Why the Stakes Are High in ‘The Rookie’ Season 6
Hit TV show The Rookie left audiences off in an interesting place after its last season. When the series returns, however, The Rookie is sure to have even more exciting times in store. Especially when its sixth season has a few milestones in front of it.
What to expect from ‘The Rookie’ season 6
The Rookie is set to hit a huge milestone. According to Entertainment One, the ABC program will reach its 100th episode in the upcoming season. And with the show’s recent developments, the occasion will surely be a series high that fans might want to mark on their calendar.
Additionally, The Rookie will be bringing on board some new faces. Kristian Bruun, who starred on The Recruit, will have more of a presence in the show’s future episodes after his season 5 debut. How I Met Your Father actor Dave Kumar is also set to join the cast.
Much of the series’ main cast is scheduled to reunite in season 6. Although given the events of season 5, Tru Valentino’s return as rookie officer Aaron Thorsen is still an uncertainty.
But the wait for the highly anticipated 100th episode might have to be a bit longer. The current writer’s strike has delayed production on the show, and it’s unclear when The Rookie will return to television.
Why Nathan Fillion felt ‘The Rookie’ connected with audiences
Fillion had a good feeling about The Rookie since he first heard the series’ pitch. When series creator Alexi Hawley offered Fillion the series’ starring role, Fillion saw a character with longevity and depth.
“You want a character you feel you can serve — you can serve the character, serve the story. Being in the business as long as I have, I’ve broadened my scope,” Fillion once told The Hollywood Reporter. “And the core idea of the show, it has to be something strong enough to carry it a number of years. You want the potential for more. You don’t want to hit a roadblock where you’ve run out of stories because our engine isn’t built that way.”
The show focuses on Fillion’s John Nolan, a divorced middle-aged man who embarks on a career as a police officer. Fillion found the concept of someone changing their career path somewhat late in life fascinating.
“[John Nolan] is literally starting his life over, from scratch. He has an incredible history behind him, but he’s starting everything brand new. It’s a very attractive prospect that people can relate to,” he said.
Fillion was right. The show’s consistent ratings have shown that audiences keep coming back for John Nolan’s story. Speaking to the Toronto Sun, the actor gave his theories on why the show continued resonating with so many fans.
“It’s a police show, so there’s a lot of drama and excitement there. But I think there’s something relatable about the redo and the restart. Dropping everything and push into something entirely different. That’s a new reality for a lot of people, especially coming out of the pandemic. We’ve all reprioritized and made changes. People have quit jobs and people can relate to change,” he said.
What concerned Nathan Fillion about ‘The Rookie’ spin-off
As is the case with some successful shows, The Rookie was such a hit that it spawned a spin-off. The Rookie: Feds focused on special agent Simone Clarke, who was first introduced in Rookie. The character, played by Niecy Nash, is a middle-aged rookie agent similar to Fillion’s John Nolan.
Fillion was excited when he first heard about the spin-off. But his excitement briefly turned into mild panic when he realized what a potential spin-off show could mean for his co-stars.
“First they say spin-off and you go, ‘Oh my God, that’s such a great idea. We must be doing well if we’re going to get a spin-off show.’ That’s the up,” Fillion said to Entertainment Weekly not too long ago. “Then there’s a down. You go, ‘Wait a minute. Does that mean they’re going to take one of our characters? They’re going to break up this little troop of ours?”
But much to Fillion’s relief, he soon learned that The Rookie crew remained intact.
“We’re going to introduce a new character. And then we’re going to spin them off into their own show. And I thought, ‘That’s a great idea,’” he said.
