How TV Cop Shows Are Tackling Police Brutality Storylines Post-George Floyd

During Hollywood’s Summer of Racial Reckoning, the portrayal of police and law enforcement on screen was put under the microscope.

The simmering tensions against the people entrusted to protect and serve their communities boiled over amid nationwide protests against police brutality and systemic racism, following George Floyd’s murder by a Minneapolis police officer. It has included calls for the police to be defunded or reimagined, and for Hollywood to question how fictional cops should patrol the screen.

Now, some cop TV shows including CBS’ “S.W.A.T.” and NBC’s “Law & Order: SVU” and “Chicago PD” are returning for their new seasons, often following extended production delays due to the pandemic. And many plan to dive head-first into the new environment surrounding law enforcement.

Also Read: After George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, TV Rethinks If Cops Should Always Be the Good Guys

“S.W.A.T.” returns Wednesday with a two-hour premiere, the first hour of which was supposed to be last season’s finale. Like most TV shows, “S.W.A.T.” had to pack up early when the pandemic forced all productions to halt in March. That only makes it more stark that the show, which is led by one of the few Black showrunners on a police procedural, was already planning a story that delved into racial tensions between the police and the Black community.

Here is the logline for the episode, titled “3 Seventeen Year Olds”: “Hondo, (Shemar Moore) his father Daniel Sr. (Obba Babatundé) and his teen charge Darryl (Deshae Frost) confront the history of racial tension in Los Angeles between law enforcement and the Black community, through flashbacks to the city in 1992 following the Rodney King verdict. Also, the SWAT team pursues El Diablo’s scattered drug cartel hiding in the city and a Jihadist group detonating bombs in coordinated attacks.”

“S.W.A.T.” showrunner Aaron Rahsaan Thomas told TV Line that, while not much of the plot was altered when they came back to film in September, the tone of the episode definitely changed.

“The tone of the story certainly shifts a bit, because at the time what we were talking about was how between the Watts riots of 1965 and the Rodney King riots there were 27 years that had passed, and the year 2020 had marked 28 years since Rodney King — how maybe we’re making progress,” he said. “But the original tone of the story was, ‘Wow, we’ve learned something new, maybe this time we’ve gotten it right’… and then George Floyd happens.”

Also Read: Why Don't TV Cop Shows Have More Police Brutality Storylines? Blame 'Dragnet'

He continued, “There are references to the current day situations that are happening.”

Also premiering on Wednesday is the eighth season of “Chicago PD,” which will find the officers of the 21st District dealing with police reform efforts. Here is the logline for “Fighting Ghosts”: “The team responds to the shooting of a 5-year-old girl and they must work the case while facing new obstacles that come from the heightened attention on police reform. Atwater (LaRoyce Hawkins) is targeted by a group of officers who want to hurt him for standing against the blue wall. Voight (Jason Beghe) questions whether he’s cut out for a new form of policing as he manages oversight from the CPD’s deputy.”

When “Law & Order: SVU” returns on Thursday for its 22nd season, the show will acknowledge that the current environment “is losing trust in the police”: “When the squad tries to solve an assault in Central Park, they are hampered by their own blind spots and a community that is losing trust in the police.”

The genre is famous for “ripped-from-the-headlines” narratives, but many shows have handled questions like police brutality and other systemic issues such as racism in a single episode or multi-episode arc. Typically, one or two cops are singled out as “bad eggs” and reprimanded, while the “good” cops look even more heroic for weeding out the evils in their own ranks.

But this year has showcased many examples of police overstepping their boundaries and being overaggressive toward peaceful protesters. The question now is will these current tensions between law enforcement and their communities become permanently baked into these fictional police dramas.

'30 Rock,' 'Scrubs' and Other TV Shows and Movies Pulled Over Blackface and Racial Insensitivity (Photos)

The May 25 killing of George Floyd while in the custody of Minneapolis police prompted protests over police brutality and racial injustice across the country — leading many networks and streaming services to reconsider programming. Here are some movies and TV shows that have been canceled or shelved (sometimes temporarily).
"COPS"

In the wake of protests over police brutality following the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer, the Paramount Network canceled the long-running reality show "COPS" one week ahead of premiering its 33rd season. The show, which ran on Fox for 25 years, jumped to Paramount Network (then called Spike TV) in 2013.

Paramount Network
"Gone With the Wind"

HBO Max quietly pulled the Oscar-winning 1939 movie, which has long been criticized for racist depictions of black people for for glorifying the Civl War-era south, from the weeks-old streaming service. In a statement on June 9, the company explained that the "ethnic and racial prejudices" depicted in the film "were wrong then and are wrong today." The company reintroduced the film with a video introduction noting “the film’s treatment of this world through a lens of nostalgia denies the horrors of slavery, as well as its legacy of racial inequality."
WarnerMedia
"Live PD"

On June 10, A&E abruptly canceled the Dan Abrams-hosted reality show "Live PD" that had been its top-rated series. The decision came amid ongoing protests over police brutality but also followed producers' admission they had destroyed footage of a 40-year-old Texas man who died in police custody after being tased while begging for his life.
A&E
Chris Lilley's “Summer Heights High,” “Angry Boys,” “We Can Be Heroes” and “Jonah From Tonga”

Four comedies from Australian comic Chris Lilley were pulled from Netflix in New Zealand and Australia due to criticisms of the shows’ depictions of people of color and the use of blackface and brownface makeup by Lilley, who is white, and others on the shows. Lilley uses blackface to play black rapper S.mouse in “Angry Boys” and brownface to play Jonah, a teenage Tonga native, in “Summer Heights High” and its spinoff series “Jonah From Tonga.” In “We Can Be Heroes,” he plays Ricky Wong, a Chinese physics student.
Australian Broadcast Company
"Little Britain"

The BBC sketch comedy show, which aired from 2003-05 and featured David Walliams and Matt Lucas playing a range of often stereotypical characters (sometimes in blackface) was pulled from most U.K. streaming services in early June, including Netflix, BBC iPlayer and BritBox.
BBC
"Fawlty Towers"

The BBC removed a 1975 episode of the classic John Cleese sitcom that included a number of racial epithets, including the N-word, from its UKTV streaming service. After lobbying from Cleese and others, the network announced it would reinstate the episode with "extra guidance and warnings ... to highlight potentially offensive content."
BBC
"It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia"

On June 11, Netflix pulled a sixth-season episode of the long-running sitcom from its service in the U.K. over the depiction of two characters wearing blackface. (The series streams on Hulu in the U.S.)
"W/ Bob and David"

On June 16, Netflix pulled an episode of Bob Odenkirk and David Cross’ sketch comedy series “W/ Bob and David” over a sketch that features Cross in blackface. Cross and Odenkirk have since defended the sketch.
Netflix
"The Mighty Boosh" and "The League of Gentleman"

These English comedies were pulled from Netflix in the UK over scenes involving blackface. They were not previously available in the U.S.
A scene from "The Mighty Boosh" via YouTube
"30 Rock"

Co-creators Tina Fey and Robert Carlock, along with NBCUniversal, requested the removal of four episodes containing blackface and other racially insensitive material.

Also Read: Tina Fey Pulls 4 ’30 Rock’ Episodes From Circulation, Apologizes for Blackface Use
NBCU
"Scrubs"

Hulu removed three episodes of the sitcom “Scrubs” which featured blackface at the request of the show’s producers and ABC Studios. Series creator Bill Lawrence had previously tweeted that an effort to remove offensive episodes of the show was in the works.

Also Read: Three ‘Scrubs’ Episodes Featuring Blackface Pulled From Streaming (Exclusive)
NBC
"Community"

In late June, Netflix pulled the “Community” Season 2 episode “Advanced Dungeons & Dragons,” which features Ken Jeong’s character, Ben Chang, wearing blackface during a game of “Dungeons & Dragons."
NBC
"Golden Girls"

Hulu pulled a third-season episode of the classic sitcom in which Rue McClanahan and Betty White's characters are mistaken for wearing blackface when they are actually wearing mud masks.

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New times call for a new look at what we should watch and stream

The May 25 killing of George Floyd while in the custody of Minneapolis police prompted protests over police brutality and racial injustice across the country — leading many networks and streaming services to reconsider programming. Here are some movies and TV shows that have been canceled or shelved (sometimes temporarily).

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'30 Rock,' 'Scrubs' and Other TV Shows and Movies Pulled Over Blackface and Racial Insensitivity (Photos)

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