Why Did Carra Patterson Leave the CBS Series ‘Elsbeth'? Inside Her Departure

The unexpected departure of a beloved television character is something that fans are extremely passionate about and won’t hesitate to make their voices heard — such is the case of the sudden exit of Elsbeth star, Carra Patterson.

Premiering in February 2024, Elsbeth is a police procedural comedy drama that centers on attorney Elsbeth Tascioni, who finds herself as a detective with highly unconventional methods to solving crimes.

Portraying the role of NYPD detective Kaya Blanke since the series premiered, fans were shocked when it was revealed in a May 2025 episode that Kaya had taken a job as an undercover agent — and thus, will not return to the show as a series regular.

Although fans will not see as much of Kaya when season three premieres in fall 2025, it was confirmed that the character will make guest appearances throughout the upcoming season.

In a statement shared with Deadline, Carra assured fans that they haven’t seen the last of her. “My character, Kaya Blanke, is embarking on a new adventure as the story continues to unfold, and I am excited to do the same,” she said.

“But we will see Kaya again – fans will find out what she’s been up to in her new role as ‘Detective’ next season when I come back to guest star and play with Carrie and Wendell. I am beyond grateful to the cast, crew, and producers, and of course, the fans, for all the love and support,” Carra continued.

Speaking with TVLine, showrunner Jonathan Tolins opened up about Kaya’s importance on the show in the present and the future. “Kaya is still such an important part of the show and is not leaving the world of the show. She will be back. We love her and love the character, and she’ll be back as often we can have her,” he said.

“I would say in addition to making the show, we are fans of the show and love the show,” Jonathan continued. “We have all the same feelings, and we’re going to keep trying to preserve and honor what we’ve done so far and to keep all those feelings going forward. … Female friendship is very important to our show, and I think we will still honor female friendship as a major part of this show, even though we’ll be seeing a little less of Kaya.”

Series star Carrie Preston also shared with the outlet how she feels about Kaya leaving and how it impacts Elsbeth. “But what I love about our show is that we don’t get too comfortable in anything,” she said.

“So I think it’s an opportunity to really enrich the character and the storylines, to have a fresh new take on what Elsbeth is like when she doesn’t have someone like Kaya to lean on,” Carrie continued. “How is she going to walk onto a crime scene without her? What’s that going to look like?”