No one can keep Daniel “Hondo” Harrelson Jr. from S.W.A.T. down. After eight seasons on CBS that centered on the sergeant as he led the L.A.P.D.’s Special Weapons and Tactics team and a cancellation roller coaster, when they finally pulled the plug, the action series made its way to Starz. Evolving into the sequel spinoff S.W.A.T. Exiles, on the 2026 TV schedule and set two years after its predecessor, Hondo has not only been handed a team that has everything to prove. He also realizes that he’s been set up to fail by those who are rooting for him to do so. All of that makes for an exciting premise to see how Hondo leads these recruits who are aware of his reputation and seem as unsure of him as he is of them. That’s something that I’ll definitely be tuning into to see how it all plays out. But unlike the CBS version that typically had at least 20 episodes per season, the new Starz incarnation cuts that in half with 10 episodes. While I wish we could get longer seasons more in line with the mothership, show star Shemar Moore thinks the tighter episode count is a good thing. Here’s what he told ScreenRant:In the old show, we were doing 22 episodes, 19, 22 episodes, that was 10 and a half months of four days of running around being a superhero, and four days of talking. It's a lot, it's a grind. And now, thankfully, we're doing 10 episodes. [Chuckles] So, I've got to bust my ass, I got 40 days of being a superhero, and 40 days of acting, running my mouth, so I'm doing everything I can to look the part, be the part.The season premiere of S.W.A.T. Exiles kicks off with the 56-year-old actor shirtless, and while the former Criminal Minds star is clearly in shape, he admits that it’s not as easy to maintain as it was 15 or 20 years ago. A network TV schedule of at least 20 episodes is definitely a grind, with long hours on set balanced with a training regimen off set. So doing half the episodes would make that easier, especially if you want to spend time with your family or do anything between seasons. To pull off Hondo realistically, Shemar Moore not only has to physically look the part, but he also has to have the swagger and badass vibe that the character represents. When one episode takes eight days to shoot, with three to four of those days focused on action while the other days are focused on dialogue, it’s clearly more of a marathon than a sprint. No wonder the Young and the Restless star prefers the shorter S.W.A.T. seasons. He added: It's important to me to bring as much authenticity, besides vanity. When you see me on the screen, I want you to believe me, and that's it. But, yeah, all this keeping it sexy stuff, it's overrated.Seeing Shemar Moore’s abs pics, it doesn’t seem like he’s slacking in any way. Sure, all the action sequences that require Hondo to chase down suspects and fight criminals may not come as easily as they once used to, but working out four to five days a week for two hours a day seems to be doing the job in helping the Sonic the Hedgehog star look the part. Maybe the smaller episode count and ability to stay more sharply focused on exactly what he needs to do to be ready for each season really is the best approach. With the first season of S.W.A.T. Exiles debuting on September 25th and a second season already ordered and getting ready to go into production, we’ll see how it all plays out for Hondo and Shemar Moore.