Nathan Fillion was once best known in TV for his roles on Firefly and Castle, but he’s spent the last several years starring in another successful show with The Rookie on ABC. With the end of the 2022-2023 TV season approaching, the time had come for fans to start wondering if Fillion's John Nolan would have a primetime future beyond the current Season 5. Luckily, fans can stop wondering, because ABC has officially renewed The Rookie for Season 6, and the star had some touching words to celebrate the good news.
Nathan Fillion’s show has not only succeeded in the current TV season after launching Niecy Nash’s The Rookie: Feds as a spinoff, but thrived after making the move from its longtime home on Sunday nights over to early primetime on Tuesdays. It was evidently a recipe for success, and the star took to Instagram with a message about the Season 6 renewal:
I couldn’t be more proud of this show, and I couldn’t be happier about coming back for another season. I know what I think is going to happen this next season, but you tell me yours!
Of course, Nathan Fillion – who is an executive producer as well as star – would have more of an idea than most about what could happen in Season 6, but he shared his interest in learning what fans have in mind for beyond Season 5. Many fans chimed in with theories, while some of Fillion’s co-stars had comments of their own on his post. Jenna Dewan, who has worked with Fillion since joining The Rookie to play Bailey Nune in Season 3, wrote:
Yesssss! 👏😍🥳🥳🥳
Jenna Dewan also wasn't the only one of Nathan Fillion’s fellow cast members with thoughts to share in the comment section. Shawn Ashmore, whose Wesley Evers is a very different character than the one that he played on The Boys, commented:
So excited man!!! ❤️🙌🔥
The renewal for Season 6 means that The Rookie will hit its milestone 100th episode in the fall, assuming the drama is back in September as per usual. With an order for 22 episodes in Season 5, the show will end the current season at a total of 98 episodes. If ABC decides to celebrate, then Season 6 could be off to a very exciting start with the first couple episodes!
The renewal isn’t altogether shocking. Although The Rookie previously only impressed in the ratings when delayed totals could be counted, that’s no longer the case. Deadline reports that the drama ranks highly in the 8 p.m. ET time slot on Tuesdays in the key 18-49 age demographic, and is among the top five most-viewed scripted series on ABC.
So, while the renewal for Season 6 wasn’t quite as early as the Season 5 renewal last year and the show faced the challenge of handling Nolan’s career move while keeping The Rookie’s title relevant, the order for more episodes isn’t a shock. Still, the good news is worth celebrating for fans as well as Nathan Fillion!
For now, you can still look forward to the remaining episodes of Season 5 on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC. You can also revisit earlier episodes of The Rookie now and during summer hiatus with all five seasons available streaming with a Hulu subscription.
