EXCLUSIVE: FBI‘s Stuart Scola will carry on without a permanent new partner a little longer. Lisette Olivera, who was added to the cast as a new series regular for Season 7 this past summer, is leaving the hit CBS procedural after filming a handful of episodes, Deadline has learned. They are expected to air as planned.
Olivera plays Syd Ortiz, a trained Behavioral Analysis Unit Agent who joins FBI’s New York field office criminal division. She has not made her on-screen debut yet; the character will be introduced in Episode 4 airing Nov. 12, I hear.
Ortiz was designed to be a new partner for John Boyd’s Scola, succeeding Katherine Rebee Kane’s Tiffany Wallace who departed in the Season 7 premiere. Since then, Scola has been trying out partners, going through a revolving door of hopefuls. Ortiz will now join the list of temps, departing after a brief trial period.
According to sources, Olivera’s departure is not a reflection of her work but stems from how the character fits into the show. The 25-year National Treasure: Edge of History star may have been miscast as I hear she played too young for an FBI Special Agent, an authoritative figure requiring gravitas that comes from life experience.
It is unclear whether FBI would introduce a new character as a permanent partner for Scola but that is a possibility and a formula frequently used by long-running crime procedurals.
In addition to Boyd, the Season 7 series regulars include leads Missy Peregrym, Zeeko Zaki, Jeremy Sisto and Alana de la Garza.
FBI, the franchise flagship which in the first year of a three-season renewal, is produced by Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group, in association with CBS Studios. The show is executive produced by Dick Wolf, Mike Weiss, Alex Chapple, Amanda Slater, Rick Eid and Peter Jankowski.
