In a surprising announcement, it seems that NBC are choosing not to go forward with the Bad Boys TV Spinoff. L.A.’s Finest starred Gabrielle Union and Jessica Alba as mismatched cops, and the network was generally expected to commission the show to go to a full series from the pilot. But whilst the show will now definitely not go ahead at NBC, there’s still a chance it might be picked up elsewhere, as producers are shopping it around.
The pilot for the show was first ordered by NBC at the beginning of the year. It was originally just known as the ‘Untitled Gabrielle Union Project‘, and would see the actress reprise her role from Bad Boys II. Playing Ex-Special Agent Syd Burnett, the concept saw her reckless undercover DEA officer returning to normal police duties in Los Angeles. She’s paired up with Alba’s Nancy McKenna, who’s a more cautious officer with a step-family at home. The situation lends itself to a gender-swapped variation on the relationship between Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) and Mike Lowrey (Will Smith) in the Bad Boys movies. It’s described as being an ‘action-packed, character-driven procedural‘ police drama, and filming started in April with BTS shots appearing online of the two stars. The pilot only recently received it’s official title of L.A.’s Finest.
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Given the apparent buzz that had built up around the property and the interest shown by the network, eyebrows have been raised at the news reported by Deadline which confirms that ‘NBC has opted not to go forward with the project‘. The collaboration and headlining of Union and Alba, in addition to the Bad Boys brand, was seen by many to be one of the biggest pilot season draws of the moment. The reasoning for the rejection has not been made public. The project comes from Sony Pictures TV, Jerry Bruckheimer Television, Primary Wave, and 2.0 Entertainment.
Despite the rejection from NBC, it seems fairly likely that LA.’s Finest might find life on another outlet. Reportedly the producers are already ‘fielding interest in the property from other networks‘. With Union currently in theaters in the thriller Breaking In, and Alba having been absent from screens for a while, it’s more than likely that this will be seen as a very attractive project by other companies. The cast also includes some established names like Ernie Hudson and Ryan McPartlin.
The fact that Bad Boys For Life was recently given a new release date should only reinvigorate interest in the brand going forward, and although appearances by Smith or Lawrence aren’t expected in the show, the association with the films certainly carries some weight. The relative lack of female-led action/dramas is also another reason for other networks to show a keen interest in the project. For now though, L.A’s Finest has been benched.
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