Heading into its sixth season after being picked up by NBC, Brooklyn Nine-Nine is a hilarious police sitcom that focuses on the antics of Detective Jake Peralta and his amusing coworkers at Brooklyn’s 99th Precinct.
With a cast comprised of diverse personalities and backgrounds and engaging storylines and fascinating guest stars, its no wonder that this show has captured the attention of fans worldwide.
Considering the show’s humor and appeal, there’s no doubt that there are some interesting happenings occurring on the set of one of televisions biggest hits. Let’s take a look at some behind the scenes facts that will boggle the minds of Brooklyn Nine-Nine fans.
10. It’s Filmed In Los Angeles
This may come as a surprise to most Brooklyn Nine-Nine fans, as this series primarily revolves around the NYPD officers working in Brooklyn’s 99th Precinct. Furthermore, the show effectively captures the New York atmosphere through exterior shots of the New York City skyline as well as convincing sets that resemble New York-style architecture.
It has since been confirmed that whilst the exterior shots of the police station are authentic footage of Brooklyn’s 78th Precinct building, the show is filmed at the CBS Studio Centre in Studio City in Los Angeles.
MORE: Brooklyn Nine-Nine Gets A Law & Order Makeover Ahead Of NBC Debut
9. The Cast Underwent Police Training
Whilst the show’s main premise seems to be humor, as well as the interactions between its main cast members, a lot of emphasis has also been placed on accurately portraying the daily activities of police officers. This includes featuring criminals in each episode that members of the squad need to apprehend.
This feature of the show has allowed viewers to witness some thrilling encounters, such as the time that Jake Peralta chased down a suspect by running on top of cars. And let’s not forget the time when Jake, Charles, and Gina were trapped in a store that was overrun by robbers. The reason why these characters make such convincing cops was because they underwent police and firearm training. According to Stephanie Beatriz, the cast underwent a boot camp run by the Glendale Police Department.
8. Improvisation Is Encouraged
With captivating cold openings, hilarious one-liners, and an amusing season 6 trailer that pays tribute to Die Hard (Jake’s favorite film), it’s no wonder that this show has received widespread critical acclaim.
Part of the reason why this show is comedy gold is due to its incorporation of improvisation into its filming techniques. Andre Braugher, who plays Captain Holt, explained that “In any given scene, we’re going to do five or six takes of the material that’s scripted and really cover that thoroughly, and then we have enough time to do what we call ‘fun runs,’ which is where everyone pulls the craziest stuff they know out of a bag and throws ‘it’ into the scene.”
7. Stephanie Beatriz Has To Act Blind
The actress who portrays the gritty Rosa Diaz is legally classified as blind. This is because she requires the use of extremely strong glasses at all times in order to properly function. Not seeing well is surely a hurdle for the actress, as she does not wear glasses while working on the set of Brooklyn Nine-Nine; however, she refuses to wear contacts as they strain her eyes.
In her own article, Stephanie Beatriz explained “Like, I’m legally blind. Contacts really bother my eyes, so I can’t wear them very often or for long periods of time. The whole time I walked the red carpet [At the Golden Globes], I was in kind of a cloudy haze”.
6. The ‘Nine-Nine’ Chant Was Written Into The Show After Terry Crews Invented It
Melissa Fumero, who portrays the bubbly and competitive Amy Santiago, confirmed that rather than being formulated by the show’s writers, the “Nine-Nine” was created by Terry Crews, who used it to energize the cast when they were struggling. This was apparently either on a Monday morning or during a late night shoot.
As was the case with some of the other gags, the chant was subsequently written into the show, and it should come as no surprise seeing as Melissa Fumero referred Terry Crews as the cast’s “cheerleader.”
5. Jake’s Catchphrase Was Andy Samberg’s Creation
Melissa Fumero once again took to Twitter to fill fans in on the backstory of yet another catchphrase. Jake Peralta’s expression of “Cool cool cool cool cool cool” has become a common recurrence in the Brooklyn Nine-Nine script. However, like the “Nine-Nine” chant, it was not a result of a writer’s brainstorm session.
Andy Samberg, who portrays the goofy yet talented Detective Jake Peralta, started using the phrase as a means of making cast members laugh between takes. Yet again, a cast member’s ingenious improvisation made its way into the show’s storyline.
4. The ‘Title Of Your Sex Tape’ Joke Is Done Both On And Off Screen
Yet another one of the Nine-Nine’s most hilarious gags sees Jake Peralta asking Amy for the title of her sex tape. This gag is not only performed on screen, however, there have been numerous occasions where the cast have been involved in the gag when the cameras were not rolling.
This gag featured numerous times during the cast’s panel at San Diego Comic-Con, where Andy Samberg begged for the title of the sex tape. After Samberg was caught giving producer Dan Goor a hard time, Melissa Fumero shouted out “Just let him have it!", to which Goor and Samberg simultaneously yelled out, “Title of your sex tape!”.
3. Andre Braugher Counts How Many Times He Breaks Character While Filming
During an interview on Today, the actor who portrays the resolute Captain Holt, elaborated on his transition into comedy and how it has developed him as an artist. One of the major challenges he faces on set, however, is that it is difficult to keep a straight face due to the show’s humor. Braugher’s character is a master of maintaining a straight face in all situations, but with a cast as fun as Nine-Nine, you can’ help but giggle.
This prompted Braugher to keep record of the number of times he breaks character during filming. He found that he broke character 13 times during season three, which was an increase from eight times in the previous season. He further declared that he aims to keep this figure as low as possible.
2. The Ninety-Ninth Precinct’s Set Is Always Filled With Hilarious Props
During TV Guide’s behind the scenes tour of the Brooklyn Nine-Nine set, Terry Crews, Melissa Fumero, and Stephanie Beatriz showed viewers around the office — including Jake Peralta’s desk, Captain Holt’s office, the break room, and the jail.
It soon became apparent that every fine detail remains untampered with, even when the show is on hiatus. Whilst Peralta’s desk was filled with amusing toys that fans would recognize from their favorite episodes, Captain Holt’s office had a photograph of Holt’s dog Cheddar.
The lunchroom also has numerous posters containing dark humor on display, including one of someone in a full body cast that warns officers to attend safety meetings. Another poster hangs, telling officers to always keep a gun pointed in the direction of their face as a “safety first” rule.
1. Melissa Fumero’s Pregnancy Had To Be Concealed By The Crew While Filming
While numerous actresses’ pregnancies were subsequently written into the plot for TV shows due to the difficulty of concealing the pregnancy in the later months, the Brooklyn Nine-Nine writers decided against doing so with Melissa Fumero’s pregnancy. This was mainly because they didn’t want to change the storyline.
In order to prevent her character Amy from appearing pregnant, Fumero was often made to carry large bags that blocked her body, and camera angles that cropped out part of her body were used. Eventually, her pregnancy was used to her advantage, as her character faked a pregnancy while going undercover in the season three finale.
