Although The Rookie will return for another run in 2025, Tru Valentino will unfortunately not be reporting back for duty as confirmed by TVLine. Valentino joined the crime drama series in a recurring role in Season 4 before getting promoted to series regular in Season 5. He portrayed Aaron Thorsen, a TikTok sensation who was accused of a major murder charge but was cleared eventually, prompting him to join the Mid-Wilshire Division as a rookie cop.
It appears that Valentino’s exit from The Rookie comes after his absence from the show’s San Diego Comic-Con appearances and one month after the police procedural series added two stars ahead of its seventh season. As reported last month, the new additions were Deric Augustine (All American) and Patrick Keleher, two new rookies set to be featured in recurring guest roles and introduced in the middle of the season.
Created by Alexi Hawley for ABC, The Rookie is based on real-life LAPD officer William Norcross, who moved to Los Angeles in 2015 and joined the force in his mid-40s. Included in the show’s extraordinary cast list are Nathan Fillion, Alyssa Diaz, Richard T. Jones, Titus Makin Jr., Melissa O’Neil, Afton Williamson, Mekia Cox, Shawn Ashmore and Eric Winter. Since its debut in October 2018, it has received generally favorable reviews with its fanbase steadily expanding over the years. And earlier in April, the ABC series was renewed for a seventh season, but with no precise release date yet.
Valentino Is Not the First Cast Member To Leave ‘The Rookie’
The Rookie has six seasons thus far, with a seventh installment on the way, and throughout its run, it has experienced a little cast unpredictability despite the significant number of stars involved. The first series regular to leave the acclaimed series was Mercedes Masohn when her Captain Zoe Andersen character was killed off devastatingly in Season 1. Afterward, Afton Williamson did not report back as Officer Talia Bishop in Season 2, after a series of harassment and racial bullying allegations. The Rookie Season 4 then saw the surprising leave of Titus Makin’s Officer Jackson West who had passed away following the events of the Season 3 finale.
