How Rachel Scott Exited The Last Ship (& Why Rhona Mitra Left)

Summary The Last Ship focused on a virus cure and post-apocalyptic world rebuilding in its five-season run.

Dr. Rachel Scott's death shocked fans, but actress Rhona Mitra left the show on apparently bad terms.

Rhona Mitra's career continued with roles in TV shows and movies after leaving The Last Ship in 2015.

Why did Rhona Mitra leave The Last Ship and how did Dr. Rachel Scott exit the TNT series? The Last Ship is adapted from the 1980s post-apocalyptic novel of the same name, with the show following the crew of the USS Nathan James returning home from maneuvers in the Arctic, only to learn the world has been torn apart by a virus. The ship's Commander Chandler (Eric Dane) must work with his crew and Dr. Rachel Scott (Rhona Mitra), to find a cure for the virus. The Last Ship ran for five seasons and was produced by Michael Bay, but while there was plenty of action and explosives the show featured some great characters too.

The first couple of seasons of The Last Ship focused on the race for a cure, while later seasons explored how the world rebuilt itself in the aftermath. While some major characters survived the final season, it's doubtful the show will be revived, considering the Nathan James itself was sunk in The Last Ship finale. However, one character who sadly departed long before The Last Ship's final season was Rachel Scott herself. One of the most important characters on the show, and a fan favorite herself, when Dr. Scott died, it really shook things up in the series. But, why did Rhona Mitra leave The Last Ship and was it on good terms or not?

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What Happened To Rachel Scott?

One Of The Immunes Shot Rhona Mitra's Character In The Last Ship

After a strong The Last Ship season 1 finale, the finale of season 2 saw the crew succeed in their efforts to find a cure. However, a group of zealots dubbed the Immunes, who are naturally resistant to the virus, believe they've been selected to survive. They try to undermine efforts to distribute it. In the final scenes, the crew is in a hotel to attend the inaugural ball for President Michener (Mark Moses).

The scene was filmed in such a way that kept Scott's fate ambiguous, but the premiere of The Last Ship season 3 confirmed her death.

The team celebrates while Chandler and Scott share a possibly romantic moment before she walks back to her room. It is at this moment that an Immune called Curtis shoots her. This was an incredibly shocking moment, because ti was Scott who eventually managed to create the cure as well as the vaccine. The scene was filmed in such a way that kept Scott's fate ambiguous, but the premiere of The Last Ship season 3 confirmed her death. In the months following her demise, Scott became a revered figure around the world, her picture put onto the new ration books to commemorate her actions in saving humanity.

The showrunners said her death was meant to haunt Chandler and the crew in The Last Ship season 3 and affect their thinking. Since she wasn't seen dying onscreen and the character didn't get a funeral, fans still hoped Dr. Scott might have survived. However, she did die and this made things tough when someone created an "anti-cure" in season 3.

What Rhona Mitra Said About Leaving The Last Ship

Mitra Was Clear That She Wouldn't Return To The Show

While it was clear why Dr. Scott left the series, questions still remained over why actor Rhona Mitra left The Last Ship. Mitra, who was a main cast member since the first Last Ship episode, revealed her character's fate on Twitter in 2016. Not only that, but it sounds like Mitra didn't leave the show on good terms. From her statement, it sounds like it was either Mitra's idea to leave the show, or she refused to come back after Dr. Scott was shot.

Neither the actor nor the showrunners have given a definitive reason for why Rhona Mitra left The Last Ship, though social media posts by the actress suggest it may not have been amicable. When it comes to the character of Dr. Scott, co-showrunner Steven Kane said:

"We felt that the challenge for Chandler and the world with Rachel gone was that much greater, and her shadow cast across Season 3 would give her in some ways more of an immortality" (via TV Line).

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What Rhona Mitra Has Done Since Leaving The Last Ship

The Rachel Scott Actor Has Continued To Have An Active Career

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While Rhona Mitra was missed as Rachel Scott in The Last Ship, leaving the show in 2015 was far from the end of her career. Rhona Mitra had an established career prior to starring in the sci-fi show, and Dr. Scott wasn't her debut role. She'd appeared alongside the late Andre Braugher of Brooklyn 99 fame in the 2000-2001 medical drama Gideon's Crossing as Dr Alejandra Ollie Klein, as well as in the legal drama The Practice as Tara Wilson (a role she reprized in Boston Legal) and in 2004's Spartacus as Varinia.

On the small screen, Mitra appeared in The Strain as Charlotte in 4 episodes, and played Lex Luthor's assistant Mercy Graves in Supergirl after leaving The Last Ship.

She also had a number of movie roles, including in Get Carter, The Number 23, and Underworld: Rise of the Lycans. With this in mind, it's unsurprising that Rhona Mitra continued to appear in various projects after leaving The Last Ship. She had several movie roles following the show, including 2016's Hard Target 2, 2018's Game Over, Man!, and 202's Archive and Skylines. On the small screen, Mitra appeared in The Strain as Charlotte in 4 episodes, and played Lex Luthor's assistant Mercy Graves in Supergirl after leaving The Last Ship.

So, while many wonder what happened to Rhona Mitra after The Last Ship, the answer is that she continued acting. She currently has four movies due to arrive in theaters too. 2024 will see her appear in Shadow Land and Red Sonja, both of which are in post-production with a specific release date to be confirmed. She also has parts in Prisoners of Paradise and The Experiment, which are still currently in development.