S.W.A.T. fans rallied to save the show from cancellation. But when a spinoff was announced, only one of the OG cast was involved. The news sparked major backlash for lead star, Shemar Moore, who has portrayed Sergeant Daniel “Hondo” Harrelson Jr. since the beginning of the show. But now it seems the uproar made the studio behind the spinoff rethink snubbing the stars from the CBS show.
S.W.A.T. Spinoff Announced
When CBS announced in March that Season 8 would be the last for S.W.A.T., fans of the cop drama rallied to save it like they had before. The show was previously canceled in both 2023 and 2024, only to receive last-minute reprieves.
Season 7 was supposed to be the last before CBS issued a surprise renewal. Two main S.W.A.T. stars were written out at the end of the seventh season. Kenny Johnson, who played Dominique Luca, and Alex Russell, who portrayed Jim Street, were demoted to recurring roles in Season 7 and ultimately left the series.
The actress who plays Hondo’s wife, Nichelle, Rochelle Aytes, landed a starring role on the CBS show Watson and didn’t return for Season 8 of S.W.A.T.
The S.W.A.T. season finale aired on Friday, May 16. Three days later, on the 19th, Shemar Moore announced that a spinoff was in the works. S.W.A.T. Exiles follows his character, Hondo, as he’s forced to come out of retirement to work with a new team of SWAT officers.
More Details Of S.W.A.T. Exiles Revealed
In a new interview with Variety, Sony Pictures TV Studios executive Katherine Pope reveals more about the cancellation of S.W.A.T. and its revival in a new spinoff. While the show aired on CBS, the series and its spinoff are both owned by Sony Pictures. The executive said that the studio tried to find S.W.A.T. a new home after CBS canceled the show. However, they weren’t able to make a deal with any other networks or streamers, despite Shemar Moore calling on someone to save the show.
With S.W.A.T. officially over, the studio didn’t want to lose their lead star to another show. Fans were hoping Shemar Moore would return to Criminal Minds or even his former soap opera stomping grounds.
The basic premise of S.W.A.T. Exiles is a battle between the older and younger generations of SWAT officers. Pope explained, “It’s a bit of a take on the culture generation clash of Gen X versus Gen Z. Where Hondo is all about duty, hierarchy, and chain of command, the Gen Zers are a little more like, “I might need to take a mental health day. I want to talk about it. I want to understand it.”
The studio exec compared it to the movie Top Gun Maverick.
Studio Changes Course, Opens Door To OG Cast Returning
S.W.A.T. fans were initially stoked by the spinoff news. But that feeling soured quickly when none of the original cast members were attached to the spinoff.
In addition to Shemar Moore as Sergeant Daniel “Hondo” Harrelson Jr. included
- David Lim as Officer Victor Tan
- Patrick St. Esprit as Commander Robert “Bob” Hicks
- Anna Enger Ritch as Officer Zoe Powell
- Niko Pepaj as Officer Miguel Alfaro
- Annie Ilonzeh as Officer Devin Gamble
- Jay Harrington as Sergeant David “Deacon” Kay
Jay Harrington, David Lim, and Patrick St. Esprit were with the show from Season 1. Fans took to social media to blast the actor for throwing his co-stars under the bus. Click here to see his response.
The anger over the perceived snubbing of the OG stars may have come too early. The Sony executive revealed that the door is open for them to appear on the spinoff. “We’re still putting it all together, but for sure, I think you can expect some of your favorites to be a part of it in some way,” Pope said.
Production is reportedly eyeing an August start date. But there’s another catch – S.W.A.T. Exiles has yet to land at a network or streaming service.
Who do you want to see from the OG show on the spinoff? Let us know in the comments.
Jennifer Havener grew up in a small town in Upstate New York. She earned her B.A in Writing & Literature from Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado. She always knew watching reality TV shows and soap operas, particularly ‘Days of Our Lives’, would come in handy someday. When she’s not writing, she’s playing with her dogs, Lola and Ruger
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