SEAL Team Showrunner Spencer Hudnut On The Feel-Good Finale, Wrapping Up With Short Notice

After seven strong seasons of storytelling, we’re saying goodbye to SEAL Team.

SEAL Team has reminded us of the casualties of war, not just in battle, but by watching characters struggle to find a balance between the ugly side of their profession and a home life they desperately crave.

SEAL Team Season 7 drove that point home with a final season that found Jason Hayes, Ray Perry, Sonny Quinn, and Lisa Perry considering what’s next.

We had the opportunity to jump on Zoom with showrunner Spencer Hudnut for more insight into SEAL Team Season 7 and the surprisingly feel-good finale.

What a ride.

Yes. Hard to believe that we’re at the end here.

It’s kind of painful.

I know; it is painful. I can feel the viewers’ pain, and I can sense it among the cast. We’re all reaching out, everyone’s reaching out to each other, and it’s been so nice to be back on the air after almost two years, but to then have it mean that we’re going away, it’s a lot of mixed feelings.

I’m sure. Okay, so before we get into the real meaty stuff, I have some nits to pick with this season.

Sure.

It concerns Drew and Omar, particularly why you chose to make Drew a wayward Echo team member and how you came up with the story of Omar’s wife hooking up with another SEAL.

SEALs are all so close, and they know so much about each other, especially Echo team because of how close they were to that event. How did they not know about these guys? How did they not know of their past?

Well, so Drew had just joined Echo team. It would be like Clay only a few episodes into his time with Bravo team.

The SEALs that we work with said it was plausible that, again, enough time had passed, and he wasn’t really part of that team in a public way, so he had one deployment with them.

He was sent away, so he wasn’t even in country with them when they died, that it would be plausible. So, if people want to focus on that, then they can.

I had to ask on behalf of my readers because they all asked that question. So I thought, “Okay, I’m going to find out.”

Yeah, no, it’s a fair question. Again, it was one that we put to our SEALs: “Could this possibly play out?” As for Omar, that took place back in San Diego, years ago.

Okay. So that makes sense.

Many, many years ago. Yeah.

Another thing, regarding the hit on Curtis, was there more intel that maybe didn’t make it on screen that gave them the idea to pull that off? It doesn’t seem like a decision you would take lightly to just get rid of a Green Beret.

No, that’s very much coming from the high-up of command. We kind of alluded to it at some point that so much of what we were doing in Thailand with China was sort of a battle of almost like a PR fight that if we could out China’s involvement.

And then this was a little bit of the higher-ups, not a DEVGRU, but even higher than that, thinking if there was a former American war hero involved in this narco trade, building a narco-state and helping Beijing move into South America, that would cause really bad headlines. So it’s better to silence him and take him out.

Oh, OK. Thanks for the explanation. So now, let’s move on to the overall season stuff. And here we are.

Yes. Okay.

Was it tough for you? I mean, it was, for me, watching everybody hold their feelings so close to the vest this season.

They were normally so close and so open with each other and sharing everything, but this season, everybody kind of walked their own path in silence. Why did you go in that direction?

Well, I think a lot of what they’re battling are new things. I think Jason, in particular, I think the downtime between seasons six and seven brought this shame really to the surface.

I think it’s something that I’ve talked about with some of these special operators, and once you stop and get off the crazy train, those thoughts start coming into your head. And he’s really dealing with a spiritual wound that he really doesn’t know how to address.

Dealing with the, this is not guilt, this is shame. The shame of what he’s done is that, unfortunately, a lot of people, a lot of our vets, deal with once they get out.

And so I think Jason is trying his best. He thinks this new era of warfare allows him to have this balance in his life. So I don’t think he wants to certainly reveal to Ray, in particular, these issues he’s having.

And I think Ray is having this trouble. He’s got one foot out, but all of a sudden, his off-ramp, which is Spencer House, is tainted for him. He still has this guilt over Clay. He hasn’t been as hands-on as he expected to be. Naima has really made the place thrive.

His teammates even call him the unicorn. He’s the guy who has a plan to get out. He’s going to have a purpose when he gets out, and if he shares with them his own doubts about it, if Ray, of all people, all of a sudden doesn’t think he has an off-ramp, what does that do to everybody else?

So he almost doesn’t want to share that with Jason because he’s seeing Jason for the first time see a life after operating. So for Ray to say, “I don’t know if that actually exists,” that would be so damning for his best friend.

So there’s a reason he’s keeping that to himself. I think they both have justifiable reasons for kind of holding their cards closer than we’ve seen in the past.

Of course, Curtis’s coming in messed with both their minds. It kind of cemented the things that they were in turmoil over and made it seem like they were right when they weren’t.

Yes, absolutely. No, Curtis, with his “war always has the last word” and seeing himself as contaminated by what he’s done, definitely paints a bleak picture for both Ray and Jason as they’re both really dealing with looking at their lives after operating.

So then when Curtis is revealed down in Honduras, it almost just, at least for Jason, solidifies this idea that because of what he’s done in his past, he’s condemned, which is a really sort of awful truth and unfortunately is not for everybody, fortunately, but is how a number of men and women in uniform feel when they get out.

And this theme of shame with Jason, shame more than guilt, is unfortunately what plays a role in veteran suicide. That’s why we really thought this was an important topic.

We don’t like to talk about what our men and women in uniform have to do when they’re on the battlefield. We like to welcome them home and hope that they’re okay, but we don’t take on the problem of what the job entails.

I think if people had a better outlet, more outlets, then maybe people wouldn’t struggle so much when they come home.

And the finale did a great job of bringing home the idea that you need to care for your guys and your operators. You can’t just pretend like they didn’t go through something that we’ll never understand. And Ray takes that position. Is all of that based on reality?

Yeah.

Is there something similar to that in real life? Did the guys tell you about it and what the best course of action was?

So I actually think because, as we’ve been taking on TBI, fortunately, DEVGRU and other areas of the military have been coming to grips with this problem.

I don’t know if that position exactly exists within DEVGRU at the moment, but it feels like it definitely should, and it feels like they’re on that path.

Again, Ray asked the question of “who’s going to look out for these guys when I’m gone?” And this allows him to kind of do his best. I think at some point this season, he articulates, “I hope, in a perfect world, there wouldn’t be a need for a place like Spencer House.”

So it’s this idea that if we can take care of our men and women in uniform while they are still in, then that off-ramp will be a lot easier for them, and hopefully, that transition isn’t as difficult as it’s been.

And you shouldn’t have to look outside of the place where you work to get that support. It should already be there based on just the kind of work that they do.

Yes, absolutely. We should do a much better job of taking care of these folks while they’re still in and helping them once they get out.

Jason, of course, came to a place where he could embrace his personal life and enjoy his family, but he’s still operating in that final scene. What does that say about where he’s going? And where is Bravo going from here?

Well, I think it’s important that Jason, obviously even halfway through this episode, is really struggling. With Mandy’s help, because again, they have that deep connection. Mandy has lived it. She’s dealt with her own guilt and shame. She’s had to, for lack of a better term, clean her own kills.

She really helps him get on a path to atoning, and I think he’s still going on that journey at the end. But to keep Jason in, I think it’s in line with the character. I think we show that he now believes that war doesn’t have to have the last word, but it doesn’t mean he’s ready to put his rifle down.

The end is complicated. I think Jason’s heroic. I think he sees a future beyond operating in a way that he hasn’t before, but there’s also a tragic element to it that he can’t quit this war, much like this country. And so he’s going to go forward, he’s going to continue into this forever war.

At least he had a smile on his face.

He did. I mean, it’s funny. I think he’s at peace at war for the first time, but also at peace at home and for the first time in seven seasons. And so, again, I think he’s come to understand that with a lot of work and help from others, war does not need to have the last word in his life.

And, of course, we have to talk about Sonny and Lisa. I love that Clay’s actions and things that he had actually done before he died made such a significant impact on Sonny that he allowed Lisa to follow her dream.

What was it like bringing that to life and also honoring Clay’s memory?

Yeah, I mean, I honestly think Sonny is probably the character who evolved the most in this series. And I think a lot of that began not with Clay’s death but with Clay’s injury at the beginning of Season 6.

Even though Sonny was older, Clay was always kind of looking out for him, helping him get out of his own way. And I think it forced Sonny to grow up. It forced Sonny to take some responsibility.

It allowed Sonny to start seeing himself in a different light, which this season continued with his med kit, the Navy obviously being very interested in his med kit. And then, even within Bravo, I think he has more of a voice than he has had in the past.

So, I think Sonny, as we say, is following in Clay’s footsteps. Clay’s losing the leg and then losing his life really forced Sonny to confront some things about himself and forced him to grow up.

Taking the fall for Davis and realizing that he’s lived his dream and that there are two women in his life that he’ll never have a full relationship with unless he leaves the Navy is a decision that obviously echoes Clay’s at the end of SEAL Team Season 6 Episode 8.

So yes, I think it’s an honor. I think Sonny living up to Clay’s standards is the best way to honor Clay but also to take Sonny in a surprising direction.

The finale has a happy ending. You provided a happy ending to a story that had so many layers of unhappiness and trauma. Why did you decide to go that route and not pull the rug out from under us before the end?

The show has meant so much to our fans and to a very specific community: the military community.

We wanted to show, yes, we dragged Jason through so many different challenges with PTS and TBI and losing his wife and his trouble with balancing a home life and the hardest job in the world that it felt like if we pulled the rug out, it would just be what were we really saying?

Through Jason, we’re trying to show people out there who are struggling that there is hope. It’s going to take a lot of work and a lot of people, but there may be light at the end of the tunnel.

And if Jason Hayes can maybe reach a place where he believes he’s entitled to happily ever after, then hopefully, that will resonate with people.

Killing Clay in Season 6 was a really tough decision that we kind of got forced into a corner with, but I don’t think any of us at the show really ever thought that we were going to go out tragically.

We really wanted to send a message of hope and also remind people that we need to do more. There’s so much more we need to do for our men and women in uniform and our veterans.

And I know that David Boreanaz did want to move on because he felt it was time for his body not to put himself through this anymore. Was there ever a time when you imagined a SEAL Team future without him?

Oh, definitely. Yes. So I think one thing, it’s important for our fans, I feel their angst and their anxiety through the beginning of the season in particular. And why would you bring in Drew?

When we wrote this season, we had no idea it would be the last season. Obviously, we were prepared for that on some level, and we started off-ramping these characters.

But Drew was brought in specifically to be a bridge character to continue. After Season 7, it was clear to me, whether it was David or AJ or Neil, that I didn’t think there was a world where all three returned.

So what we were doing with Drew and Omar was really starting to build those characters up towards the end of the season where, all of a sudden, you’re intrigued by their backstories, and you want to learn more about them so they could be the next generation of Bravo.

I mean, I never liked the idea of doing it without David, but that would’ve been a challenge that we would’ve taken on for sure.

When I found out this would be the last season, it really only allowed me about 30 pages in the finale to land the plane. None of this was choreographed in a way thinking that this was, for certain, the end.

Well, you did an excellent job. The finale closed things up really well, wrapped up the characters well, and made you feel good walking away, like there was hope for all of them. So congratulations on that. I don’t know if another writer could have done that.

Oh, I really appreciate that. Yeah, it’s much faster-paced. Things are happening very quickly in the finale. In my mind, the season was ending with Jason going off to Afghanistan. And if that’s the way the show ended, then we know he’s at least trying to help himself.

But once we had the opportunity to really finish it, we wanted to send our characters off in a way where we felt good about where they were going. I hope the audience responds to it. They’ve been so great to us and stuck with us for so long.

Watch Seal Team Online