Writers of the upcoming Brooklyn Nine-Nine are going back to the drawing board after reported to have thrown their work amid the recent nationwide protests against police violence.
Cast member Terry Crews, who plays Seargent Terry Jeffords, said in an interview that while the NBC comedy sitcom is scheduled to return for season eight, the writers are scrapping all they have written for the next season.
“Our showrunner Dan Goor, they had four episodes all ready to go, and they just threw them in the trash,” he said.
“We have to start over. Right now, we don’t know which direction it’s going to go in.”
The cast has been discussing about the issues of systemic racism and police brutality and how those issues are going to affect their show.
“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 added.
When asked if the eighth season would tackle the current events, Crews replied they would do their best.
“Definitely. We all got on a Zoom call just the other day because of what is happening in this country,” he said.
“We are witnessing so many abuses of power. We had some sombre [sic] talks and some really eye-opening conversations about how to handle this new season.”
The cast and creators of the show earlier announced their support to the Black Lives Matter movement, and donated $100,000 to the National Bail Fund Network.
Stephanie Beatriz, who plays Rosa Diaz, said in an Instagram post, “The cast and showrunner of Brooklyn Nine-Nine condemn the murder of George Floyd and support the many people who are protesting police brutality nationally.”
“Together we have made a $100,000 donation to the National Bail Fund Network. We encourage you to look up your local bail fund: the National Bail Fund is an organisation that can lead you to them. #blacklivesmatter.”