Max Thieriot’s Clay Spenser was one of SEAL Team’s most popular characters. When a sixth season came to Paramount+, it seemed like Clay’s future on Team Bravo was pretty secure. However, the news that Thieriot was starring in a new TV project threw that future into doubt. Thieriot has played the main character on CBS’s Fire Country, from Jerry Bruckheimer Television, since 2022.
Fire Country tells the story of a young convict who earns a second chance when he joins a program that puts prisoners and firefighters together. Thieriot co-wrote the Pilot episode and is among the show’s executive producers. When it was revealed the actor was also going to take on the lead role, it had SEAL Team fans worried that Clay was about to be killed off mid-season, like Linda Reagan on Blue Bloods or Leslie Shay on Chicago Fire. Given his two conflicting roles, fans wondered if Max Thieriot was leaving SEAL Team and if Clay would meet a horrible fate.
Updated by Katie Doll on August 30, 2024: SEAL Team will officially come to an end with its seventh and final season later this year. The long-running army drama has thrived over the years thanks to its personable cast of characters. However, one beloved character made an early departure from the series, leaving fans to mourn the unfortunate fate of Clay Spenser. Why did actor Max Thieriot leave SEAL Team in the first place, and how has the show been affected since his leave?
Max Thieriot’s SEAL Team Exit Was Up in the Air for Season 6
Clay Spenser makes his first appearance in the series premiere of SEAL Team, “Tip of the Spear,” which aired in 2017.
Clay Spenser makes his final appearance in Season 6, Episode 8 of SEAL Team, “Aces and Eights,” which aired in 2022.
Max Thieriot appears as Clay Spenser in a total of 102 episodes of SEAL Team.
In the Season 5 finale of SEAL Team, Clay informed his fellow Bravo Team members that their mission to Mali would be his last. He was planning on transferring back to Green Team to spend more time with his wife, Stella, and their newborn son, Brian. However, during that mission, Bravo was ambushed by a hail of RPGs, with the screen fading to black. Clay’s fate — and that of his entire team — was up in the air.
The SEAL Team finale provided an easy opening for Max Thieriot to walk away, having his character killed in the attack. It’s common for actors to leave a show to pursue other projects (like Julian McMahon with FBI: Most Wanted or Justin Chambers with Grey’s Anatomy). But the actor could also pull double duty — starring in Fire Country and SEAL Team simultaneously. For fans, Clay bowing out of Bravo Team was the ideal opportunity for reduced screen time, allowing Thieriot to occasionally appear while filming Fire Country.
Clay’s Death on SEAL Team Closes His Chapter
Fire Country premiered with its first episode on October 7, 2022
In Fire Country, Max Thieriot portrays Bode Donovan, a convict who volunteers to become a firefighter to reduce his prison sentence.
Fire Country’s third season is set to premiere on October. 18, 2024.
However, with SEAL Team’s shorter episode run on Paramount+, Thieriot could have been looking at a moderate workload, even if he remains as a regular on both shows. It’s rare, but actors have sometimes starred in two series simultaneously or around the same time. One example is Maggie Lawson, who led the ABC sitcom Back in the Game while still being credited as a series regular on USA’s crime-based sitcom Psych. For a while on Season 6, SEAL Team’s shorter schedule seems to have made it difficult for Thieriot to appear on both series. Clay began Season 6 by losing his leg, a traumatic incident that scarred the character but was a good storytelling decision because Thieriot’s availability was up in the air.
All of this, of course, was contingency upon whether Fire Country was picked up by CBS. The series eventually moved past the pilot stage and was recently renewed for a second season, so it was a hit with fans. But the growing success of the CBS series meant Thieriot had to bow out of his original series at some point, and he met his death in the eighth episode of SEAL Team Season 6 after being shot. Despite Max Thieriot leaving SEAL Team, showrunner Spencer Hudnut revealed to TV Insider that he is confident that the show will continue to portray hope and victory in a show about war and loss in Season 7.
How Did Max Theriot’s Exit Affect Season 7?
SEAL Team Season 7 premiered on August 11, 2024.
SEAL Team is set to end on October 6, 2024.
The final episode, “The Last Word,” is directed by Christopher Chulack and written by showrunner Spencer Hudnut.
Partway through its final season, Clay’s legacy is a main focus of SEAL Team. Sonny is there taking care of Clay’s wife, Stella, keeping his promise to his former friend. Although Clay’s presence is still missed in the series, it also doesn’t leave a giant hole. SEAL Team has found a way to keep Clay’s spirit alive, while also going out with a bang for the final season.
What Has Max Thieriot Done Since Leaving SEAL Team?
After leaving SEAL Team in 2022, Max Thieriot has continued to enjoy a prosperous television career. So far, his only acting credit since leaving the role of Clay Spenser behind is that of Bode Donovan in Fire Country and an upcoming spinoff of the series titled Sherriff Country. This was more than a simple lateral move for the actor, who now boasts a top-billed spot on a popular television drama. Thieriot portrays the undisputed protagonist of Fire Country, allowing the actor to flex his talent as a leading man in ways that SEAL Team simply couldn’t provide.
With the second season of Fire Country out and a third on the way, Thieriot is certainly keeping himself busy with his new series. However, there still exists the possibility that the actor will return as a guest in SEAL Team’s upcoming seventh and final season. Despite Clay Spenser’s brutal death in Season 6, the character can always return in a flashback or dream sequence, providing the audience with a bit of closure before the series finale.
