David Boreanaz experiencing full range of emotions as 'SEAL Team' wraps

NEW YORK, Aug. 09 (UPI) -- David Boreanaz says that wrapping up his seven-season stint on SEAL Team has been a bittersweet experience.

Co-starring Neil Brown Jr., A.J. Buckley, Toni Trucks, Raffi Barsoumian and Beau Knapp, the military drama returns for its final run of episodes on Paramount+ Sunday.

"It's a full swing of emotions," Boreanaz, 55, told UPI in a recent Zoom interview.

"But this was the right way to let him go," the actor said of his character, Master Chief Special Warfare Operator Jason Hayes, a respected leader who has suffered post traumatic stress disorder and a traumatic brain injury throughout the course of the show. "This is the end for me."

Boreanaz -- who previously starred in the iconic, long-running TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel and Bones -- said he was supportive of SEAL Team continuing without him, but the streaming service opted to go out on a high note with him.

"I decided I wanted to end it because my body couldn't go much further," Boreanaz said. "I had four MRIs in the past six months, [stress on] these hips, joints, ankles and the mental attitude to study a character of this tenacity."

Jason has an emotionally complex storyline for Boreanaz to explore in these last episodes.

"This is the examination of Jason's first kill and what that's all about and I felt as though that was the perfect way to end it, completing his cycle of examining what operators go through," he said. "I'm excited for the people to see that."

The series premiered in 2017 on CBS and then moved over to the network's streaming sister in 2021.

"That's where it probably should have been," Boreanaz said.

"The intensity of the subject matters can be explored a little bit more than we could on a network show. I would say that networks need to catch up on the choices that they make in order to show certain things a little bit brighter and bigger," he added. "For us, it was a great move. We never fit that [network TV] box."

SEAL Team has been warmly embraced by veterans and military personnel -- as both fans and as expert consultants on the actual production -- because of the show's authenticity.

"They have been so open and extremely warm and welcoming and I consider them brothers," Boreanaz said.

"I just can't say enough about their sacrifice, their dedication, their honest love of country. What they do is just to remarkable. They all should be applauded everyday, be taken care of. I'm excited to have them on my side."

The actor also had high praise for his castmates and the creative team behind the show, which weathered numerous obstacles such as the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns and subsequent writers' and actors' strikes.

"Our show has been through a lot in the past eight years and it's a testimony to their dedication and, also, their discipline [that we endured]," he said.

"They all should be proud of themselves. Every cast member, every crew member should be just applauded for their consistency in showing up during times of strikes, COVID. It just was a wild ride," Boreanaz added. "I will take that [experience with me] going forward."

Jason has come a long way since audiences met him in Season 1.

He is now more balanced and self-aware than he was as a younger man, according his portrayer.

"This character knows that his path is the right path, but that path, ultimately, may be disturbed or cut short for him," Boreanaz said.

"I don't say that to tease it," he added, alluding to the possibility Jason might not make it out of the high-stakes final season alive. "It's always been a possibility for characters to be killed."

Having been a consistent television fixture since the late 1990s, Boreanaz has no intention of taking a break.

He is looking forward to several future projects, but not divulging details about them just yet.

"I just really surround myself with a good story, good people, that allow myself to grow as an actor, as a producer, as a director, as a creator," he said.

"It just is part of the path that I take and I'm still learning, still exploring."