Why Jessica Biel’s Character Hasn’t Returned to ‘The Sinner’ Yet

Following the conclusion of The Sinner Season 3 this past March, Jessica Biel‘s character, Cora, hasn’t been back since Season 1. At a For Your Consideration event ahead of the 2018 Emmy Awards, Biel explained Cora’s absence.

“We did talk a lot about does Cora come back for Season 2 and what is the relationship because that’s what was interesting to me,” Biel said at the time, via IndieWire. Her character was raised by religious zealots who stabbed a man to death, which was the primary storyline of Season 1. “What happens when a woman goes through that? What is life like after that when the only person really in her life that she can connect with, even besides her husband, is the detective who got her out of this thing? But we just couldn’t do it this particular season.”

Based on Petra Hammesfahr’s 1999 novel of the same name, the first season of The Sinner premiered in 2017 and covered the source material. After the show was renewed for a second season, which aired in 2018, there was talk of Cora returning, although as Biel herself pointed out, the timing didn’t quite work out. However, she does remain an executive producer on the show so that she could return in the recently-announced Season 4. Since the premiere, the only regular character has been Detective Harry Ambrose, played by Bill Pullman.

It was also recently reported by The Daily Mail that Biel and husband Justin Timberlake welcomed a baby boy “earlier this week.” Neither of the two has commented on the report, which also indicated that Biel’s mother, Kimberly Conroe Biel, spent part of the past week with Biel and her new grandchild. A source told the outlet that Biel’s mother plans to stay with the couple until Sunday. Neither Biel nor Timberlake have made any recent posts to their respective Instagram pages and had been quarantining in Montana.

It was also reported that the time alone had done the couple well, following a recent scandal where Timberlake was seen engaging in some mild PDA with his co-star, Alisha Wainwright. “Although the pandemic is very stressful, Jess is trying to look on the bright side of things and thinks the extra downtime that comes along with the situation is great for her and Justin’s relationship,” another source told Us Weekly. “They of course both have their moments of being irritated, but it has ultimately brought them closer and having the main focus be each other and [their son] Silas has been a good thing.”