Real Navy SEAL Breaks Silence, Calls Paramount+ War Series “Shockingly Authentic”

A Paramount+ war drama that debuted on CBS received high praise from a former Navy SEAL for its authenticity. That show is SEAL Team, which ran for seven seasons, starting on CBS and concluding its run on Paramount+. DJ Shipley, a former Navy SEAL, looked at two episodes of the show, one from its first season and another from its first.

He could tell the show had knowledgeable consultants working on it. He first comments on the characters’ formation while exploring an urban area.

“Because it’s an alley. It’s literally 360-720 because you have all the vertical threats as well,” he explains. “In a typical hallway, there’s no real threat inside the roof unless it’s completely open. Now, if I’m in an apartment building in the alley, story after story after story, everything is a potential adversary or threat. So, you have to process all of that in real time.”

He continues, “I would say that first, initial sequence is very similar to what you’d see special operations, a SWAT team do. I mean, you can just see one person’s holding a fixed point, the other person kind of wrapping around the stairs for the uncleared space. Just the pace they’re moving, the angles, and distance you’re using look very realistic. I thought they did a good job.”

Shipley added some more commentary as the fictional SEAL team prepared to make their entry, including some criticisms. “That’s the stack,” he pointed out. “The assault team’s about to make entry. I wouldn’t stack three guys in front of a closed door and try to deal with it. Really easy for the adversary just to shoot through the door.

They’re going to hear you on the back side of it. We’re in that tiny little hallway in front of that closed door, trying to get the dolly and the sledgehammer, and all that. There’s just a bunch of guys standing in front of that closed door that’s providing no security at all. You can’t until the door opens. Just get out of the way in case the rounds come through

Shipley continues to watch scenes from the two episodes, peppering in some criticisms, but mostly remaining impressed with how accurately the show depicts SEAL tactics and what it’s like in a combat zone. Ultimately, he awarded the show an 8/10 score for realism.

“Part of one of the reasons that the show does so well is the authenticity,” Shipley says, commenting on SEAL Team’s success at running seven seasons. “They’ve got a bunch of. really good creative directors and guys that are helping out the actors.”

Per the show’s synopsis, SEAL Team “follows the lives of the Navy SEALs’ most elite unit as they execute dangerous high-stakes operations to defend their country at a deeply personal cost.” Benjamin Cavell developed the show, which was produced by CBS Studios. It starred David Boreanaz, Max Thieriot, Jessica Paré, Neil Brown Jr., A. J. Buckley, and Toni Trucks.

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