The Shield
The Shield is an American crime drama television series starring Michael Chiklis that premiered on March 12, 2002, on FX in the United States, and concluded on November 25, 2008, after seven seasons. Known for its portrayal of corrupt police officers, it was originally advertised as Rampart in reference to the true-life Rampart Division police scandal, on which the show's Strike Team was loosely based. The series was created by Shawn Ryan and The Barn Productions for Fox Television Studios and Sony Pictures Television.
Several notable film actors took extended roles on the show, including Glenn Close, who was the female lead during the fourth season; Forest Whitaker, who guest-starred in seasons 5 and 6; Laura Harring, in season 5; Franka Potente, in season 6; and Laurie Holden, in season 7.
The series has received critical acclaim as well as several awards and nominations. It won the Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Drama in 2002, and the final season won a 2008 AFI Award for best television series. In 2013, TV Guide ranked The Shield #50 on its list of the 60 Best Series of All Time. Chiklis won both the Primetime Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Lead Actor in a Drama in 2002.
Premise
The Shield follows the activities of an experimental division of the Los Angeles Police Department set up in the fictional Farmington district of Los Angeles, a district rife with gang-related violence, drug trafficking, and prostitution. Operating out of a converted church, known as the Barn, the Farmington police work to maintain the peace in the district and reduce crime.The centerpiece of the division is the Strike Team, led by Detective Vic Mackey and his friends Shane Vendrell, Curtis Lemansky, and Ronnie Gardocki. Secretly, Mackey and the Strike Team use criminal methods to coerce information and stage arrests when police procedures fail them and take a share of various drug busts. Although the Strike Team's questionably high success rate leaves the division's head, Captain David Aceveda, suspicious of their methods, he values their success as they help his political efforts to become the mayor of Los Angeles.
Attempts to place a fifth member on the Strike Team not in Mackey's circle go astray. The pilot episode concludes with Mackey, suspicious of the loyalty of the latest Strike Team recruit, Terry Crowley, fatally shooting him during an arrest and framing their suspect. This sets in motion events that loom over the Strike Team and continue throughout the series.
The show has an ensemble cast featuring the other officers in the Farmington district. This includes detectives Holland "Dutch" Wagenbach, Steve Billings and Claudette Wyms, uniformed officers Sgt. Danielle "Danny" Sofer, Julien Lowe, and Tina Hanlon. The series has a variety of subplots, notably Aceveda's political aspirations and his suffering of a sexual assault; Mackey's struggle to cope with a failing marriage, two autistic children, and rebellious eldest daughter; Danny becoming a mother; Vendrell's rocky, new marriage; Lemansky's growing fear for the safety of the Strike Team; Claudette's battle with illness and Lowe's internal conflicts between his Christian beliefs and his homosexuality.
The Shield and the Strike Team were inspired by the real Rampart Division Community Resources Against Street Hoodlums unit within the Los Angeles Police Department. Rampart was seriously considered as the series' name and was even used in some early promotional ads for the series.
Characters are portrayed with vices and virtues; Vic's loving relationship with his children contrasts with his thuggish approach to police work, although his brutality is generally directed at those who seem well-deserving of such treatment. For example, in season 2, the Strike Team prepares to rob the "Armenian Money Train", a money laundering operation of the Armenian Mafia. Another example is Mackey letting a serial rapist be mauled by a police dog before calling the dog off.
Series overview
Season 1
Season 1 premiered on March 12, 2002, and concluded on June 4, 2002, consisting of 13 episodes. The season deals with Mackey and the other Strike Team members covering up their shooting of Terry Crowley, a plant on the Strike Team placed by David Aceveda and the Department of Justice who have been suspicious of the Strike Team's activities. Dutch believes a serial killer is targeting prostitutes. Lowe struggles with his sexual orientation and his Christian morals making him a target for blackmail. Sofer, who is having an affair with Mackey, finds herself both concerned and frustrated while training Lowe.Season 2
Season 2 premiered on January 7, 2003, and concluded April 1, 2003, consisting of 13 episodes. The first half of the season deals with a new drug threat from Armadillo, a highly intelligent immigrant who has coerced the black and Hispanic gangs to work together, making it difficult for the Strike Team to charge him. The second half of the season deals with the Strike Team's discovery of the Armenian "money train" used to ship laundered money out of the United States. Mackey and the Strike Team successfully hijack the shipment, ending up with millions of dollars for themselves. Aceveda makes an agreement with Mackey to protect each other while Aceveda runs for city council. Claudette, whose own investigation into Armadillo is hampered by Mackey and Aceveda, is forced out of her passive role and prepares to take an active role as a moral leader. Lowe gets married but outed to the department by a former lover. Sofer finds herself becoming a pawn in Barn politics and begins to question the Strike Team's ethics.Season 3
Season 3 premiered on March 9, 2004, and concluded on June 15, 2004, consisting of 15 episodes. The season deals with fallout from the money train robbery. Mackey learns that a portion of the money was marked by the Treasury Department, and the Strike Team figures out ways to diverting any federal attention to their activities. However, the tension of having the money gets to Lemansky, and in an off-the-cuff discussion, burns most of the money before the others can stop him. This leads to the dissolution of the Strike Team. Dutch struggles to find a new balance while Claudette begins administrative duties. Claudette's morality over a potentially incompetent defense attorney puts her career in jeopardy. After the fallout of being outed in the previous season, Lowe starts taking on a tougher demeanor making Claudette question his future.Season 4
Season 4 premiered on March 15, 2005, and concluded on June 14, 2005, consisting of 13 episodes. During this season, the members of the Strike Team become involved with the affairs of Antwon Mitchell, a highly respected drug lord who ends up blackmailing Vendrell to coerce his help. Mackey, with the help of the new Barn Captain, Monica Rawling, manages to help Vendrell out of his situation, reunites the Strike Team, and eventually ends up with sufficient evidence to send Mitchell to jail. However, Rawling finds herself let go as Captain due to her approach to seizing any assets tied to drug money. Claudette and Dutch continue to be shut out of meaningful cases by the DA's office forcing Dutch to make a backroom deal to save his and Claudette's career. A rift forms between Lowe and Sofer over the seizure's policy. Aceveda uses the seizure's policy to get more power in city council and ultimately push his own agenda.Season 5
Season 5 premiered on January 10, 2006, and concluded on March 21, 2006, consisting of 11 episodes. The LAPD's Internal Affairs Division opens an investigation led by Lt. Jon Kavanaugh on Lemansky, purportedly for not reporting a stash of drugs he had taken, but in actuality to find evidence of the Strike Team's misdoings. Mackey learns of Kavanaugh's true intent, and tries to humiliate Kavanaugh to show the investigation is personal. Enraged, Kavanaugh puts on more pressure and charges Lemansky. The Strike Team attempts to smuggle Lemansky out of the country, but Vendrell, fearing Lemansky will talk, kills him with a grenade, ending the investigation. Lowe trains Tina Hanlon but quickly believes she may not cut out for the job. Dutch and Claudette focus on the serial killer they have no evidence against while it becomes clear Claudette's health is deteriorating. Billings' weak management coupled with Kavanaugh's strong arm tactics force LAPD chief to name a stronger and independent Captain to the Barn, Claudette."Wins and Losses"
The producers of The Shield produced a 15-minute "promosode", which premiered on Google on February 15, 2007, to bridge the gap between seasons 5 and 6. The episode focuses on the aftermath of Lem's death, including his funeral and flashbacks as co-workers reflect upon Det. Lemansky's life. The episode was said to have cost between $500,000 and $1 million to produce. It was on bud.tv four weeks and later released to AOL and other media outlets. The "promosode" is also one of the special features included on the season 5 DVD set.Season 6
Season 6 premiered on April 3, 2007, and concluded on June 5, 2007, consisting of 10 episodes. The Strike Team struggles with Lemansky's death, and suspect one of the gangs committed it, but Vendrell remains quiet to his role. Kavanaugh continues his investigation outside of Internal Affairs, but eventually forced to admit to planting evidence and is arrested. Mackey learns he is being forced into early retirement and tries to fight back by proving his value. Tensions on the Strike Team led Vendrell to admit to killing Lemansky, and knowing that Mackey will likely kill him, he turns to the Armenian mob for protection, only to expose their role in the money-train heist, putting their families at risk. Vendrell writes up all their crimes and mails duplicates to use as blackmail against Mackey. Claudette fights to keep the Barn from shutting down. Dutch tries to adjust to his new partnership with Billings and his crush on Hanlon. Sofer, recently promoted to Sergeant, tries to find balance being a single working mother. Lowe joins the Strike Team now under the command of Kevin Hiatt. Aceveda finds a strong financial backer who may be too good to be true.Season 6 was originally intended to be aired as the second half of season 5, but FX decided to refer to these 10 episodes as season 6 instead.
Season 7
Season 7 premiered on September 2, 2008, and concluded on November 25, 2008, consisting of 13 episodes. Mackey and Aceveda discover the Mexican cartel is looking to influence Farmington, and work with ICE to take them down. Mackey also used the opportunity to secure a position at ICE in exchange for immunity for his crimes on the Strike Team. The Barn gains significant evidence to arrest the Strike Team. Vendrell attempts to kill Mackey, but it goes awry, making him and his family fugitives of the law. With no hold over Mackey, he kills himself and his family. Mackey successfully busts the cartel for ICE, but betrays Gardocki, who is arrested for the Strike Team's crimes. Though given his ICE job, Mackey is left to run a desk lest he go against his terms and be arrested as well. Dutch focuses on a kid he's certain will become a serial killer. Sofer attempts to keep Mackey out their son's life. Corrine, scared when she finally realizes everything Vic is, asks for Claudette and Dutch's help. Claudette and Dutch make one final attempt to get evidence to arrest Vic Mackey and the rest of the Strike Team. The series ends as Mackey, hearing sirens in the distance, takes his gun from his desk and heads out.Cast and characters
- Michael Chiklis as Vic Mackey – a corrupt police officer and for much of the series, leader of the Strike Team. Though effective at apprehending criminals, he has no qualms about using illegal or unethical methods, which include beating and torturing suspects, and planting evidence, tactics he regards as a means to an end. Mackey has committed several murders, including that of a police officer, Terry Crowley, which haunts him thereafter. He is perennially under investigation by his superiors, but the Machiavellian Mackey always eludes them; also, on occasions they turn a blind eye to his tactics when they need him to crack a high-profile case. Mackey's marriage to Corinne, a nurse, failed because of his numerous infidelities. He and Corinne have three children, two with autism, which puts more strain on him. By Season 7, Mackey is effectively forced out of the LAPD. He cuts an immunity deal with ICE in return for confessing all his crimes, including Crowley's murder, implicating Shane Vendrell and Ronnie Gardocki. Mackey discovers that Corinne and the children have disappeared into the Witness Protection Program while, to his horror, his new job at ICE is a desk job. Though safe from prosecution, Mackey has lost his family and best friends, and is now ostracized by his colleagues.
- Catherine Dent as Danielle "Danny" Sofer – a patrol officer who aspires to become a detective. She has an on-again-off-again sexual relationship with Vic and a complicated history with Dutch. She is assigned desk duty as a result of her pregnancy and takes maternity leave after the birth of her son, Lee. The identity of the father was initially unknown; later, in the sixth-season episode "Chasing Ghosts," it was learned that it was Vic. Shortly afterwards, Danny returned from maternity leave early so that she could take the position of Sergeant at the Barn. In Season Seven Vic threatens to force Danny to take a paternity test.
- Reed Diamond as Terry Crowley – an honest, fair, effective and well-liked detective from the Robbery Division. When the Barn started operating, Aceveda brought Terry in to join the Strike Team in order to serve as a possible replacement for Vic if he failed as leader of the team. For a period of time, Terry was the Strike Team's driver. After realizing that his colleagues are all dirty, Terry approached Aceveda who asked him to spy on Vic and the team so that they may build a case against them. After delivering the usual news to Aceveda, Aceveda called an associate from the Justice Department and they asked Terry to testify against the team, in exchange Terry receives a higher-paid job in Washington, D.C. and other expenses. However, Vic learned about the deal through his mentor Assistant Chief Ben Gilroy. After Terry asks from Vic to be involved in the team's big busts, he and the rest plan to raid the home of a drug dealer. During the raid, Vic takes the drug dealer's gun and shoots Terry in the face, killing him.
- Walton Goggins as Shane Vendrell – Vic Mackey's best friend and partner before the Strike Team was formed. He has a reckless streak, and his attempts to emulate Mackey's dealings quite often take a bad turn. During the course of the series, he meets and marries Mara, who later bears him a son, Jackson. When it appears that Lem has turned on the Strike Team, Vendrell kills him by dropping a grenade into his car. The ensuing guilt and grief force him to become reckless and suicidal, and when Mackey uncovers the truth, their friendship ends. Vendrell grows to regret his actions as part of the Strike Team and expresses great remorse for what he has become. When it is revealed that he blackmailed someone to kill Ronnie Gardocki in retaliation for Mackey and Gardocki's attempt to kill him, Vendrell goes on the run with his wife and son. However, Mackey's immunity deal with ICE ends Vendrell's hopes of sparing himself and Mara long prison sentences by testifying against Mackey. He therefore poisons his wife and son, and then kills himself.
- Michael Jace as Julien Lowe – a uniformed officer who is partnered with Sofer for the majority of the series. During the formation of a new Strike Team, Claudette offered Julien to Kevin Hiatt as a possible addition to the team. Claudette made the offer to Julien, who was hesitant, mainly because of the thought of being partnered with Vic on a daily basis. After being assured that Mackey was going to be moved out of the team, Julien accepted the promotion. Despite his desire to become a fully functioning member of the Strike Team, Julien knew that he was on the outside of the clique. When the Strike Team is dissolved for the final time, he becomes a uniformed officer again. He is asked to choose which side he will be on when Claudette finally has a case to go after Mackey and Vendrell. A recurring plotline for Lowe is the conflict between his Christian beliefs and his homosexual desires, to the point where he goes to a sexual reorientation program and marries a woman having chosen God and community, though in the last episode he's seen looking longingly at several men while on patrol, indicating that his wants and desires haven't left yet.
- Kenny Johnson as Curtis Lemansky – a cop with a conscience and an original member of the Strike Team. He has a history of working with kids and maintained a soft spot for them. His loyalty to Vic Mackey and the Strike Team led him to go along with most of their illegal schemes, although he didn't know about all of them-such as the murder of Terry Crowley. He burned most of the money from the Armenian Money Train robbery to keep the team from getting caught. Burning the money caused a temporary split within the team, although they later got back together. Shane Vendrell kills Lemansky in the Season 5 finale, because Vendrell is under the mistaken impression that Lemansky is going to rat on the rest of the team. Lem was unmarried and had no children.
- Jay Karnes as Holland "Dutch" Wagenbach – a persistent and successful police detective, but is regarded as a pompous and socially inept nerd. He is often the butt of jokes at the barn, particularly from Mackey. Along with his partner, Claudette Wyms, Dutch is the moral center of the show as a clean cop who does not engage in illegal police activities. He shares a close friendship with Claudette and shows genuine concern for her after learning of her lupus diagnosis. Dutch is usually the first called to investigate violent crimes because of his specialization in criminal profiling and serial killers. In Season 1 he got an impromptu round of applause from everyone at the barn, including Vic, after he painstakingly proved the guilt of a suspected serial killer. Later, he was seen strangling a live cat after questioning an actual serial killer about what he sees in his victims' eyes. Dutch was unsuccessful with women, but he did have several fleeting romances, including with Danny Sofer, and tried to ask out Tina Hanlon. He embarked on a seemingly vengeful relationship with Vic's ex-wife, which caused even more friction with Vic and led to Dutch challenging him to a fight. Dutch's investigation into the Armenian money train heist and his suspicions that the Strike Team were involved eventually brought about the quartet's downfall.
- Benito Martinez as David Aceveda – a politically ambitious man who was the captain of the Barn from seasons one to three. He was then elected to the Los Angeles City Council and had ambitions to become Mayor. He is one of Vic Mackey's main rivals, although on occasions they forged uneasy alliances for their mutual benefit. In Season 3, Aceveda was orally raped at gunpoint by two gang members. He tracked down and killed one of his assailants, and struck a deal with drug lord Antwon Mitchell to murder the other in prison. During the final season, Aceveda and Mackey worked together to bring down Cruz Pezuela, a corrupt businessman who initially bankrolled Aceveda's mayoral campaign and then tried to blackmail him with photographs of his sexual assault. At the series' close, Aceveda looked set to become Los Angeles' next mayor.
- CCH Pounder as Claudette Wyms – a veteran detective. Claudette, along with her partner Dutch, can be viewed as the voice of morality at the Barn; as a result, she is often at odds with Vic over his tactics. It emerges that Claudette has suffered from lupus for fifteen years and resents Dutch's subsequent over-protectiveness of her. Against the orders of her superiors, Claudette reopened cases overseen by a compromised public defender, which cost her promotion to Captain. She eventually got the job in season 5. As Captain, she did her best to marginalize Mackey and was determined to gather enough evidence to indict him. She was left furious upon discovering Mackey's generous immunity deal with the ICE. During the final season, her lupus returned and began to interfere with her ability to do her job. In the final episode, she admitted to Dutch that her illness is terminal.
- Cathy Cahlin Ryan as Corrine Mackey – was once married to Vic Mackey and had three children with him, two of whom have autism. She works as a nurse and once had a brief courtship with Dutch. Despite needing Vic in her life, she eventually turns on him and helps Dutch and Claudette build a case to send Vic behind bars. She is moved to witness protection by ICE to keep her and her children away from Vic, through a fear she has that he may try to harm her after he finds out what she has been doing.
- David Rees Snell as Ronnie Gardocki – the Strike Team's surveillance and electronics expert. Though little is known about Ronnie, he has proven to be the most solid, emotionally stable member of the Strike Team and has remained loyal to Vic out of enlightened self-interest, knowing that divisions between them would only lead to bad ends for both. The scars on his face, given to him by Armadillo in season 2, are proof of his loyalty to the team. In the final season, he becomes the official leader of the Strike Team. He was especially angry when he learned that Shane murdered Lem, and uneasy about working with Shane again. He and Vic concoct a plan to have the Mexicans kill Shane along with the Armenians that knew about the Money Train robbery. Shane survives and hires a pimp to kill Ronnie, which also fails. When Shane flees after being implicated, Claudette disbands the Strike Team, forcing Ronnie to become a "suit and tie" detective while trying to help Vic and stay out of prison. Vic makes an immunity deal with ICE in return for confessing all the Strike Team's crimes, and lies to Ronnie that he has been granted the same deal. Ronnie only discovers Vic's betrayal when he is arrested in the final episode and is led away cursing Vic.
- Glenn Close as Monica Rawling – the appointed Captain at the Barn who took over from Aceveda, after Claudette was rejected. She implemented a lot of changes, such as fixing the Barn's male toilets and, more importantly, creating seizure policies which proved to be somewhat controversial. She had a longstanding hatred with gang leader Antwon Mitchell and was suspicious of Vic Mackey, even having him and his team investigated. She finds out that Shane was solicited by Mitchell to kill Vic. She is fired after she embarrasses the DEA by voiding the immunity deal they granted Mitchell, and the feds threaten to cut off all federal highway funding to L.A. if Rawling stayed.
- David Marciano as Steve Billings – a slack, somewhat cowardly detective who was made acting Captain after the departure of Rawling and later replaced by Claudette. Billings has an uneasy working relationship with Dutch, who dislikes his nonchalant attitude to the job. He and Dutch were partnered together after Claudette's promotion, which prompted Dutch to request a transfer, which was rejected. When he puts his mind to it, Billings is shown to be a competent detective, but he is mostly known for his schemes, such as bringing his own vending machines into the barn. He usually brings Dutch in on his plots and the two have come to blows on at least one occasion. After being injured during a brawl between Kavanaugh and Vic, he tries to sue the department for $2 million, although he settles for two days' backpay.
- Paula Garcés as Tina Hanlon – a new recruit at the barn, who is trained by Julien. She is very attractive and well aware of her sexuality, which often earns her the ire of Danny Sofer. Tina's constant mistakes would have seen her out of the force, had it not been for a bungle in which Billings, while trying to see who was stealing from his vending machines, obtained photos of her changing. He involved Dutch and, in order to protect her old partner, Claudette allowed Tina to remain on the force under Dutch's supervision. She left the Barn after being made a spokesperson for the police force, but opted to transfer back. She had a sexual tryst with Kevin Hiatt, which was organized by Billings, although she later expressed regret and said that Dutch always had a chance with her, only he never took it. The day on which Shane Vendrell killed himself was her first anniversary as an officer, and although he was harsh on her at times, Julien celebrated by buying her a cake and throwing her a little party.
Development
The series was created by Shawn Ryan. Ryan served as an executive producer for all seven seasons and was the series head writer and showrunner throughout its run. Prior to creating the series Ryan had been working as a producer and writer for the supernatural detective series Angel. He began his television career as a writer for the crime drama Nash Bridges. Nash Bridges was a more up-beat show, and Ryan was required to scripts that showed the hero succeeding in a positive way, and Ryan sought to write something far different to get that out of his system. He had considered what a cop drama would be like on a premium cable network like HBO and Showtime, taking into account the edge that shows like ' and NYPD Blue had brought to the genre. While trying to decide a direction, the Rampart scandal within the LAPD was exposed, and Ryan took inspiration from those events to craft out a pilot script. He also recently became a father, and wrote into the script his concerns about raising a child in a crime-ridden world. The pilot script had ended with Mackey shooting Crowley; Ryan had the idea of an alternate ending to Donnie Brasco, of where Al Pacino's mobster character would have shot Johnny Depp's undercover FBI character, revealing that the mobster had known his identity all along. He used this ending idea in the pilot for The Shield, not expecting to have to worry about any consequences as he wasn't sure the script would be picked up. Ryan later commented in 2017 that if had known how long The Shield would have run for, he would have had a few more episodes to help establish Crowley's character before having Mackey kill him off.At the time, around the year 2000, the FX network, a division under 21st Century Fox, was looking to find what would be the network's first drama series to help set the tone for their network, given the ongoing success of The Sopranos on rival network HBO. FX's Kevin Reilly wanted a show about an antihero but believed that the cop genre had become tired. However, Reilly was amazed by Ryan's script, and greenlit the show in mid-2001. Reilly worked with Ryan to help determine how much violence and nudity could be used within the show, as unlike HBO, FX was an ad-sponsored cable channel and beholden to certain content considerations. As they were working towards this, the September 11 attacks occurred, and in their aftermath, Fox was concerned if the show would be appropriate at this time, believing that audiences would not be receptive to seeing police officers portrayed in a negative light. The situation changed following the theatrical release of Training Day in October 2001, a film centered around corrupt cops that was a financial success. Fox was assured by Training Days reception from audiences that The Shield was allowed to continue, with the pilot first broadcast in March 2002.
Ryan had written the part of Mackey for someone with a young Harrison Ford personality. Due to the complexities of the character, he was uncertain they would have found a suitable actor for the role, and cast his own doubt on his writing. During casting, Ryan had been surprised with Michael Chiklis's audition. Chiklis had gained a soft reputation within Hollywood based on his roles from The Commish and Daddio, and felt that he needed to have a change of pace in future roles, as he was finding himself cast for older, overweight parts. Chiklis spent six months away from acting and losing a significant amount of weight, and for his audition on The Shield, had shaved his head. Ryan was taken by this new appearance feeling it wasn't appropriate, but found that Chiklis had a certain charisma in his delivery that worked well into the Mackey character. This allowed Ryan to write Mackey as a compassionate figure, able to get away with certain improper actions through his charisma, which served to draw fans to sympathize with Mackey throughout the series. Ryan recognized that with Chiklis as his star, it validated his success as a writer.
Scott Brazil was a co-executive producer for the first season. He became an executive producer for the second season. He was a regular director for the series until his death during production of the sixth season. Brazil and Ryan had worked together on Nash Bridges.
Several of the series more junior writers became executive producers during its run. Glen Mazzara was an executive story editor for the first season and became an executive producer from the fifth season onwards. Mazzara had also worked with Ryan on Nash Bridges. Kurt Sutter and Scott Rosenbaum were staff writers for the first season and became executive producers for the sixth season onwards. Adam E. Fierro joined the crew as a co-producer and writer for the third season and was promoted to executive producer for the seventh season. Veteran television writer Charles H. Eglee joined the crew as a consulting producer for the third season and was promoted to executive producer from the fifth season onwards.
Emmy Award-winning The Sopranos veteran James Manos Jr. served as a consulting producer and writer for the first two seasons. He left the show to develop the Showtime serial killer drama Dexter. NYPD Blue veteran writer Kevin Arkadie was a co-executive producer for the first season only. Nash Bridges writer and producer Reed Steiner replaced Arkadie as co-executive producer for the second season only. Kevin G. Cremin was the series unit production manager throughout its run and became a co-executive producer from the sixth season onwards.
Angel writing team Elizabeth Craft and Sarah Fain joined the crew as co-producers for the third season and became supervising producers before leaving at the close of the sixth season. Dean White was a producer and regular director throughout the series run. Star Michael Chiklis became a producer from the second season onwards and also regularly directed episodes. Post-production supervisor Craig Yahata joined the crew in the third season and eventually became a producer for the seventh season.
The series pilot and finale were directed by Clark Johnson; Johnson had previously starred in ' and made his directing debut on that series. Guy Ferland directed episodes for all seven seasons of The Shield.
Rohn Schmidt was a cinematographer for all seven seasons and made his television directing debut on the show. Stephen Kay was a frequent director for the series. Gwyneth Horder-Payton was an assistant director for the show's early seasons and made her television directing debut in the fourth season, she continued to regularly direct episodes thereafter.
Film director Frank Darabont directed an episode for the series. Darabont later reunited with several writers from The Shield for his television adaptation of The Walking Dead comics, including Charles H. Eglee, Glen Mazzara and Adam Fierro. Acclaimed playwright and film writer and director David Mamet directed an episode of the series. Mamet and Ryan collaborated as executive producers on military thriller The Unit. Screenwriter Ted Griffin wrote a single episode of the show. Griffin later created Terriers and was reunited with Shawn Ryan as a fellow executive producer. The series started with real Los Angeles Police Officers as Technical Advisors; Officers Pablo Vitar and Rafael Dagnesses.
Reception
TIME magazine's James Poniewozik ranked The Shield #8 in his list of the Top 10 Returning Series of 2007 and later included it in his list of the top 100 greatest TV shows of all time. Entertainment Weekly named it the 8th-best TV show of the 2000s, saying, "Det. Vic Mackey didn't just clean up the streets—he cleaned up on the streets. Would he pay for those sins? This gutsy TV drama kept us guessing." On the review aggregator website Metacritic, season 1 received universal acclaim from critics, with a score of 92 out of 100, based on 28 reviews. Season 7 also received universal acclaim from critics, with a score of 85 out of 100, based on 14 reviews. In September 2019, The Guardian ranked the show 77th on its list of the 100 best TV shows of the 21st century, stating that "a key part...of the golden age of antihero drama, this thriller about likable – and utterly corrupt – cops broke new ground for bold, risk-taking television".Awards and nominations
The series received six Primetime Emmy Award nominations during its series run. For the first season, Michael Chiklis won for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, and the pilot episode received nominations for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series and Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series, for Shawn Ryan and Clark Johnson respectively. Chiklis received a consecutive nomination Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for the second season. For the fourth season, Glenn Close was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series and CCH Pounder was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series.For the Golden Globe Awards, the series received five nominations, with Michael Chiklis receiving three consecutive nominations for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama, and winning the award for the first season. The first season also earned the series the award for Best Drama Series. Glenn Close was also nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama.
For the Satellite Awards, the series received seven nominations. CCH Pounder won two consecutive times for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama, Michael Chiklis received two nominations with one win for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama, and Forest Whitaker was nominated for Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television. The series won the award for Best Television Drama Series and received a nomination for that category the following year.
For the Television Critics Association Awards, the first season received nominations for Outstanding New Program of the Year, Outstanding Achievement in Drama, and Program of the Year, and Michael Chiklis won for Individual Achievement in Drama. The series received nominations again for Outstanding Achievement in Drama for the next two seasons. For the final season, it was nominated for Outstanding Achievement in Drama and Program of the Year, as well as receiving the Heritage Award. Also, Walton Goggins was nominated for Individual Achievement in Drama.
Other awards and nominations include a 2005 Peabody Award and Michael Chiklis being nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series for the first season.
| Year | Association | Award | Nominee | Result |
| 2002 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | Michael Chiklis | |
| 2002 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series | Clark Johnson | |
| 2002 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series | Shawn Ryan | |
| 2003 | Image Awards | Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series | CCH Pounder | |
| 2003 | Satellite Awards | Satellite Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama | Michael Chiklis | |
| 2003 | Satellite Awards | Satellite Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama | CCH Pounder | |
| 2003 | Golden Globe Awards | Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Drama | The Shield | |
| 2003 | Golden Globe Awards | Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama | Michael Chiklis | |
| 2003 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | Michael Chiklis | |
| 2003 | GLAAD Media Awards | GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Drama Series | The Shield | |
| 2003 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series | Michael Chiklis | |
| 2004 | Golden Globe Awards | Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama | Michael Chiklis | |
| 2004 | Satellite Awards | Satellite Award for Best Television Series – Drama | The Shield | |
| 2004 | Satellite Awards | Satellite Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama | Michael Chiklis | |
| 2004 | Satellite Awards | Satellite Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama | CCH Pounder | |
| 2004 | Image Awards | Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series | CCH Pounder | |
| 2005 | AFI Award | AFI Award for TV Program of the Year | The Shield | |
| 2005 | Satellite Awards | Satellite Award for Best Television Series – Drama | The Shield | |
| 2005 | Golden Globe Awards | Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama | Michael Chiklis | |
| 2005 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series | Glenn Close | |
| 2005 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series | CCH Pounder | |
| 2005 | Peabody Awards | Area of Excellence | The Shield | |
| 2006 | ALMA Awards | ALMA Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | Benito Martinez | |
| 2006 | Image Awards | Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series | CCH Pounder | |
| 2006 | Image Awards | Image Award for Outstanding Directing in a Dramatic Series | Philip G. Atwell | |
| 2006 | Satellite Awards | Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film | Forest Whitaker | |
| 2006 | Golden Globe Awards | Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama | Michael Chiklis | |
| 2007 | ALMA Awards | ALMA Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | Benito Martinez | |
| 2007 | Image Awards | Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series | CCH Pounder | |
| 2008 | ALMA Awards | ALMA Award for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series | Benito Martinez | |
| 2008 | ALMA Awards | ALMA Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series | Paula Garcés | |
| 2008 | Image Awards | Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series | CCH Pounder | |
| 2009 | AFI Award | AFI Award for TV Program of the Year | The Shield | |
| 2009 | Image Awards | Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series | CCH Pounder | |
| 2009 | ALMA Awards | ALMA Award for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series | Benito Martinez | |
| 2009 | ALMA Awards | ALMA Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series | Paula Garcés |