Brooklyn Nine-Nine star Andre Braugher says season 8 could be "really groundbreaking"
Brooklyn Nine-Nine star Andre Braugher has spoken about what to expect from the US cop comedy's eighth season, stating that it could be "really groundbreaking".
In an interview with Variety, the Captain Holt actor talked about the new expectations that will have been placed on the show in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests this year.
While the show – which also stars Andy Samberg and Terry Crews – has shone a light on institutional racism within the police before, there is an added pressure to reflect the reality and nuance of the situation when it comes to police behaviour, particularly in the wake of the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.
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"Can a comedy sustain the things that we're trying to talk about? I don't know," Braugher said. "It could be a really groundbreaking season that we're all going to be very, very proud of, or we're going to fall flat on our face.
"But I think this is a staff, a cast and a crew that's willing to take it on and give it our best. I think we have a damn good chance to tell the kinds of stories that heretofore have only been seen on grittier shows."
While the show's bosses work out how to proceed with the comedy favourite in such politically charged times – co-creator Dan Goor confirmed in the Variety report that there will be a story on police brutality – Braugher has stated that "everything's changed" and it's never been more important that the show addresses the subject.
Related: Brooklyn Nine-Nine star Andre Braugher on "new challenge" facing season 8
"Brooklyn Nine-Nine has to commit itself, as a comedy, to telling the story of how these things happen, and what's possible to deal with them," he added.
"I don't have any easy answers, nor do I have a window into the mind bank of this writing staff.
"Can you tell the same story? Can anyone in America maintain any kind of innocence about what police departments are capable of?"
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Having appeared in various law and order shows throughout his career (including NBC's Homicide: Life on the Street), Braugher suggested that the amount of them on TV has skewered the perception of what policing is, or should be like, in real life.
"It's almost like the air you breathe or the water that you swim in. It's hard to see. But because there are so many cop shows on television, that’s where the public gets its information about the state of policing.
"Cops breaking the law to quote, 'defend the law' is a real terrible slippery slope. It has given license to the breaking of law everywhere, justified it and excused it. That's something that we’re going to have to collectively address – all cop shows."
Brooklyn Nine-Nine airs on NBC in the US. E4 aired season 7 in the UK, with seasons 1-6 available on Netflix.
For more information on how you can support Black Lives Matter, please visit its official website or donate here. Readers can also donate to the UK anti-discrimination group Stand Up To Racism, and the Unite Families & Friends Campaign, which supports those affected by deaths in police, prison and psychiatric custody.
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