Let’s be honest: there’s nothing we love more than a badass female serving up sass and taking no prisoners – except, of course, two badasses. So, you can imagine how excited we are to meet Jessica Alba and Gabrielle Union, who are about to blow up the small screen with FOX’s new cop buddy drama series, L.A.’s Finest. Discover everything there is to know about this kick-ass new show, below.
What is L.A.'s Finest about?
Allow us to introduce you to Syd Burnett (Gabrielle Union) and Nancy McKenna (Jessica Alba), the toughest cops in town – and soon to be your new summer TV obsession. They’re the latest police partnership to hit the mean streets of downtown L.A., and they’ve got gang lords and drug cartels quaking in their boots. From the makers of Bad Boys (the series is a spin-off, with Syd having first appeared in Bad Boys 2), L.A.’s Finest gives a new lease of life to the classic police drama. It centres on two women who refuse to be defined by their gender, occupation or marital status. Make no mistake, these ladies are breaking every TV stereotype going – plus, a few health and safety rules along the way...
Who is in the cast of L.A.'s Finest?
If anyone can breathe new life into the good cop/bad cop format, while proving that female crime fighters are a force to be reckoned with, it’s Jessica Alba and Gabrielle Union. Speaking about the new show, Gabrielle - who stars in L.A.'s Finest but also produced it - said: "I found learning to ride motorcycles a little scary at first, but it became exhilarating once I had the knowledge.
"Knowing how to stop motorcycles is always helpful," she added. For her, it was important to create a show that didn’t present strong female leads as a gimmick, but as worthy equals to Will Smith and Martin Lawrence’s famous cop combo. And what makes the show extra ground-breaking, she adds, is that it has "two women of colour in the lead".
"I watch a ton of TV and love police dramas," Gabrielle, 46, explains. "It’s glaring when you don’t see yourself reflected in genres you’re interested in. I wanted to create the future I dreamed of." That, of course, hinged on casting Jessica, who actually came out of "semi- retirement" to take on the role of Nancy. For the past decade, the former teen star has had her hands full with her billion-dollar business The Honest Company, which makes ethical baby products – not to mention raising her three children, Honor, 11, Haven, seven, and one-year-old Hayes with husband Cash Warren.
For Jessica, 38, the fact that Gabrielle was creating a series that gave equal importance to a "family-friendly environment and a feminist environment" (Jessica’s character is a busy working step-mum) was too exciting to turn down. When Gabrielle and her husband Dwyane Wade had a baby via surrogate halfway through filming, it only strengthened their bond. "When we first signed off, Jessica was like, 'I’m breastfeeding'," Gabrielle remembers."I just said, 'I’ve got you!'"
Their off-camera camaraderie certainly translates to a winning TV pairing – regardless of their gender, which is something that Jessica calls "refreshing". She tells us, "It felt really modern to tell the story of this friendship and partnership between these two women, and to not have to call out that we were women all the time. We’re just people."
The cast also includes Duane Martin, Zach Gilford, Sophie Reynolds and Ernie Hudson.
When is L.A.'s Finest airing?
L.A.'s Finest will air on Wednesday 10 July at 9PM only on FOX - set your alarms so you can tune in! There's 13 juicy episodes for you to watch, so buckle your seats for a rollercoaster ride.
Is there a trailer I can watch?
Yes, and it's a good'un! Click the video below to watch it.