Terry Crews says Brooklyn Nine-Nine scrapped all of next season's scripts in response to Black Lives Matter

By Britt Hayes  |  June 24, 2020 | 3:51pm
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Terry Crews says Brooklyn Nine-Nine scrapped all of next season's scripts in response to Black Lives Matter
Photo: Frazer Harrison

Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s next season is undergoing a major rewrite, according to co-star Terry Crews. The actor, who plays Lieutenant Terry Jeffords on the hit NBC series, told Access Online that showrunner Dan Goor has thrown all of the completed scripts for season eight out in response to the Black Lives Matter movement. “They had four episodes all ready to go and they just threw them in the trash,” said Crews. “We have to start over. Right now we don’t know which direction it’s going to go in.” The actor revealed that there have been ongoing talks behind the scenes about recalibrating season eight in light of the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Rayshard Brooks, and countless other Black people—all of whom were killed by police.

“We’ve had a lot of somber talks about it and deep conversations and we hope through this we’re going to make something that will be truly groundbreaking this year. We have an opportunity and we plan to use it in the best way possible,” Crews explained. Earlier this month, co-star Stephanie Beatriz joined other actors in donating their earnings from playing police officers to bail funds for Black protesters. Showrunner Dan Goor subsequently revealed that he and the cast and crew of Brooklyn Nine-Nine had donated $100,000 to the National Bail Fund Network in an effort to support those protesting police brutality across the country.

During the Access interview, Crews also spoke about his own experiences with the police and what he describes as “Black America’s Me Too movement”:

You’ve seen me, in movies or whatever but before all this, I was always a threat. I would be going to the mall or going different places. I’ve had guns pointed at me by police officers in L.A. This was before I was famous. The thing is, they had the wrong guy. It’s something that every black man has been through and it’s hard to really try to get other people to understand. I have to say, right here, what is going on right now is Black America’s Me Too movement. We always knew this was happening, but now white people are understanding.

Looking for ways to advocate for Black lives? Check out this list of resources by our sister site Lifehacker for ways to get involved.

 
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