The finale of season 5 of “SWAT”, broadcast last night on TF1, was marked by the departure of Lina Esco, who played Chris Alonso since the start of the series. Jay Harrington, the interpreter of Deacon, reacted with emotion to these farewells.
The broadcast of season 5 of SWAT, which ended last night in France on TF1, ended on a bitter note for fans of the hit detective series led by Shemar Moore.
After five years and just over 100 episodes spent in the shoes of officer Christina “Chris” Alonso, actress Lina Esco has indeed said goodbye to SWAT in order to devote herself to other projects.
Viewers witnessed Chris’ last day with the team. And in her last moments with Jim (Alex Russell), with whom she ended up spending the night, after years of waltzing hesitation.
Met recently as part of the promotion of season 5, Jay Harrington, the interpreter of Sergeant David “Deacon” Kay, reacted to our microphone at the departure of his playing partner, to whom he was visibly very close.
“I was very sad when Lina announced her departure to me”explained to us the 51-year-old comedian who wears SWAT alongside Shemar Moore. “I told her ‘You’re completely crazy, you can’t leave’ (laughs). No, in truth, Lina needed a change and I can completely understand that. Our shooting schedule is often quite grueling”.
Jay Harrington therefore fully accepts Lina Esco’s choice to hang up her badge after five seasons. But this does not mean that he does not feel a void since the departure of his playmate.
“Lina was one of my favorite partners on set. I love her, I miss her a lot. It’s not the same without her. And it won’t be the same for the viewers. But it’s a decision that she thought carefully. She warned the production a year before, it was not done on a whim. So her character was entitled to a very good ending”.
Bill Inoshita/CBS Lina Esco (Chris) and Jay Harrington (Deacon) in the SWAT series.
And since Chris Alonso’s character simply left to take care of a shelter for women in difficult situations, the door obviously remains wide open for her to reappear on the screen one day, if a plot justifies it.
“Of course it would be great if Lina came back”replied the interpreter of Deacon when asked about the possibility of seeing Lina Esco again one day in SWAT. “Anyway, the day Lina told us she was leaving, I immediately told her, ‘You have to come back from time to time,’ and she told me that was what she wanted too. “.
“Maybe for the end of the series. Or before. I really hope so. And then Lina also realizes, she did a great job on an episode of season 5. So she could also return to the sets of SWAT as director”.
For the moment, Lina Esco has not resumed her role as Chris in season 6 of SWAT, currently being broadcast across the Atlantic, and has not returned behind the camera either. Unlike Alex Russell, the interpreter of Jim Street, who directed episode 10 of season 6, after having directed an episode of season 5 in 2021.