ABC is expected to decide in the coming week whether to pick up The Rookie: North, one of two pilots still in contention at the network alongside R.J. Decker. If it goes forward, the spinoff could immediately become part of the wider The Rookie universe, with creator Alexi Hawley saying crossovers would be built in both directions.
Hawley said the pilot already includes Nathan Fillion’s John Nolan and that he does not see a heavy crossover load every season, but rather “a couple episodes, or two or three episodes a season” that connect the two shows. He said the pilot “came out great” and that “the network seems super happy with it.” Jay Ellis, who stars in the spinoff, said he has seen the pilot twice and thinks it is great.
That matters because ABC has made crossovers part of how it launches and sustains franchise TV. The original The Rookie, set and filmed in Los Angeles, has already been renewed for a ninth season, while The Rookie: North is set in the Pacific Northwest and films in Vancouver, giving the two series distinct settings even as they share a brand. ABC has used the tactic before with Grey’s Anatomy and Station 19, and also with The Rookie and The Rookie: Feds.
The new spinoff centers on Alex Holland, who becomes the oldest rookie at the Pierce County Police Department after a violent home invasion upends the mid-life he thought did not need a crisis. Unlike the short-lived The Rookie: Feds, which was based in Los Angeles, this project would spread the franchise across two cities and two filming hubs if it is picked up. Hawley’s comments suggest ABC does not want crossovers as a burden on the schedule; instead, the plan is to use them selectively, when a storyline can support them.
For now, the key question is less whether the shows will cross and more whether ABC makes the spinoff official. If the network says yes, the franchise already has a template for how to connect the two worlds — and this time, Hawley is signaling that the links would be part of the design from the start.