Brad Kern took over showrunner duties on "NCIS: New Orleans" in early 2016, and he was allegedly behind Zoe McLellan's departure from the series. In late 2017, Variety reported Kern had been accused of sexual harassment and making "racially charged comments" on the job. Reportedly, Kern hired one actor because a CBS executive said they "wanted to f**k her." The outlet also reported the former showrunner wanted to fire McLellan "because, in his view, men didn't find her 'f**kable,'" as per sources. McLellan did not comment on the situation.

The original "NCIS: NOLA" showrunner, Jeffrey Lieber, provided more details about McLellan's departure in an interview with Vulture in 2019. Lieber was impressed with the actor's work as Agent Brody, but received a "great deal of pressure to get onboard with the firing." While Lieber was showrunner, he was confused by orders to release McLellan because she was well-received by viewers. "Every time the show was tested, Zoe got the same or better scores as the other second lead on the show," he told Vulture.

Kern believed the issue could have stemmed from Agent Brody being underdeveloped, so he made a conscious effort to flesh out the character. Eventually, Lieber learned the source of the issue came from former CBS executive Leslie Moonves. "Finally, one powerful man putting pressure on me just admitted to me that the problem was that Les didn't find her 'f**kable' enough," Lieber told Vulture. Keep reading to find out the heartbreaking turn McLellan's life took post-show. 

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