The Rookie’s Season 8 finale may have ended on a major Chenford cliffhanger on the 2026 TV schedule, but there is still something to smile about. ABC has officially picked up its spinoff, The Rookie: North, to series, meaning the universe is expanding once again. This marks the second spinoff of The Rookie, following the short-lived The Rookie: Feds. So, Jenna Dewan and more stars are celebrating the pickup by reaching out to North's star, Jay Ellis.
Ellis is leading the new spinoff as Alex Holland, a rookie at the Pierce County Police Department. Not long after the announcement dropped about the pickup, he took to his Instagram to share the incredibly good news, and not surprisingly, he is as happy as ever:
If a fool persists in his folly, he becomes wise… and he’ll dance and have a lot of fun with really good people!! The Rookie: North is going to series. I probably should have said that sooner. @therookienorthabc
As a longtime fan of The Rookie, I am so excited that another series is joining the franchise, especially since the cast is pretty great. Along with Ellis, Janet Montgomery, Karen Fukuhara, Chris Sullivan, Froy Gutierrez, Mya Lowe, and Malik Watson also star, and everyone seems to be pretty psyched. Dewan, Fukuhara, and stars from other shows, including some from The Rookie, took to the comments to celebrate, and I’m obsessed with all the love:
- Jenna Dewan: Congratulations!!!!! 👏👏👏
- Angel Parker: Oh it’s such GOOD NEWS
- Jesse Lee Soffer: 👏👏👏
- Karen Fukuhara: This is gonna be so fun!!!!!
- Mya Lowe: yessssssir!
- Brenda Song: Congrats, Jay!!!👏👏🙌❤️
News about The Rookie: North has been a long time coming. It was first announced in late 2024 that ABC was eyeing another spinoff, but it didn’t actually move forward until last fall. I had been waiting for an update, and creator Alexi Hawley revealed in April that the pilot was done filming and turned out pretty good. So I’m really glad that executives also thought the pilot was strong enough to order it.
It’s also great to see Dewan and some other Rookie stars sharing their support, especially since I'm hopeful that we'll get some fun crossovers between the two shows next year. It does suck that The Rookie: North and presumably The Rookie won’t be airing until early 2027, but the wait will definitely be worth it. Considering the two shows not only take place in different cities but are filmed in different cities, I’m definitely curious as to how the crossovers will work, but that’s what makes it so exciting.
The wait for The Rookie: North will be excruciating, but if Ellis and his co-stars continue to share posts on Instagram that include interactions with The Rookie cast, that will be enough to keep fans hyped. A premiere date likely won’t come until later this year, but at least there is something to look forward to. So, for now, fans will just have to wait by watching all seasons of The Rookie with a Hulu subscription.
