CBS Passes on ‘Cagney and Lacey’ Reboot With ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Star Sarah Drew

Sarah Drew will not be returning to TV as soon as we thought.

CBS announced Friday it has passed on the pilot for a reboot of classic crime drama Cagney and Lacey, which the departing Grey’s Anatomy star was set to star in following her exit from the longrunning ABC medical drama.

The pilot was written by Bridget Carpenter and directed by Rosemary Rodriguez, following the two female female police detectives and friends who keep the streets of Los Angeles safe.

Drew played the role of LAPD Detective Cagney, Lacey’s nimble and easygoing partner and protege. The show enlisted Blindspot veteran Michelle Hurd to play Lacey, an athletic, polished and former high school track and field champion.

The Hollywood Reporter writes the pilot, which was a co-production between CBS TV Studios and MGM TV, would have been a get for the network, especially having a show with two female leads after years of being criticized for lack of inclusion in their series. Sources told THR the pilot came in “soft” for the procedural-hungry network.

Tyne Daly and Sharon Gless played the title characters in the original Cagney & Lacey, which ran on CBS for seven seasons. The series won two best drama Emmys and six lead actress in a drama series trophies — four for Daly and two for Gless.

Cagney and Lacey was not the only surprising pilot to get passed on by networks Friday, as NBC announced it would not go forward with the Bad Boys spinoff series, L.A.’s Finest starring Gabrielle Union and Jessica Alba. This series, however, is reportedly being shopped around for other networks.

Grey’s Anatomy fans were shocked when news broke in March that Drew and co-star Jessica Capshaw would be exiting the series at the end of its current season.

The series seemed to tease a tragic end to Drew’s April Kepner when the character got into an accident and almost died during the May 10 episode of the series.

The episode served as an emotional send-off for April, who ended up surviving her injuries and announcing she had gotten back together with ex-fiance Matthew Taylor (Justin Bruening).

The actress celebrated April’s big episode on the series by posting a series of behind-the-scenes photos thanking the writers and cast of the series.

Drew’s and Capshaw’s last episode of Grey’s Anatomy airs May 17 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.