Most Wanted’s Alexa Davalos Is Not Returning for Season 5

The FBI: Most Wanted cast is getting another makeover ahead of season 5 — and Alexa Davalos is the latest casualty.

Davalos, 41, who plays Special Agent Kristin Gaines on the CBS drama, will not be returning for season 5, Deadline reported on Tuesday, August 8. The actress was “informed by a producer on set that she won’t be coming back after filming her last scene from season 4 several months ago,” according to the outlet.

While Davalos wasn’t expecting the news, Deadline reported that the conversation and her subsequent exit were “amicable.”

Her exit may come as a shock to fans because the season 4 finale, which aired in May, didn’t even hint at Davalos’ character leaving. The episode instead focused on the FBI Fugitive Task Force’s efforts to track down the real killer of Supervisory Special Agent Remy Scott’s (Dylan McDermott) brother from years past.

Davalos, who joined the cast during season 3, is not the first major departure from the show. Kellan Lutz, who played Kenny Crosby, announced his exit in September 2021 after two seasons, which made way for Davalos’ role. Julian McMahon, who portrayed team lead Jess LaCroix for nearly three seasons, left the series in March 2022.

Two months after McMahon’s exit, Miguel Gomez’s departure was confirmed. Gomez, 37, played Ivan Ortiz on season 2 and season 3, but was noticeably absent during the season 3 finale.

Viewers wondering how Davalos’ Agent Gaines will be written off the show will have to wait until the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) strikes come to an end.

FBI: Most Wanted, which was renewed for season 5 in 2022, was briefly affected by the WGA strike in May when the Writers Guild of America East picketed near the show’s season 4 filming location. Producers stopped filming for a few hours but later resumed and eventually finished the season.

Production delays have been prolonged due to SAG-AFTRA’s fight with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP). The strike, which began in July, was called after the groups failed to agree on terms establishing higher wages and streaming residuals for actors, among other labor disputes. The SAG-AFTRA strike guidelines prohibit union members from working on struck projects and promoting any past, present or future films or shows until the strike is concluded.

Struck work includes all projects associated with AMPTP’s studios, streaming services and principal broadcast networks. The AMPTP represents major studios such as Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. and the big four TV networks: ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox.