SEAL Team’s Max Thieriot reflects on the legacy of the series. Thieriot played Clay Spenser on the series for the first six seasons, appearing in over 100 episodes. Since then, SEAL Team has ended, reaching its series conclusion with season 7. In addition to his work on SEAL Team, Thieriot also works with CBS on the series Fire Country, where he plays Bode Donovan. Fire Country season 3 is set to premiere on October 18, and then air episodes weekly on Fridays from there.
Speaking with Deadline, Thieriot reflects on the conclusion of SEAL Team. The actor still stays in touch with his SEAL Team cast and crewmates today, but admits that “to see it end was tough.” Thinking about the show itself, the actor notes that it was “a really incredible experience” that “changed [his] career forever.” In terms of SEAL Team’s content itself, Thieriot reflects that “the show also left a huge impact” on him due to getting to “work with all these veterans” and providing a voice to their stories. Check out the full quote from Thieriot below:
To see it end was tough. Also it was difficult leaving that show, it has such an incredible cast and crew and just really, really wonderful people. There’s definitely a major case of FOMO where I really feel like, what are these people who I spent every day with, what are they doing?
The show was a truly incredible experience, one because I got to know everyone over at CBS Paramount and joined the CBS Paramount family, and obviously, where those relationships and those friendships have taken me now has changed my career forever.
But, the show also left a huge impact on me. It was a really humbling experience to get to work with all these veterans and to get to tell these stories that, I think, were really important and needed to be told to support the military community. I think that show did an incredible job of bringing a lot of things to light and bringing awareness for people, and to be able to be a small part of that and to tell some of these really impactful stories that were life-changing for me.
My hope is that with Fire Country, we can continue to do the same thing for firefighters and first responders and focus on some of those same human stories about real struggles, about families and how families are impacted.
What Thieriot’s SEAL Team Experience Means For His Career
One of the most important aspects of SEAL Team to Thieriot, it seems, is the impact the series had on his career. Although Thieriot has been acting since 2004, he was relatively unknown prior to 2017, as his career had been relegated to roles in smaller films like My Soul to Take, Yellow, Foreverland, and The Family Tree. Thieriot had acted in a key role in the TV series Bates Motel, but playing Clay in SEAL Team was by far the actor’s highest-profile role in his career.
Forging this relationship with CBS Paramount, as Thieriot notes, was critical in Thieriot’s development within the industry. Not only does Thieriot act in both SEAL Team and Fire Country, but he has also directed episodes of each show. Thieriot gets to continue his CBS career with Fire Country, giving him more opportunities to strengthen this relationship. Thieriot’s statement also shows that Fire Country is clearly meaningful to him, for he wants to “continue to do the same thing for firefighters and first responders” that SEAL Team did for veterans.
Why Max Thieriot’s CBS Paramount Career Is Getting Even More Excited
I think that Thieriot’s starring role in Fire Country is a great example of his acting chops and ability to carry a series. What is even more exciting for the actor, however, is an upcoming spinoff series titled Sheriff Country. Thieriot takes a behind-the-scenes role for this series, serving as a co-creator and executive producer. Thieriot has already proved his vitality as an actor in major series like SEAL Team and Fire Country, so it will be interesting to see what he can do to continue the franchise with his deeper involvement in Sheriff Country.
