Max Thieriot Shares the Unconventional Way Jelly Roll Landed His ‘Fire Country’ Guest Role

When it comes to guest stars on Fire Country season 3, it’s easy to say Jelly Roll‘s upcoming appearance is causing a stir among loyal viewers. While it may seem like he’s the perfect fit for a rugged show about inmates fighting California wildfires, it turns out he had an unconventional way of pitching himself for a guest spot.

Co-creator, executive producer and star Max Thieriot teased Jelly Roll’s episode (which airs Friday, April 11, 2025 at 9 p.m. ET) on the CBS drama on April 2, when he promoted Fire Country in an interview with CBS Mornings Plus. When asked about how the collab between the show and Jelly Roll came about, Max revealed it started in the most unexpected of places.

“I met [Jelly Roll] in the bathroom — it’s a true story,” Max laughed about the two’s initial meeting in a clip posted on YouTube. “I was at the [2024] CMT Awards, and after sitting in my seat forever and not wanting to miss the music … I was like, ‘All right, we got a break in between songs. I’m gonna go.’ I went to the bathroom, and as I’m walking in, [Jelly Roll]’s drying his hands on his way out.”

But that’s not all to this unexpected meet-up. Max also noted that Jelly Roll loved watching Fire Country — which is good, since some of his music has been featured in the show. But Jelly Roll also revealed he’d been trying to get on the show for some time — to which Max had the answer he was looking for.