Frankie Faison joins the cast of The Rookie spin-off, led by Niecy Nash. Kat Foster and Felix Solis have also been cast in the proposed series.
The spinoff, follows the premise of The Rookie, which centers on the oldest rookie in the LAPD. However, the new version will center on the FBI’s program.
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The new characters will guest star on two episodes of the current fourth season of The Rookie. Those episodes will serve as a backdoor pilot for the potential spinoff. In the embedded pilot episodes, Officer John Nolan (Nathan Fillion) and the LA division of the FBI enlist the help of FBI trainee Simone Clark (Nash) when one of her former students is suspected of terrorism following an explosion at a local power station.
Faison will play Christopher “Cutty” Clark, a man whose dreams were shattered when he was falsely imprisoned in the 80s. He worked hard to put his life back together after he was exonerated. Cutty is a proud, no-nonsense man with a subversive sense of humor.
Foster guest stars as Special Agent Casey Fox, and Solis is Special Agent Matthew Garza in the offshoot. Nash will play Simone Clark, who is described as the living embodiment of a dream deferred.
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The potential series comes from The Rookie creator/executive producer Alexi Hawley, executive producer Mark Gordon and studios eOne and ABC Signature.
Much like the Chicago, Law & Order, FBI, 9-1-1 and the Grey’s Anatomy franchises which thrive on crossovers, The Rookie and the spinoff will exist in the same universe, allowing characters to move back and forth.
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A series pickup for the offshoot would expand The Rookie to a two-show franchise, with the original also expected to return for a fifth season. Four seasons in, The Rookie remains one of ABC’s most watched drama series, just behind Grey’s Anatomy, Station 19 and The Good Doctor, drawing solid linear viewership in addition to strong delayed/streaming lifts. Season to date, The Rookie builds to 9.3 million total viewers after 35 days of multi-platform viewing, up +236% over its Live+Same Day average; its adults 18-49 jump is +519%.
The Rookie resumes its 22-episode season on Sunday, Feb. 27 at 10/9c. Airdates for Niecy Nash’s backdoor pilot episodes have not yet been determined.