The S.W.A.T. Moment That Left Kenny Johnson's Mother Furious
When Dominique Luca (Kenny Johnson) left "S.W.A.T.", it was a tearjerker for the actor who played him and the audience watching at home. Although Johnson had a reduced role throughout Season 7, the drama gave the character a moving exit fit for a king, as Luca happily retired after surviving a shooting. But some viewers weren't quite as pleased with how Johnson's time on the drama went — as a matter of fact, one moment riled up a person very close to the actor himself.
Speaking with TV Insider, the actor revealed that his mom got upset with him over a scene in which Kelly Stewart — the character played by his daughter Angelica Johnson — witnesses Luca being shot during his penultimate episode, "Escape."
"My mother got mad at me. I remember she saw the promo—she lives in Vermont and she doesn't really watch TV—and she called me and she goes, "Oh my God, Kenny, what an awful thing to do to your daughter!" I'm like, 'What are you talking about?'" According to the actor, his mother then said she found it distasteful that Angelica witnessed her pop getting shot. "I'm like, "Mom, mom, mom, mom, this is acting. We're pretending. It's not really real." She goes, "But the thought of it, how could you do that to her?" Johnson reported.
While his mom might never be a fan of the ways and means by which her son and granddaughter ply their art, it's clear that Johnson's incredibly proud of his daughter's talents — and is happy to note that the relationship between Luca and Kelly reflects that growth.
Luca and Kelly developed a father-daughter like connection over her time on the show
Kenny Johnson had nothing but praise for his daughter Angelica's talents after working with her six times on "S.W.A.T." and then in two motion pictures. Tracing the storyline between Kelly and Luca, he proudly recalled "[w]atching her [character] grow from not being able to read when Luca first meets her and then tries to help her with her mom and her reading, getting her into the school, and then she becomes a little journalist and then all of a sudden she's got to move away and I've got to let that be her mom's decision."
Reflecting on their shared avocation as actors, he said, "I respect her as a whole human being and an actress, and it's a really cool bond." He recalled rehearsing the scene in which Kelly watches Luca getting shot and being moved by the quality of his daughter's acting and how much she's grown.
While both Johnsons will have to move on from "S.W.A.T.," it's very clear that the drama was a wonderful growing experience for father and daughter — and a part of the family's acting legacy they're likely to treasure forever, no matter who Kenny Johnson ends up playing next.