The Rookie fans were disappointed after season 7 of The Rookie failed to air during the fall of 2024. However, the new season will premiere in a couple of days. Moreover, creator and showrunner Alexi Hawley teased the coming fallout from the season 6 finale. What can fans expect from the popular cop show?
The Rookie Season 7 airs on January 7 on ABC
Fans of the Rookie have been looking forward to season 7 for a while now. While it didn’t air in the fall 2024 schedule there is finally some good news. Not only will the police procedural air shortly, but fans can expect major fallout from the sixth season.
After the season 6 finale, the corruption scandal had turned the police department upside down. Nolan (National Filion) was shot in the butt. Meanwhile, infamous villains Oscar and Jason escaped prison.
It has been a while for fans to find out what happened, but creator and showrunner Alexi Hawley told TVLine what to expect from the 18-episode season 7 and the fallout from the season 6 finale, saying:
It’s been a few weeks, time enough for Nolan to heal up [from being shot in the butt] – though whether he’s healed up enough or not is a bit of a debate in Episode 1.
He’s trying to get back on that horse more quickly than he should. But he’s feeling very pressured because [Bailey’s escaped convict ex-husband] Jason is out there, as is Oscar, but Jason is more of the existential threat to Nolan’s family.
We come in with that sense of, ‘We have to catch this guy before he comes for my wife and myself,’ only to – spoiler! – get thwarted by the fact that they gave bad information.
‘Ripple effect’ and ‘existential threat’
The scandal involved lawyer and Wesley’s ex-fiancé Monica saw plenty of private details being revealed, thanks to LAPD psychiatrist Blair London. According to Hawley, this will see a “ripple effect” throughout season 7, saying:
It felt important that we kept that alive, that we didn’t just drop the ball on that. That gave us a fun opportunity with Wesley coming in to be, as we call him, the hall monitor.’
The DA is making sure that everybody’s flying right, only for Wesley to stumble across a tape, something in the course of listening to officers talking in therapy, that has a personal impact on him.
Fans will recall that Oscar Hutchinson and Bailey’s sociopathic ex-husband Jason Wyler (played by Jenna Dewan’s real fiancé, Steve Kazee, escaped prison. With both criminals on the loose, everyone will have their eyes open to catch them. Hawley added:
And Jason is going to ultimately pose the biggest threat in the first half of the season. He is sort of the existential threat because he is a threat to the family, Bailey especially. But we’ll also lean into some of the trauma of Bailey’s relationship with Jason that maybe she hasn’t processed yet, the abusive relationship she was in with this guy.
That percolates up in the fear of the reunion because part of the drama of the first half of the season is ‘When is he going to show up?’ And that sense of always being afraid is not healthy.
It should be noted that Jenna Dewan will not appear in the first couple of season 7 episodes due to her maternity leave. However, Hawley assured fans that she will return as Bailey Nune in episode 3. Presumably, this will be when Jason’s storyline truly takes off, while fans wonder what will happen.
