Terry Crews Says ‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’ Will “Definitely” Address Current Events Next Season

As the nation continues to protest police brutality and the killings of Black men and women in police custody, America has also been rethinking how cops are portrayed in our shows, movies and pop culture. One of the most popular police comedies, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, announced last week that they’ll be donating $100,000 to the National Bail Fund Network after the death of George Floyd. But cast member Terry Crews says their efforts are not stopping with a single donation.

Crews, who plays Lieutenant Terry Jeffords on the show, appeared on Late Night With Seth Meyers June 8 to talk about Brooklyn Nine-Nine and the influence of current events and protests on a show all about police. Per Entertainment Tonight, Meyers asked his guest if “the events of the day” would impact future episodes of Brooklyn Nine-Nine. “Definitely,” Crews replied.

“We actually all got on a Zoom call just the other day because of what’s happening in this country,” he said. “We were witnessing so many abuses of power. We had some somber talks and some really, really eye-opening conversation about how to handle this new season.”

Season 7 of Brooklyn Nine-Nine wrapped up in April, and Season 8 is expected to premiere in 2021.

Earlier this month, Crews’ co-star Stephanie Beatriz joined The Tick‘s Griffin Newman in donating money to bail funds and immigrants in detention centers, calling on all other actors who have played police on TV to do the same. Newman started the movement with a tweet recalling his time working on Blue Bloods.

“Im an out-of-work actor who (improbably) played a detective on two episodes of BLUE BLOODS almost a decade ago,” he wrote. “If you currently play a cop? If you make tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars a year in residuals from playing a cop? I’ll let you do the math.” Both actors donated $11,000 and asked others to contribute what they could.

As backlash grows against the police, with calls for defunding police departments entering the mainstream, some networks are pulling their police shows or postponing them indefinitely. NBC has not announced any scheduling changes for the upcoming Season 8 of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, but Spectrum, Paramount and A&E have all switched their programming. A&E’s Live PD and Paramount’s Cops were both pulled from programming schedules last week, while Season 2 of Spectrum’s L.A.’s Finest was pushed to later this year.

“Out of respect for the families of George Floyd and others who have lost their lives, in consultation with the departments we follow, and in consideration for the safety of all involved, we have made the decision not to broadcast Live PD this weekend,” A&E said in a statement.

Watch Crew’s Late Night With Seth Meyers interview in the video above.

Where to Watch Brooklyn Nine-Nine