The Rookie Spinoff Is Moving Forward, And I Had My Doubts Before Another ABC Spinoff Became A Big Hit

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As the premiere of The Rookie‘s eighth season approaches in 2026, ABC is moving forward with its planned spin-off series. Development has been slow since the project was first announced in late 2024 – a pilot episode was expected as early as July. After some delays, the network has finally ordered the pilot, starring Jay Ellis, known for his roles in Insecure and Top Gun: Maverick. I wasn’t initially convinced the spin-off would succeed, but recent ratings for The Rookie have changed my mind.

What’s Coming With The Rookie: North

Jay Ellis plays Alex Holland in The Rookie: North, which Deadline reports has received the order for a pilot that will be penned and directed by The Rookie showrunner Alexi Hawley. The reason for the delay is due to the actor’s extremely a busy schedule. He’s a series regular on Hulu’s upcoming Not Suitable For Work as well as recurring on Running Point, available streaming now with a Netflix subscription. The actor celebrated the big news on Instagram with this message:

Hi everyone, I’m the new officer – still figuring things out, like where my locker is! I was hoping someone could point me towards where I can get a lot of ice. I’m planning on taking daily ice baths for my knees and back. I just wanted to say thank you to Alexi Hawley and Nathan Fillion for making me feel so welcome on The Rookie!

Jay Ellis has quickly become a familiar face, with recent roles in popular projects like Insecure, Top Gun: Maverick, All Her Fault, and even voice acting in The Second Best Hospital in the Galaxy. It seems he’s the perfect choice to lead the new series, The Rookie: North.

Why I Had Doubts

Jay Ellis is a strong lead for a TV series, but the show’s concept itself gives me pause. In The Rookie: North, his character, Alex, doesn’t feel the need for a life change until a frightening home invasion. Despite a pattern of not following through, he unexpectedly joins the Pierce County Police Department as their oldest rookie. He’ll have to prove himself to his trainers and fellow rookies, and the show’s setting in rural Washington state offers a different feel than the original The Rookie, which was set in a city.

If the show’s idea sounds familiar, that’s because it’s very similar to the plot of The Rookie. While some overlap is expected with a spinoff, The Rookie: North initially felt like a near-identical copy of the original, with only minor adjustments.

It seemed likely that The Rookie: Feds would be canceled after the show’s direction changed, especially since ABC already had a similar show. However, the success of another popular series, 9-1-1, has made me reconsider that assumption.

9-1-1: Nashville Became A Hit

ABC added to its popular “9-1-1” series with the fall 2025 premiere of “9-1-1: Nashville,” which is now streaming on Hulu. Similar to how “9-1-1: Lone Star” launched, the new show follows the same basic format as the original “9-1-1,” but is set in Nashville. This approach seems to be working well for ABC, as evidenced by strong viewership numbers and recent trends seen with CBS programming.

Over seven weeks, 9-1-1 averaged the 13th highest viewership among network TV shows, and 9-1-1: Nashville came in at number 17. This makes it the only series – besides NBC’s One Chicago – to have all of its shows ranked in the top 20, demonstrating that there’s a strong audience for both shows, even though they’re very similar and set in different cities with different characters.

Will The Rookie: North be as successful as 9-1-1: Nashville? It’s still early – the show has only been ordered for a pilot episode, so it’s not certain it will be picked up as a full series. However, recent casting news has made me more hopeful. In the meantime, The Rookie will return for its eighth season on Tuesday, January 6th at 10 p.m. Eastern on ABC.

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2025-11-25 08:08