Image via ABC
Published Feb 16, 2026, 3:30 PM EST
Makuochi Echebiri is a News Writer for Collider. He has been interested in creative writing from as far back as high school, and he would consume pretty much anything that’s film or TV. However, his truest love lies in the presence of historical epics and thrillers.
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Oftentimes, studios showcase series that catch on quickly, taking on a life of their own with audiences, and soon enough, a franchise is born. We've seen it with HBO's Westerosi adventures, Starz's multiple iterations of Power plays, and we are seeing it again with ABC's much beloved police procedural drama, The Rookie. Now into its eighth season, with the series still being led by Nathan Fillion's John Nolan, the network has been looking to expand the scope.
A previous attempt had been made in 2022 with The Rookie: Feds, but after an unsuccessful run of a single season, ABC is back for another try. The network officially handed a pilot order to a new spin-off, The Rookie: North, last year, and work has been ongoing behind the scenes to bring the project to life. In November 2025, Insecure and Top Gun: Maverick star Jay Ellis was cast in the series' lead role as prospective rookie cop Alex Holland. Since then, the series has added Stranger Things favorite and This is Us alum Chris Sullivan to the cast.
Now, according to a new report, The Rookie: North is expanding its cast further with the five additions to the series-regular cast. Per the report, Froy Gutierrez (I Love LA), Janet Montgomery (New Amsterdam), Karen Fukuhara (The Boys), Mya Lowe (My Life with the Walter Boys), and Malik Watson are all coming aboard for the new series. Information regarding the characters they play is also available, with Montgomery playing Charlotte Dru, Alex’s training officer, Lowe portraying Elora Howe, a new rookie chasing a recently discovered purpose, and Watson playing Mark Lewis, Elora’s training officer. Gutierrez and Fukuhara play Odell Chance and Leah Mizuno, respectively. Odell is a new rookie, and Leah is Odell's training officer.
What Is 'The Rookie: North' About?
Image via Paramount Pictures / Courtesy Everett CollectionThe Rookie: North hails from The Rookie creator Alexi Hawley, who wrote and will direct the pilot. The Rookie: North is a stand-alone pilot which will not, unlike Niecy Nash's The Rookie: Feds, be embedded into the original series, The Rookie. Just like the original, The Rookie: North will follow the steps of an "old rookie" in Alex Holland (Ellis), who believed his midlife wasn’t worthy of a crisis. But after a violent home invasion ignites a dormant purpose, Alex battles a lifetime of failed commitments in Los Angeles by joining the Pierce County Police Department in Washington as its oldest rookie. Policing from the urban coast to the rural forest, where backup isn’t just five minutes away, Alex must prove to his skeptical training officer, his fellow rookies, and himself that he’s finally found something worthy of the fight.
The Rookie Season 8 is streaming on Hulu, and stay tuned to Collider for more updates and coverage of the show.
Release Date October 16, 2018
Showrunner Alexi Hawley
Directors Tori Garrett, Chi-Yoon Chung, Michael Goi, Sylvain White, Lisa Demaine, Lanre Olabisi, Bill Johnson, David McWhirter, Liz Friedlander, Daniel Willis, Toa Fraser, Anne Renton, Jon Huertas, Cherie Nowlan, TK Shom, Rob Seidenglanz, Valerie Weiss, Barbara Brown, Charissa Sanjarernsuithikul, SJ Main Muñoz, Nelson McCormick, Marcus Stokes, Adam Davidson, Anna Mastro
Writers Corey Miller, Bill Rinier, Zoe Cheng, Mary Trahan, Ally Seibert, Liz Alper, Nick Hurwitz, Racheal Seymour, Madeleine Coghlan, David Radcliff
English (US) ·