‘Fire Country’: Michael Trucco Details Luke’s Grief & Never Knowing What You’ll Get With Bode’s Uncle

For three seasons, Luke (Michael Trucco) was the fun uncle to Bode (Max Thieriot). He clashed with his brother Vince (Billy Burke) and had a complicated relationship with his sister-in-law Sharon (Diane Farr) — remember when he hit on her, then ultimately helped her by donating a kidney. But in Fire Country Season 4, we’re seeing a more mature Luke Leone in the aftermath of Vince’s death.

Most recently, Luke admitted to Bode that his brother’s death is why he pushed for a REMs team (elite team that rescues the rescuers in the most dangerous of circumstances). Below, Michael Trucco opens up about that, Luke’s grief, and much more.

I have really enjoyed Luke’s arc this season. But it has not been an easy season for Luke. And it’s so easy for the show to focus on Bode and Sharon’s grief since we see them every episode. But I do like what we’re seeing of Luke’s grief and that we get that, especially in 411 when in that conversation with Bode, he says he lost his brother. How is Luke doing without Vince?

Michael Trucco: Yeah, I try to keep that torch lit as much as I can, even in the back of Luke’s mind and in his heart, and so when there are those little jewels that are in the script that place there, they have some resonance for me. A, just because Luke mourns the loss of his brother, but I miss Billy. And Billy and I got tight in the first three seasons that we got to work together. And so it’s easy for me to make that transition from Michael to Luke and to feel those feelings.

But I really want to keep that memory alive in Luke as much as we can. I love when they gave me those little moments to recall that because I think of myself as the proverbial box of chocolates on Fire Country. You just never know what you’re going to get with Luke. Everybody else, they got their thing and in their pocket and all of a sudden I come along and it’s like, “God, he’s being a jerk,” until I’m not. And then all of a sudden, they go, “Oh, he’s redeemed himself again.” And then I show up again and do something kind of dickish. So I love that. I love that push and pull, and I try to lean into that. And when they write stuff that has me a little bit on the nose, like just, I’m being a bad guy, I’ll do my damnedest to try to swim upstream and play against it.

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But they have given me such fodder and such … The writing is really, I can’t tell you how grateful I am to get to be a part of something like this and to have a team of writers that starts to hear your voice and I feel like they write for me and for Luke. And man, that’s such a privilege because I’m sort of a freeloading guest on this show and it’s a real honor to get to spend time. We’re already in Season 4, and I can’t believe I’m still around.

But it also feels like Luke’s changed this season, especially with what we’re seeing with Bode and even with Manny (Kevin Alejandro) and Sharon in 410. It seems like he’s a more mature Luke than we’ve seen in past seasons. Is that because of Vince’s death and he’s stepping up in the way he thinks his brother would want him to? Or is it just growth on Luke’s part?

I think it’s a little bit both, but I think the former is correct, that this is an opportunity and there is a void, there is a vacuum to fill. I think that it’s incumbent upon Luke to step up and start to become the adult in the room. And I’ve noticed that they’ve given Bode and Luke more screen time. We have definitely started to spend more time together, and consequently, offscreen, I’ve gotten to know Max better just as a person, an actor, and a producer, and I’m completely in awe of what he’s done and how he’s brought this whole show to fruition. I’m constantly hammering him for ideas and picking his brain on how he did this because I have something that I want to do similar to that.

I just love that they’ve given us this time together. And I do think that is a result of the loss of Vince’s character. And I think that Luke sees this opportunity, “Hey, man, it’s time to step up and be the responsible one. And I have this nephew who’s hurting,” and for as much as I can be some version of a father figure, I think it’s important to convey that.

Yeah, because we get that in the scene in 411, but also in 408, after he talks about not always being there when he should have been, and then signing the completion task book, which was such a good scene.

Thanks, yeah. See, those are the ones that I just … I love that. I love that. Sitting in the firehouse on the bench saying, “I’ve not always been there for you.” Yeah, that definitely all follows your question that I think it is an evolution. There’s an evolution of character. I think that’s just the natural progression. We’re four seasons in, and it would be silly to see no evolution or no growth from Luke, but I think it was accelerated by the loss of Vince and this newfound responsibility. Also just professionally, I’m growing, running up through the ranks. Manny even calls me out on it, look at you with all your accolades, and I like it. I make no attempt to hide it. I am ambitious. Luke is ambitious and he wants to rise through the ranks.

I think that you could dig deep and scratch the surface there and say there’s probably certain factors that try and always impress our father. I think that has a lot to do with it — at least I built that into a story. I don’t know if that ever even makes it to screen, but those are the kinds of things that I try to build a world for myself in this show. I think that there was probably this constant need to impress our dad, and so that’s where a part of my ambition comes from.

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Why couldn’t we see the side of Luke we’re seeing now with Vince when he was alive? Was there just too much tension? Do you think we would’ve eventually gotten there if Vince hadn’t died?

We would eventually gotten there, but while he was around, the competition and the remnants of our childhood, those rivers run deep, that’s built in. And that’s what I’d say Billy and I, the actors, we got to do a lot of hanging out off set and we kind of talked about these things and created this little world, and yeah, we had that sort of typical brother relationship. There was definitely competition there. And for my part, there was envy. I always pined for Sharon. Luke was always pining for Sharon. It’s the girl that I wished I had. That was the life that I wished I had, two children. They sadly lost one. And watching Bode’s character go through his journey and watching that family unit come together, there was some outlying envy, I think, in Luke.

I think when that happens, human nature is to lash out or to be a little bit of a rebel. And I think that’s where Luke was dancing in those waters. He was sort of the reckless and carefree, footloose one. I sort of took a pleasure in that reputation.

It would’ve eventually. It just would’ve taken a long time, I think. They need to be an inciting incident and there just wasn’t one.

Yeah, that’s right.

We heard what REMs means to Luke, why he is really pushed for it. So what does it mean for him to have Bode part of it and to have the other evaluators agree with him that he should be part of it?

Legacy, I think, is really important to Luke, particularly with the loss of Vince and the situation with our dad. He’s still around, but the beautiful way they handled the storyline of his dementia and that whole angle. So I put the import on REMs being legacy. It’s a Leone legacy. And it means a lot because again, I’m circling back to Luke’s ambition. This is something that I help bring and create. So this is part of my legacy, too. And if I can get a Leone to spearhead this thing, he’s the poster boy, he’s the face of it. We have some real clout, and that’s part and parcel to Luke’s character is that family and name and legacy is important and it’s honoring the family name.

He really wants the best — he really, really loves Bode and he’s gone through some really s**tty times and he believes in this guy and he knows the good side. He saw him as a kid. So he knows, yeah, he might have gotten himself mixed in some bad stuff, but he knows who he can be, and these are the kinds of programs that’s going to prove to the world, at least to our community, what Bode can be and what he can do.

Looking at tough relationships, Luke and Manny have had their moments over the years. So, what does Luke think of Manny as battalion chief in the position that was his brother’s? Because also Manny was shocked when Luke was like, “If a head’s going to roll, it’s going to be mine,” in 410.

That’s right. Yeah, I know. There it is. There’s the box of chocolates. One minute you have this nasty brandy-soaked praline nut covered chocolate that tastes [gross]. And then you get this like, “Oh, this amazing creme caramel milk chocolate.” That’s Luke. I think there’s also a certain amount of friendly rivalry and envy, the way Luke perceives Manny. It’s tough because I really like Kevin. Kevin and I get along great. And when we shoot scenes, we’re like, “Man, that was so fun.” I love that whole stuff where we’re doing that interview tribunal. And so alright, we have to squish that and get back into our characters and we have this push-pull. I mean, look, we’ve gotten into fisticuffs. We’ve been in fights.

You started fires, too.

Exactly. So oh my God, right. I would go so far to say that Luke probably has a healthy respect for Manny, and it’s tough for him to show it. But then things like that, I love the way 410 ended, like, “Hey, I looked over everything and I got to tell you something, Manny, what you did is what I would have done.” And I just needed to grill him. I just needed to see if he could hold his hand to the fire because he’s in this position now. He’s holding a high rank. So we had to test him a little bit and he passed the test.

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You brought up Luke and Sharon. Looking at Season 1, then where we are now, how would you describe their relationship now?

I think it’s come full circle to a brother-sister relationship. I think the love and the respect there is so deep and so great. It was a little reckless of Luke, but that was what we were talking about. That’s who the guy was. And it was honest. That’s the other thing. I hope it never came off smarmy. It was honest. Luke really was pining for Sharon. It wasn’t just an opportunity like, oh, it’s my brother’s sister. It wasn’t sleazy in any way, shape or form. It was perhaps maybe it was … What’s that word I’m looking for? It was maybe not exactly-

Misguided?

Yeah, misguided’s a good word. Yeah. But it was never sleazy. I think it was that he’s always kind of pining for Sharon. Now, as we’ve seen Luke grow and he’s part of this community, I think that has passed and there is a healthy respect. There is a brother-sister relationship. They’ve gotten tighter. I love it. There’s a friendship. There’s a banter with them. That’s the other thing. When Diane and I shoot, we also have real good time and we can kind of go with the flow, and I think that’s starting to translate on screen to the two of them. There’s no longer that awkward tension, at least that I perceive. And I don’t know. I mean, who knows where it could go, but those are questions and answers above my pay grade.

Speaking of, what can you say about what we’ll see coming up with Luke with Bode, with Sharon, with REMs?

It gets good. We definitely don’t drop the REMs ball. Let’s say that we keep that in the air and it pays off. There’s some good stuff coming up. Yeah, I’m excited. I loved the way [Season] 4 turned out. In the beginning, I was a little light and then they kind of threw me in the deep end in the second half of this season.

And that’s the beauty, that’s what I’m saying. I never know. I just sort of sit back and let them do their thing, and when they feel it’s right for Luke to come back into town, I’m all for it. I’m like, I’m here. I love it. I love being part of the show. It’s been a gift that I didn’t see coming when I started in the beginning.

It’s one of the best working experiences I’ve ever had. Just from the perspective of behind the scenes, that environment up there on set in Vancouver, and that starts at the top, that starts with Max. This is his show, but there are no egos. Our team up and down is lovely. I think about it, it makes me smile. I feel really like I think that I’ve been sort of welcomed into this family, and even though I’m sort of an outlier and I know that there’s a love, hate with Luke. Man, I’ve read some stuff online where people are like, “Can he just get off the screen?” I was like, “Oh God.” “Why is Luke on my screen?” But then I realized, oh, I think that’s the point. That’s what we do is that’s what art is meant to do. It’s supposed to provoke reactions from people. And when they’re pissed at Luke, good, then maybe we did our job right. But I really feel welcomed by everybody up there and it’s been really fun. So I’m looking forward to seeing where it goes.

I want some Luke and Ruby (Christine Lahti) scenes because we see what Sharon’s mom is like. And to imagine those two characters together…

Listen, I would love that…. I was talking to Tia [Napolitano] and Barbara [Friend], too, our showrunner and producer, I was like, “So what about a Sheriff Country crossover, Luke and Mickey [Morena Baccarin]? I think that’s something that we could explore. We should mine that well and see what happens there.” So who knows?

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A big family dinner with all of the Leones and all the extended family across both shows, I mean, you know a fire would break out…

Oh of course, there would be. And then we’d all be clamoring to show off and see who could put it out first. That’s a great idea. I love that idea.

How does Luke feel about Tyler saying that he’s the arsonist? Because we see at the end of 411 that Bode says it makes no sense. But where’s Luke when it comes to that because he’s the one who tells Bode to put that aside.

Yeah, that’s a tough one. That’s one of those situations where you’ve got to let my nephew, he’s a grown man, he’s an adult, and he sort of walked himself into that one. That’s a tricky one. And that is part of, I said, you got to distance yourself. When we give him the opportunity to do the press conference and he kind of steps his foot right in it. That is a tricky one to navigate. I feel like Luke is trying to take a position of protector if he’s kind of like the consigliere of the family for a Godfather-esque reference like, “Hey, I’m the PR guy. I’m the fixer. Let me handle this.” I think that just comes out of a fierce sense of protection with the family, and this goes back to that thing about the Leone name and the legacy. And I think that Luke will do whatever you can to protect Bode.

Fire Country, Fridays, 9/8c, CBS