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The Rookie (2018) poster

Show The Rerun: 2010s

The Rookie

John Nolan (Nathan Fillion), a newly divorced man from small-town Pennsylvania, decides in his forties to start over in Los Angeles and becomes the oldest rookie in the LAPD. Posted to the Mid-Wilshire Division under Sergeant Wade Grey (Richard T. Jones), he learns the job alongside officers half his age, including fellow rookie Lucy Chen (Melissa O'Neil) and training officer Tim Bradford (Eric Winter).

Where to watch

Checked 25 Oct 2026. Services change their catalogues often; the service’s own page has the final word.

Our take

John Nolan (Nathan Fillion), a newly divorced man from small-town Pennsylvania, decides in his forties to start over in Los Angeles and becomes the oldest rookie in the LAPD. Posted to the Mid-Wilshire Division under Sergeant Wade Grey (Richard T. Jones), he learns the job alongside officers half his age, including fellow rookie Lucy Chen (Melissa O'Neil) and training officer Tim Bradford (Eric Winter).

Why watch Fillion's easy charm carries a show that mixes case-of-the-week action with workplace comedy and long-running romances. It suits viewers who want a dependable weekly procedural with a large, likeable ensemble, and its staying power speaks for itself: renewed in April 2026 for a ninth season, it is among the longest-running series currently on ABC.

What to know

Alexi Hawley created the series for ABC, and 20th Television and Lionsgate Television produce it. It premiered on 16 October 2018. The premise is drawn from a real officer, William Norcross, a college friend of executive producer Jon Steinberg, who moved to Los Angeles in 2015 and joined the LAPD in his mid-forties; Norcross still serves and is also an executive producer on the show.

Over its run Nolan has moved from rookie to training officer, and the ensemble has changed around him, with Alyssa Diaz’s Angela Lopez rising to detective. The franchise has grown too: The Rookie: Feds (2022 to 2023) followed the oldest rookie at the FBI, and a second spin-off, The Rookie: North, is set to debut on 6 January 2027, the same night season nine premieres.

Where to start

Start with the pilot, which sets up Nolan’s first days on patrol and the trainee and training-officer pairings that drive the early seasons. The show is episodic enough that later seasons are easy to follow, but the relationships reward watching in order.

Official site

Seasons & episodes

  1. Season 1 2018 · 20 episodes · ABC
  2. Season 2 2019 · 20 episodes · ABC
  3. Season 3 2021 · 14 episodes · ABC
  4. Season 4 2021 · 22 episodes · ABC
  5. Season 5 2022 · 22 episodes · ABC
  6. Season 6 2024 · 10 episodes · ABC
  7. Season 7 2025 · 18 episodes · ABC
  8. Season 8 2026 · 18 episodes · ABC

Cast & crew

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2011–2025 · Crime

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Quick answers

Where can I watch The Rookie?
In the UK: NOW, Prime Video, Lionsgate+, Disney+, Netflix, Prime Video (buy) and Apple TV (buy). In New Zealand: Disney+, Netflix, Lionsgate+, Prime Video and Prime Video (buy). In the US: Hulu, Prime Video (buy) and Apple TV (buy). In Canada: Crave, Disney+, Netflix, Paramount+, Prime Video (buy) and Apple TV (buy). In Australia: Disney+, Netflix, Prime Video, Lionsgate+ and Prime Video (buy).
What is The Rookie about?
John Nolan (Nathan Fillion), a newly divorced man from small-town Pennsylvania, decides in his forties to start over in Los Angeles and becomes the oldest rookie in the LAPD. Posted to the Mid-Wilshire Division under Sergeant Wade Grey (Richard T. Jones), he learns the job alongside officers half his age, including fellow rookie Lucy Chen (Melissa O'Neil) and training officer Tim Bradford (Eric Winter).
Who is in the cast of The Rookie?
The Rookie stars Nathan Fillion as John Nolan, Eric Winter as Tim Bradford, Melissa O'Neil as Lucy Chen, Richard T. Jones as Wade Grey and Alyssa Diaz as Angela Lopez.
When did The Rookie start?
The Rookie premiered on 16 October 2018 and is still running, with 8 seasons so far.

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