9-1-1: Lone Star Season 2 is going to be an original cast member down. Liv Tyler isn’t returning to the show, and we can blame the pandemic.

There is certainly some disappointing news for fans of 9-1-1: Lone Star. Liv Tyler is not returning for the second season, and it sounds like the pandemic is to blame.

TVLine reported the disappointing news, sharing that since Tyler lives in London, England, the commute to L.A., where the series is filmed, was impossible. It would mean quarantining and cause problems for her to see her family, so it was easier for her to step away from the show. Does this mean she’s going to be gone for good?

Michelle’s story was fully told on 9-1-1: Lone Star Season 1

From a creative point of view, there’s no need for Tyler to come back. Her character, Michelle, had one of the bigger storylines of the first season. It made sense considering she was one of the big movie powerhouses that drew fans to the series.

However, that story was told by the end of the season, similarly to the way Connie Britton’s story was told on the first season of the parent show, 9-1-1. There is no need to continue it into the second season. There aren’t any questionable threads left dangling, except those that surround Michelle’s potential relationship with Rob Lowe’s character. There were certainly some glances there, but we had hoped they’d just remain friends.

That being said, the door is left open. Tyler isn’t leaving with bad blood. This is a situation that nobody could have planned for when she signed onto the show.

9-1-1

Gina Torres will take on the role in the second season

We learned a few weeks ago that Gina Torres had signed onto 9-1-1: Lone Star Season 2. She is coming in as paramedic captain Tommy Vega. This should have sent a few alarm bells off, since Michelle was the paramedic captain. How could there be two together?

The series is set during the pandemic, which connects to Torres’s story. We’ll see her rejoin the workforce because her husband’s restaurant is struggling during the pandemic. She’s needed to put food on the table (pun most definitely intended), but we’ll get to see her juggling work and home. She has twin daughters at home, which will certainly be a source of entertainment and stress.

9-1-1: Lone Star Season 2 now has the greenlight to film. It shouldn’t be long before we get more news.

MORE: A Million Little Things Season 3 will premiere in November 2020

What do you think of Liv Tyler exiting the series? What do you hope to see from Torres’s character? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

9-1-1: Lone Star Season 2 is set to return sometime in 2021.