SEAL Team star David Boreanaz is listening to his gut — and the rest of his body.
“My body just can’t do it anymore!” he tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue of why the upcoming seventh season of the Paramount+ military drama will be his last. He adds that he and his fellow cast members were dedicated to telling the story of elite soldiers in the most authentic way possible, including intense training and shooting highly physical scenes.
“There were no shortcuts,” Boreanaz, 55, says.
He recalls directing a scene where he had to carry a 250-lb. stunt double on his back.
Erik Voake/CBS
“Ten feet in, I hit a rock, and my ankle twists, and I fall flat down. My ankle is ballooning, but I had to keep going. You learn from the SEALs how to push through pain — I’m talking guys who have had their arm blown off and are cracking jokes because that’s how they deal with it. It’s very intense,” he says.
He continues, “I take good care of myself, but it gets to a point where your body’s not moving like it used to… I think I’ve had four MRIs in the past four months, for my knees, hips, shoulders. It’s been quite a journey.”
He’s grateful for what the show has meant to those in the military. Boreanaz tells PEOPLE the response he gets from Navy SEALs has been amazing. “They thank me for the real representation,” he says.
The actor, who first rose to fame playing Buffy’s love interest Angel in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and later starred on its spin-off Angel, says he has other work in the pipeline but nothing he can talk about yet.
Mandfred Baumann
“I have plans,” he says. “My work ethic is always head on a swivel, be in the now, don’t look back, don’t look far down the pipeline.”
For more on David Boreanaz, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands Friday, or subscribe here.
He does note that while he’s ready for a break after starring in back-to-back series for nearly 30 years (he was also on Bones, opposite Emily Deschanel from 2005-2017), he’s not good at sitting still.
“Vacations are good until, like, the second day, and then I’m bouncing my knees thinking about what we’re going to do next,” he says with a laugh. But he looks forward to hanging out with his kids, Jaden, 22, and Bella, 15.
“My mind is always actively going. Work to me is relaxation, it fulfills me.” Work, he says, and spending time with his kids. “That’s it.”
The first two episodes of the final season of SEAL Team premiere Sunday, August 11 with the remaining episodes airing weekly on Paramount+.
