Shemar Moore is actively working to secure a new home for S.W.A.T. Exiles, a spinoff of the long-running CBS drama, S.W.A.T., which he headlined from 2017-2025.
“We’re in the process of trying to find a platform, whether it be Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, HBO Max, FX, LG, we don’t know,” says the actor, who was recently abroad for Sony Pictures’ 2026 London Screenings Showcase. “We’ve already screened it here in Los Angeles. I just got back a couple of weeks ago from London. We did an international screening that went really well for international buyers. There were over 700 buyers, and everyone was doing the dance, trying to explain why they were the cool show and they need to be bought.”
Kit Karzen/Sony Pictures Television
The Daytime Emmy winner, who serves as one of the show’s executive producers, admits he was struck by the caliber of talent in the room during the presentations. “I had to follow Glenn Close,” he shares. “So, Glenn Close is out there promoting her new show, and her introduction was something like, ‘Six-time Academy Award nominee, two-time Tony Award winner, four Golden Globes…’ and then we got this guy, Shemar. I’m like, ‘I started on a soap [The Young and the Restless].‘ So yeah, you talk about a little bit of humble pie, but, hey, Mama, I made it. I’m in the same room with Glenn Close, so I must be doing something right.”
The new series was announced two days after the S.W.A.T. finale in May. Moore reprises his role as Daniel “Hondo” Harrelson alongside a new ensemble that includes Lucy Barrett, Adain Bradley, Zyra Gorecki, Freddy Miyares, Ronen Rubinstein, and Lenora Crichlow. Familiar faces will also return, with appearances from Jay Harrington (Sergeant David “Deacon” Kay), Patrick St. Esprit (Commander Robert Hicks), and David Lim (Victor Tan). Selma Blair and Jerry O’Connell are set to guest star.
While the blueprint of the original remains, Moore says the spinoff will carve out a more distinct tone and identity. “The show looks different, feels different,” previews Moore. “It’s grittier, it’s darker, it’s smokier. I’ve got some new tattoos that I got for my own self and my own life that add to the edge of the character. Hondo is given an entirely new team of Rugrats, hence the name Exiles, and he’s got to somehow bring this Gen Z group of cadets and form them into a super cop team.”
The evolution continues with Hondo, who is in a tougher, more complicated headspace this time around. “I’m still Hondo,” Moore clarifies. “But Hondo is a little darker. He’s a little grumpier. He’s had some personal life issues that he’s going to have to fight his way back from. He’s been exiled, kicked out of S.W.A.T., and he’s been given an opportunity to come back in and put all the pieces together, but it’s kind of a stacked deck to where he’s been put up to fail.”
Kit Karzen/Sony Pictures Television
Even with those changes, Moore says audiences can expect the same high-octane action that defined the original, but with a more connected storytelling approach. “People are initially going to be like, ‘OK, S.W.A.T. Exiles. I watched S.W.A.T. What’s the difference?’” he notes. “I promise you, within 10 minutes, you’re going to realize why it’s different, and why it’s different is what’s going to make it interesting. I know people are going to gravitate to it and are going to want to watch this new version. It’s still S.W.A.T. It’s still the theme song [which Moore hums]. Still, it’s still got the signature action, but it’s not a procedural. There are the bad guys of the day, and we’re going to chase bad guys in very cool ways — helicopters, motorcycle chases, hand-to-hand combat — but it’s also serialized to where there’s this underlying story that continues episode to episode to episode. So, you’re going to want to watch all 10 to see how it plays out.”
The installments will also be longer. “Instead of 42 minutes of television, we’re able to do 53 to 57 minutes of television,” he adds. “So, more content, more breathing, it’s much more thoughtful. It reels you in in a way the other show didn’t because sometimes it felt like we were racing to the commercials.”
Kit Karzen/Sony Pictures Television
Behind the scenes, the series is led by showrunner Jason Ning, who executive produces alongside Moore, Neal H. Moritz, Pavun Shetty, James Scura, and Jon Cowan. Produced by Sony Pictures Television, the project has already completed a full season order. “We’ve shot 10 episodes so far, and Sony has gone out on a limb,” points out Moore. “They don’t normally do this, but they spent a nice big chunk of money for us to shoot these 10 episodes.”
For Moore, Exiles is just the latest stop on a long road that’s taken him from soaps to primetime and beyond. “We call the first eight years of S.W.A.T. on CBS the mothership,” he points out. “I always say you can’t forget where you came from … Without Young and Restless, there’s no Shemar Moore on Criminal Minds. Without Criminal Minds, there’s no S.W.A.T.. And without S.W.A.T., there’s no S.W.A.T. Exiles.”
S.W.A.T. Exiles, Coming Soon, TBA
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