Is Max Thieriot’s Former SEAL Team Co-Star Joining Fire Country? ‘We’ve Talked About It’
A reunion may be in the works! Max Thieriot’s former SEAL Team co-star and best friend may be moving from SEAL Team to Fire Country. Is AJ Buckley joining Fire Country after SEAL Team ends this year? Read on to find out everything we know.
Fire Country is a CBS drama series that focuses on firefighters and inmates at the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (also known as Cal Fire). Thieriot plays Bode Donovan, a young inmate with a troubled past who joins the inmate firefighting program to redeem himself and shorten his sentence. Bode is assigned to his hometown in Northern California, where he must work with his family, former friends, and other inmates as they battle the wildfires raging in the area.
Theriot co-created the show while he was still on SEAL Team, the Paramount Plus military drama that follows an elite unit of the United States Navy SEALs known as Bravo Team, who carry out some of the most dangerous and life-threatening missions around the world. He played Clay Spenser, a Navy SEAL and Special Warfare Operator First Class on Bravo Team, from the first season until his final appearance in Season 6, Episode 8, “Aces and Eights,” when his character died after being shot.
While Thieriot struggled to balance SEAL Team and Fire Country at the same time, Thieriot eventually left SEAL Team to focus solely on Fire Country. “As Fire Country continued to pass each development checkmark, it became more and more apparent that there was a real possibility that we were going to lose Max at some point,” SEAL Team showrunner Spencer Hudnut told TV Line in November 2022. “It wasn’t until a month after Fire Country was picked up [to series] that it became clear that Max was leaving. People had talked about him possibly doing both shows, but it was very clear that wasn’t the case.”
Meanwhile, AJ Buckley plays Navy SEAL Sonny Quinn on SEAL Team. Quinn is a Bravo Team Warfare Specialist, First Class, who specializes in gunplay. Buckley has been a mainstay on the show since its first season. In November 2022, the actor opened up about his reaction when he first learned Thieriot was leaving the show.
“Max and I became really close after the show. He’s one of my best friends,” he told Express UK. “Our kids were born a few months apart in that first season and all that, so we became really close and it was a really hard thing to hear. But I knew it was an opportunity for him to ‘spread his wings’ and go [co-create and star in CBS’ Fire Country].”
Buckley continued, “I think it was hard for everyone, but not for me because it was one of the best parts of going to work. Max and I would drive to work together every day, so to lose my battle buddy, there was definitely a void.” Finally, he praised Theriot, saying he was “a great guy, both on screen and off, he was the salt of the earth and probably one of the best guys I’ve ever met in the industry.”
Unfortunately, CBS announced on November 15, 2023, that SEAL Team will be ending after its seventh and final season on Paramount Plus in 2024. When the military show ends, could Buckley join Thieriot on his firefighter drama? Here’s what we know.
Is AJ Buckley Joining Fire Country? The SEAL Team actor has yet to confirm that he’s moving on to Max Thieriot’s firefighter show, but he did express interest in joining his best friend in a recent Reddit Q&A.
A Redditor posed the question to the actor, asking if he plans to join Fire Country after SEAL Team ends. “Any plans to join Fire Country after Seal Team ends?” the user asked.
“Could I? Max – could I do Fire Country? We’ve talked about it and thought it would be funny if I came on,” Buckley replied. “He’s one of my best friends. It would be great to work on something he’s passionate about. It would be great.”
Another user responded to Buckley’s comment by writing: “Oh, PLEASE DO Fire Country! That’s awesome! Do it Max!”
The 47-year-old actor was also asked what he would do after SEAL Team ends. In his response, he recalled the emotional moment he learned the show was being canceled after seven years.
“I remember getting the call that Season 7 was over. I got the call from Chris and Spencer,” he explained. “It was devastating. I thought we had hit our stride.
