Actor Nathan Fillion has been leading the TV show The Rookie for soon to be seven seasons, now. But with Fillion playing officer John Nolan for so many years, the character hasn’t been a rookie for quite some time.
Fillion recently explained how the show lived up to its premise despite his character’s growing experience.
Nathan Fillion explained how the show is still ‘The Rookie’
In the beginning, the show’s title The Rookie told audiences almost everything they needed to know about the series. Fillion played a middle-aged man who makes a sudden and severe career change when he decides to become a police officer. At 47 years-old, Fillion’s John Nolan became the oldest rookie in the LAPD at the time. Which was one of the main reasons why the Castle star was so attracted to the show.
“[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,” Fillion told The Hollywood Reporter in 2018.
The show has lasted for several seasons, however, and has no signs of slowing down. Over the years, Fillion’s John Nolan has become more and more experienced in the field. So much so that he can hardly be seen as the same rookie fans were first introduced to in season 1. Still, the show doesn’t need to change its title.
Despite John Nolan’s maturity, the character has found himself training a brand new group of fresh recruits. John Nolan has also resumed different roles in the police force that he never has before. These factors have made sure that the series has maintained ties to its original premise.
“Training officers were certainly a big part of the start of his career and how he started being a cop,” Fillion once told Entertainment Weekly. “It’s the next logical development in his career. He wants to be a training officer because he wants to give back. Also, because he sees that there needs to be some changes in the department, and he wants to be a part of that change. He feels that’s the best place he can do it. Thirdly, and probably the most important reason, is all the people that come up to me and go, ‘Hey, how long is Nolan going to be a rookie?’ They’re really concerned about whether or not he’s a rookie. When you advance in your career, and you’re doing a new thing, you’re automatically a rookie all over again. It’s more of a metaphor, I guess.”
‘The Rookie’ has inspired real-life people to become rookies
Fillion asserted that playing a police officer isn’t always all that it’s cracked up to be. As much as he enjoys the role, there were a few drawbacks that came with playing a cop he would’ve rather done without.
“When you hear the idea, you think, ‘This is fantastic. What a great idea,’” Fillion said according to Stuff. “Then you strap 11lbs of gear to your hips and put on black wool and start running around Los Angeles in 115 degrees heat. It’s tough. It’s not everything you dreamed about.”
Fillion also isn’t a fan of doing some of the show’s stunts.
Still, the benefits of playing a police officer far outweighed the cons. Especially when Fillion discovered he was making a real-life difference in people’s lives.
“You always want people to enjoy your show,” he said. “But the praise has been effusive. I’ve now heard three separate stories of people who were inspired by the TV programme to become police officers. One of them was a priest. There’s a spin-off show for you right there. That’s TV gold.”
