In a shocking Elsbeth twist, the beloved CBS procedural starring Carrie Preston is losing one of its key cast members Carra Patterson, who plays Detective Kaya Blanke. Now, EP and showrunner Jonathan Tolins is quelling fears that fans have seen the last of her character.
Sitting down with DECIDER after Thursday night’s shocking episode saw Kaya accept a job on an undercover task force and Elsbeth Tascioni (Carrie Preston) taken away in handcuffs for harassment, Tolins and Preston put a stop to speculation that Patterson is gone for good.
“I want to make it clear: she is not leaving,” Tolins said definitively. “The character of Kaya remains in the world of Elsbeth, she’s just not going to be there every day. We love Carra and we love Kaya and we’re gonna want to have her as often as possible but I think it will be interesting to see Elsbeth have to deal with not having Kaya all the time next to her.”
It’s a surprising left turn for the show that has made it a priority to keep fans on their toes. Most recently, the series killed off Judge Milton Crawford (Michael Emerson), who many fans thought would go toe-to-toe with the titular character in the Season 2 finale.
As for the decision-making process on why Patterson is making the move from series regular to recurring character, Tolins did not comment on the reasoning for the choice. He did note, however, that the writers feel accomplished with the character having achieved her goal of becoming a detective in just two seasons.
” I don’t want to speak for Carra,” Tolins told DECIDER, adding of Kaya’s arc, “That relationship emerged very organically into something much greater than I think anyone knew going into the show, how wonderful it was, it is, and continues to be. And the character had this dream of being a detective and it was so wonderful to watch her face obstacles in the way of her achieving that dream and then to achieve it. And so her position professionally has changed.”
Preston, whose character has what some might deem a codependent relationship with Patterson’s character in the series, also commented on her costar’s partial departure, saying that there’s a “wonderful parallel” between Kaya’s decision and Elsbeth’s move to New York at the beginning of the series.
Originally appearing on The Good Wife and The Good Fight as a quirky but brilliant lawyer, Preston’s Emmy Award-winning character starts her own spinoff by moving to the Big Apple from Chicago to restart her life and find fulfillment in a new career working with the NYPD.
“The one thing I love about the show is it’s so much about a woman reinventing herself, moving to a new city at a certain part in her life when she doesn’t have to. She’s achieved such success in Chicago, and she makes this decision to move and start this whole new career and now we see Kaya doing that, as well,” she said. “So thematically, there’s a wonderful parallel there.”
Preston added of Kaya’s exit that she thinks it will “create good tension” for the already confirmed Season 3, while still allowing Elsbeth to feel happy for her friend.
“She’s still a part of Elsbeth’s life and is going to continue to be someone that Elsbeth loves and treasures,” Preston explained. “Elsbeth also wants to see her friend fly and achieve her dreams and be happy in her career, because Elsbeth is in hers.”
In an Instagram post early Friday, Patterson herself confirmed the news of her step back, thanking the fans and her coworkers for an unforgettable experience.
“A Full Heart🩷To my Elsbeth Fam, this isn’t goodbye, I will be guest starring next season as ‘Detective Kaya’ & looking forward to new adventures when I come back to play with Carrie and Wendell. So grateful to our incredibly creative and generous cast & crew, and of course our wonderful fans. Xoxo,” Patterson wrote.
The first 19 episodes of Elsbeth Season 2 are currently streaming on Paramount+. The season finale airs on Thursday, May 8, at 9 PM local and streams the next day.
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