallace mentioned her hope of moving on to different opportunities. On screen, Tiffany’s farewell was handled in much the same way. The character essentially noted that she wanted a job that was better suited to her current needs. It allowed Scola and Wallace to share the screen one last time.
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Scola has had different FBI partners since, though Lisette Olivera’s Syd Ortiz is the most high-profile. A trained Behavioral Analysis Unit Agent, Ortiz appeared in a handful of episodes. The writers ultimately decided to go in a different direction, feeling that the character was too young for the life experience that a long-term partner would require.
Alabi’s Special Agent Dani Rhodes also appeared in a handful of episodes, including the FBI season 7 finale. She was there as the core group went into hiding, unsure of whom to trust. In that sense, it is good that the character will at least get the chance to appear and say her own farewells rather than just get written off with a single line of dialogue.
Our Take On Dani Rhodes’ Departure
It’s A Little Strange
While it is nice that Dani won’t quietly disappear, FBI’s cast has seen a fair share of turnover. Wallace herself was a replacement when she first joined the series, and it is a bit unexpected that a well-established procedural would find so much trouble in attempting to fill the void. It speaks to the fact, though, that she worked well with Boyd in a testament to the dynamic between Boyd and Kane.
