“You’ll Be Begging for More”—S.W.A.T. Cast Hypes Explosive Finale That Became the Show’s Last

Last week, audiences were caught off-guard when CBS made the divisive decision to axe its fan-favorite series, S.W.A.T. for the third time. That’s right, after canceling the title twice before, it seems like the third time’s a charm — or maybe the opposite of that. In the days following the announcement, fans took to social media to share their disgust and bewilderment behind the network’s decision. And they aren’t alone. Stars of the procedural, including leading man, Shemar Moore, have certainly voiced their disappointment with the cancelation, although at this point it seems that it might be falling onto deaf ears.

Ahead of the decision, S.W.A.T. stars Anna Enger Ritch and Annie Ilonzeh teased what will now serve as the series finale, which is set to arrive on May 16, and it sounds like audiences will be left with some questions. Putting it bluntly to TVLine, Ritch said,

“I’ll say this: It will make you not want this show to end. You’ll want to keep watching what happens. There are so many avenues and directions to go, so many stories to tell, so many personal things… It will leave you wanting so much more.”

Piggybacking her co-worker’s sentiments, S.W.A.T. newbie, Ilonzeh, added,

“You go, ‘Oh my gosh, that just happened!’ And, ‘Wait, I need more!’ We definitely don’t button anything up. We leave you guessing and very curious for more.”

What a Ninth Season of ‘S.W.A.T.’ Could Have Looked Like

While we’ll probably never know for sure how things will shake out following the apparently drama-heavy Season 8 finale, both Ritch and Ilonzeh had a good idea of where they would’ve liked to see S.W.A.T. go. The pair recently caught up with Collider’s Michael Zimmermann, opening up about how they’d love to see more of a balance between their character’s work and home lives, with Ritch saying,

“I think it would be interesting to see the women go through trying to juggle what it would be like to have a family and also maintain a SWAT tactical officer career. I don’t think that’s anything I’ve ever dove into on this show particularly, but hopefully, as we continue, should we continue, that would be an interesting exploration.”

In addition to that, the actresses said they had long hoped for a S.W.A.T. installment that would take the officers to Sin City. It’s apparently something that Ritch has thought about for a long time, as she shared her fully fleshed-out pitch, telling Zimmermann,

“When are we going to see the squad go to Vegas? We’ve been pitching that forever! … Check it out: 20 Squad’s got a three-day weekend, we head off to Vegas, things are going to go sideways, and all of a sudden…”