‘Mayor of Kingstown’: Who Is Robert Sawyer? Meet Hamish Allan Headley’s Character

In Mayor of Kingstown, Mike McLusky (Jeremy Renner) is the engine that keeps the city going, while Robert Sawyer (Hamish Allan-Headley) is the oil that ensures he runs smoothly. Robert plays god sometimes, but he is Kingstown’s necessary evil which is why the show’s huge fan base loves him. However, most fans don’t know Hamish Allan-Hedley, so let’s answer the burning questions about who Robert Sawyer is and the actor behind the character.

Robert Sawyer is portrayed by Hamish Allan-Headley, a veteran Canadian actor that started his career in 1997 playing the role of The Football Pal in the 1997 film Warriors Of Virtue. The role of Robert Sawyer in Mayor of Kingstown is his biggest on TV so far. He has also had short cameos in other TV shows, including The Good Doctor, Leverage Redemption, and FBI. Hamish Allan-Headley is also a writer and director, having written the short film The Going Away Party.

Although he is not the most decorated officer in KPD, Robert Sawyer and his team always do whatever it takes to help Mike keep peace in Kingstown. Hamish’s portrayal of Robert has received many positive reviews, especially how he manages to bring the many facets of the SWAT leader to life. The second season ended with Robert in the ICU and his future in limbo, so does Robert die in Mayor of Kingstown, and does Hamish have a future on the show?

Robert Sawyer

Robert Sawyer is the leader of the Kingstown PD SWAT team, which acts more like a kill squad than a regular police force. The team does Mike McLusky’s (The Mayor) bidding, especially when they don’t believe justice will be served if a criminal goes to prison.

The team is closely knit and operates more like a family where none of them tells on what happens in the field to the higher-ups, especially when they do something illegal.

Robert comes off as a cold-hearted trigger-happy police officer, but he only does it when those involved are dangerous criminals who don’t deserve to live.

He has a wife, but Mike Mclusky, Ian, Kyle, and Stevie are the closest thing he has to family because he dedicates most of his life to the job.

Despite lacking real-life military or law enforcement experience and having limited experience in playing a similar role in the past, Hamish Allan-Headley landed the role of Robert easily because the creators loved the energy he brought to the stage.

Headley said he landed the role just days after auditioning, also confirming that his experience while working in the construction industry helped him bring the character of Robert to life. The “do now, ask questions later” habit was exactly what Taylor Sheridan was looking for in the auditions.

Hamish was born in British Columbia, Canada, and started acting in the local community plays before he left for New York to try his luck at an acting career on a bigger stage.

His performance is electrifying because he manages to keep the character of Robert lovable, despite having the character of a dirty police officer that would otherwise turn him into a villain and put off the fans.

His life story and his unique qualification for the role is quite similar to that of other members of the show’s cast, including Tobi Bamtefa, who plays Bunny.

What happened to Robert in Mayor of Kingstown?

Robert and his team helped avenge Mitch McLusky’s death by killing the suspect after intentionally convincing him to point a gun at them so that they would have an excuse to execute rather than arrest him.

His biggest involvement in the show came during the prison riots when SWAT went into the prison to save Kyle and Ian after they got trapped inside when P Dog and other inmates took control of the prison.

Despite being able to save Kyle and Ian and having an easier way out to avoid getting involved in the riot, Robert led Kyle and Kyle deeper into the prison and urged them to shoot the armed prisoners.

Robert told Kyle that killing the prisoners would help him avoid being haunted by the trauma of that day’s events for the rest of his life, but they killed too many inmates, leading to an Internal Affairs investigation into the team’s operations.

Robert received what he called a “Heart Attack Letter” when Ben Moore, a member of his team, agreed to testify against SWAT to the DA. Ian had the serial killer Charlie kill Ben, leading to the investigation being dropped.

Despite surviving the IA investigation, Robert was attacked by the Crips gang on Bunny’s orders because he killed many of their members during the riots. The second season ends with him in the ICU and his wife unsure about his future.

Robert Sawyer’s friendship with Mike explained

Although Mike is an ex-convict, Robert loves and respects him because he is “The Mayor,” and they have known each other for many years. He and Mike are like brothers because they share lots of history and love for Kingstown.

When Robert was in trouble while being investigated by Internal Affairs, he relied on Mike to get the charges dropped because Mike has influence with the DA.

Mike also understands that Robert is a friend he can rely on, which is why he always helps him and SWAT to stay free and operational. The team helped avenge his brother’s death and also works with him to eliminate the most dangerous criminals before they cause problems in Kingstown.

Mike realized that Bunny had put a hit on Robert when it was too late and couldn’t do anything about the attack that left him in the ICU. The McLuskys and SWAT still consider each other family, which is why Robert’s wife left him in Kyle’s care in the hospital.

Does Robert die is Mayor of Kingstown?

Despite being in a coma in the ICU by the end of the second season, Robert Sawyer is still alive under the care of his wife and Kyle McLusky at the hospital.

The show actually introduced Sawyer’s wife while he was in the hospital and gave Kyle the role of babysitting him, but there is no indication that he will be killed off.

It will be difficult to come up with another SWAT leader as good as Robert, which is why Hamish Allan-Headley is unlikely to leave the show soon.

While the attack will remind Robert to be more careful, it is not a guarantee that he will die because it will be difficult to keep peace in Kingstown without Robert’s loyalty to Mike to keep things flowing smoothly.