Development On October 25, 2017, it was reported that a television series spinoff of the
Bad Boys films featuring the character Sydney "Syd" Burnett from
Bad Boys II was in development. The pilot was set to be written by Brandon Margolis and Brandon Sonnier. Executive producers were expected to include Margolis, Sonnier,
Jerry Bruckheimer,
Jonathan Littman, KristieAnne Reed,
Jeff Gaspin, and Jeff Morrone. Production companies involved with the series were set to include
Sony Pictures Television, Jerry Bruckheimer Television, and 2.0 Entertainment. On October 31, 2017, it was announced that
NBC had given the production a pilot production commitment following a competitive situation where multiple networks had pursued the potential series. On January 18, 2018, it was announced that NBC had given the production an official drama pilot order. On February 2, 2018, it was reported that Anton Cropper would direct the pilot episode. On April 12, 2018, it was announced that the previously untitled pilot had been titled ''L.A.'s Finest''. On May 11, 2018, it was reported that NBC had passed on the pilot and declined to pick up the production to series. The producers of the series were expected to shop the production to other networks. On May 17, 2018, it was announced that Sony Pictures Television was in preliminary discussions with
Charter Communications regarding a deal to pick up the series. By the end of the month, the talks had progressed to the point of serious negotiations. On June 26, 2018, it was announced that Charter Communications had given the production a series order for a first season consisting of thirteen episodes. On February 7, 2019, it was announced during the
Television Critics Association's annual winter press tour that the series would premiere on May 13, 2019 with the release of the first three episodes. The remaining episodes were expected to be released on Mondays following the premiere via Spectrum's
video on demand service accessible through their set-top cable boxes, along with the provider's
iOS,
Apple TV, and
Roku applications. ''L.A.'s Finest'' is the first original television series produced by Spectrum. The theme music for the series was composed by
Laura Karpman. On June 13, 2019, the series was renewed for a second season which was originally set to premiere on June 8, 2020, but on that date it was announced it had been pushed to "as-yet-[un]specified" date later in the year, in response to
ongoing protests over police brutality. In August 2020, it was announced that the series would now premiere all thirteen episodes on September 9, 2020. On October 14, 2020, Spectrum canceled the series after two seasons.
Casting Alongside the initial series development announcement, it was confirmed that
Gabrielle Union would star in the series, reprising her role of Sydney "Syd" Burnett from the film
Bad Boys II. On February 15, 2018, it was reported that
Zach Gilford and
Duane Martin had joined the main cast. In March 2018, it was announced that
Jessica Alba,
Ryan McPartlin, and
Zach McGowan had been cast as series regulars. In September 2018, it was reported that
Sophie Reynolds had been cast in a series regular role and that
Barry Sloane would appear in a recurring capacity. In October 2018,
David Fumero and
Jordan Rodrigues joined the series in recurring roles. On January 11, 2019, it was announced that
Jake Busey had joined the cast in a recurring role.
Filming Principal photography for the pilot began in early April 2018 in
Los Angeles,
California. On February 21, 2019, executive producer and showrunner Brandon Sonnier was seriously injured during the
shooting of a car stunt at the
Port of Los Angeles when the vehicle accidentally crashed into the video village area of the set, which led to a partial amputation on his right leg. Brandon Margolis sustained minor injuries. ==Release==