SEAL Team is finally back for its sixth season, and the first few episodes have been nothing short of intense. Season 6 marks the show’s second season on Paramount+ and its first full one as one of the show's originals (It moved after airing four episodes during Season 5.) Now, nearly a year later, showrunner Spencer Hudnut is opening up about how SEAL's switch from network television has impacted the direction of the show.
With the military drama's move to Paramount+, the writers and producers are able to do more than they would on network television. This was actually one of the things David Boreanaz liked about the move to Paramount+. More recently, Spencer Hudnut told TV Insider that the experience has been beneficial for the show from a creative standpoint:
Just creatively and from a writing perspective, it’s been so liberating. I think it’s allowed us just to dig a little deeper into these storylines, be a little darker, and we pride ourselves on our authenticity, and I think the show feels even more real than maybe it did on CBS. We didn’t want to change the formula too much because, obviously, we had a strong audience over at CBS, but I think it’s been a really good move for the show. And I think this season, in particular, you really get to see what we can do with 10 episodes. So it was exciting from a writing point of view to break a season that really only covered 10 episodes as opposed to 22 of the past.
A show like SEAL Team can definitely be limited by the restraints of network television. But thankfully, the producers now have the ability to not only have longer episodes (and fewer installments, at that) but to tell more accurate stories of the brave men and women who fight for our country. And of course, the writers can enhance the character's dialogue (with swear words), which is a good thing.
If not for the move to Paramount+, the recent season premiere might've been very different. Following the ambush on Bravo in Mali, Clay was left in terrible condition, having messed up his leg and experienced internal bleeding. At the end of the episode, we find out that medics had to amputate his leg below the knee in order to save him. Clay’s emotional and traumatic experience was hard to watch, and Spencer Hudnut even mentioned that the graphic footage of his leg wouldn’t have happened had the show still been on network television.
The show is definitely doing well on the streamer, as it’s among one of the best shows on Paramount+. On top of that, fans can also look forward to a SEAL Team movie sometime in the future, which could help to greatly expand the show's mythology. Although it’s currently unknown as whether there will be another season, it’s clear that the fans and the crew are passionate about the series. And one gets the feeling that the series' streaming home is as well.
With its storylines only getting bigger, the drama series is sure to push the envelope content-wise, thanks to the move it made a year ago. Season 6 is definitely as emotional as ever, and the stakes are even higher. With that, it seems Spencer Hudnut and co. are taking great care in how they execute storylines as to keep audiences engaged and to be respectful to our military officials.
New episodes of SEAL Team drop every Sunday, so be sure to grab a Paramount+ subscription! Also, heck out CinemaBlend’s 2022 TV schedule to see what else is coming to the small screen in the coming months!
