Kathy Najimy Leaving Numb3rs?

Well, it's not quite clear. The TV Guide piece says her appearance on last week's episode was her last for the season, not for the series, so I'm hoping she'll be returning to the show. Besides the fact that I like her and her character, Millie French, they left a loose end or two with her storyline, so she's gotta come back.

She was brought on to fill the void left by Peter MacNicol, who disappeared into space temporarily so he could go on 24.

Kathy had a mini-interview with TV Guide; here's the scoop.

TV Guide: Were you good at math?
Kathy Najimy: When I was younger I wanted to be a mathematician, but I think that's because I got a good grade on a test once. [Laughs]

TV Guide: Do you think Millie would like to get more involved in the Eppeses' cases?
Najimy: They brought Millie on as the viewers' conscience. Her purpose is not so much as a nemesis, but as a guidepost for Charlie (David Krumholtz). But I think Millie finds the FBI work sexier than the math work.

TV Guide: How will Millie's relationship with Alan, the brothers' father [played by Judd Hirsch], progress?
Najimy: Slowly. Don't you think they should kiss sometime soon? [Laughs] Something needs to happen or Millie's going to move on to one of the brothers. [Laughs]

TV Guide: You've voiced Peggy Hill on King of the Hill for 11 seasons. How has she changed?
Najimy: I don't know if Peggy has changed that much. The great thing about her is the writers don't write characters one-dimensionally. She is wise one moment and ridiculous the next. She's very self-righteous. Her confidence box is overflowing and sometimes it's warranted, sometimes it's not. [Laughs]

TV Guide: In the films Sister Act, Hocus Pocus and Soapdish you play offbeat, energetic characters. Do you seek out these roles?
Najimy: At this stage of the game, I run the gamut. A lot of times on television they show a very successful woman at work who goes home and eats pie filling out of a can with her nine cats! They hardly show successful women with balanced personal lives. That's what I like about Peggy and Millie, and it's what I insist upon. I look for what the character's life is like and whether that really reflects women, or whether it continues some stereotype that doesn't help us at all.

Photo from TV Guide.