All American showrunner confirms season 7 will return to the show's YA roots

All American season 6 finished its run on Monday, July 15 with an episode that brought Spencer James' story full circle. When we first began this journey with him back in 2018, he was a teen who dreamed of playing in the NFL. He'd yet to face the challenges that would shape him into the man he'd become but nonetheless had a heart and a sense of community and duty that made him a standout character in the television landscape at the time.

Outside of The CW, none of the broadcast networks were devoting the coveted spots on their line-ups to programming geared toward teens. The streamers, particularly Netflix, were beginning to take up that mantle, and cable channels like Freeform were holding down the fort as well (though they've gone through their own decline in teen content in recent years).

But what had set Spencer apart was that he was the lone Black teen lead in a sea of shows catering to adults. And he wasn't a "troubled youth" or a kid who needed to be put on the straight and narrow. He was a young man who saw a way for himself to succeed and wanted to bring the people in his life with him to help them thrive just like he knew he would once given the opportunity to shine.

For three full seasons, and half of the fourth, All American was dedicated to his high school years. They showcased his highs and lows and those of his friends and loved ones. There's an argument to be made that those seasons had the best storylines and truly captured the heart of the show's message about family, community, and striving to do your best even in the worst of circumstances.

So it makes sense, that as Daniel Ezra moves on from the role, the show will be circling back to what made viewers fall in love with it in the first place. In an era of TV where there isn't a lot of focus on what it means to grow up Black in America and how diverse that experience can be despite similarities and touchstones many of us can attest to, All American fills that void.

Showrunner Nkechi Okoro Carroll spoke to this in an interview with Deadline after the season 6 finale:

"...the heart of the show is our teens, and especially our teens of color, and the journey to the dream while they’re battling their identity, while they’re battling their community and all these other things that come their way that could be perceived as obstacles. How do you surpass those to still get the joy and get the dream? That is at the heart of All American."

This isn't to say that longtime fans of the series can't count on at least some of the OG cast sticking around. Carroll said that they have no intention on doing a "clean sweep" as "there's so much story to tell." The writers do plan on furthering the stories of the now adult characters that fans have been riding with since they were high schoolers figuring life out and making mistakes along the way.

But, understandably, the series needs to pivot back to what worked before. Without Ezra, for as invested as fans have been in the ensemble cast's arcs, All American doesn't have a lead. And all of the other characters have reached their own dreams in one way or another, or have been put on the path to do so.

What attracted me to this sports drama (besides the fact that I enjoy this genre immensely), is that it was full of hope. There's a very specific time in your life when it feels like the doors are all open and the direction your future can take is unknowable. Yes, circumstances and life events can paint a picture but it's not set in stone, there are choices to be made that can change everything in an instance.

For many people, that's their teen years. When they're experiencing big emotion and tough calls for the first time with real, weighty stakes a part of their decision making. All American navigated that reality deftly, pulling us in while still diving into drama expected in a teen series.

With this soft reboot, the show has the opportunity to wind back the clock in the way while still honoring all that it's accomplished in its six seasons on air. Make no mistake though, soft reboots are hard to pull off. Shows tend to shed viewers and fans feel like they're starting all over, but Carroll's words on the series struck a chord in me: "The heart of it always came back to teens with these impossible dreams and us going on this aspirational journey with them. How do they reach that dream?"

I think All American could be the rare program that pulls off a sharp pivot to someone else's story. Partly because we did get to see Spencer James reach his dream of playing in the NFL, he won a Super Bowl, and he married the love of his life, Olivia Baker. And partly because the show has always been about the journey, done right, fans could fall in love with the next lead just like we did with Spencer. They just have to give the writers a chance to work their magic.

Stay tuned to Hidden Remote for more news and coverage. All American season 7 premieres in 2025.