Season 1

Broadcast
Original run	October 16, 2018 – April 16, 2019
Number of episodes	20
Rating	18-49 rating: 15 (average) Viewers (million): TBA (average)
Home video release
Region	1: August 27, 2019 2: April 5, 2021 (United Kingdom)
Seasons
Next	Season 2

Season 1 of The Rookie was announced on October 26, 2017; the show premiered on October 16, 2018 and concluded on April 16, 2019.

Summary

John Nolan is a man in his 40s, recently divorced, with a son in college and a construction business. After a harrowing experience during a bank robbery, he decides to become a cop, and as the LAPD is one of the few forces to accept officers his age, he packs up his belongings and moves to Los Angeles. We pick up his story just after he's graduated from the police academy when he's been assigned to the Mid-Wilshire division along with two other rookies.

Cast

Main

• Nathan Fillion as John Nolan (20 episodes)
• Alyssa Diaz as Angela Lopez (20 episodes)
• Richard T. Jones as Wade Grey (20 episodes)
• Titus Makin as Jackson West (20 episodes)
• Mercedes Mason as Zoe Andersen (15 episodes)
• Melissa O'Neil as Lucy Chen (20 episodes)
• Afton Williamson as Talia Bishop (20 episodes)
• Eric Winter as Tim Bradford (20 episodes)

Recurring cast

• Mircea Monroe as Isabel Bradford (6 episodes)
• Demetrius Grosse as Det. Kevin Wolfe (5 episodes)
• David DeSantos as Det. Elijah Vestri (3 episodes)
• Currie Graham as Ben McRee (6 episodes)
• Shawn Ashmore as Wesley Evers (6 episodes)
• Michael Beach as Cmdr. Percy West (4 episodes)
• Cameron J. Armstrong as Nurse Gino Brown (3 episodes)
• Sarah Shahi as Jessica Russo (3 episodes)

Guest

• Danny Nucci as Det. Sanford Motta (2 episodes)
• Ryan Michelle Bathe as Det. Jennifer Paige (2 episodes)
• Sara Rue as Nell Forester (3 episodes)
• Shawn Christian as Jeremy Hawke (1 episode)
• Joelle Carter as Megan Mitchell (1 episode)
• Christopher James Baker as Marcus Vance (2 episodes)
• Niko Nicotera as Carson Miller (2 episodes)
• Sam Duffy as Kyle Montgomery (2 episodes)
• Zayne Emory as Henry Nolan (2 episodes)
• Angel Parker as Luna Grey (1 episode)
• Jade Payton as Dominique Grey (1 episode)
• Jose Pablo Cantillo as Franco DeSantis (1 episode)
• Antonio Jaramillo as Robert Ortiz (1 episode)
• Kurt Yaeger as Graham Ross (1 episode)
• Matthew Glave as Oscar Hutchinson (1 episode)
• Sean Maher as Caleb Jost (1 episode)
• Mario Lopez as Himself (1 episode)
• Grant Harvey as Cole Midas (1 episode)
• Michael Trucco as Sean Del Monte (1 episode)
• Jim Lau as Patrick Chen (1 episode)
• Joel McHale as Brad Hayes (1 episode)
• Caleb Castille as Dylan Scott (1 episode)
• Robbie A. Kay as Simon Parks Jr. (1 episode)
• will.i.am as Himself (1 episode)
• Valerie Cruz as Detective Elena Ruiz (2 episodes)
• Stephen Lang as Chief Trent Williams (1 episode)
• Felicia Day as Dr. Morgan (1 episode)

Releases

The season was released on DVD on August 27, 2019 (Canada and USA). The season is due for release on Blu-ray on March 9, 2020 (UK).

Episodes

Picture	Title	Number	Original Airdate	Writer	Director
	"Pilot"	1	October 16, 2018	Alexi Hawley	Liz Friedlander
	John Nolan is a man in his forties who, after witnessing a bank robbery in his small town, packs up his entire life to move to Los Angeles and become a cop. His assignment to the force is met with skepticism from his fellow officers, particularly his watch commander, Sergeant Wade Grey, and his training officer Talia Bishop. Also joining Nolan as rookie officers are Jackson West, son of a high ranking LAPD officer and eager to live up to the legacy, and Lucy Chen, who became a cop against the wishes of her parents and who is carrying on a secret affair with Nolan despite the risk it poses to her career.
	"Crash Course"	2	October 23, 2018	Alexi Hawley	Adam Davidson
	Talia forces Nolan to confront his personal moral instincts in order to be a good cop after he encounters a kidnapping victim. Meanwhile, Lucy is temporarily placed with a new training officer who tests her patience, and Jackson must confront his failures head-on if he wants to be an officer.
	"The Good, the Bad and the Ugly"	3	October 30, 2018	Liz Alper & Ally Seibert	Greg Beeman
	After Nolan and Talia lose control of a crime scene, they begin to debate whether people are fundamentally good or bad and what that means for a police officer. Meanwhile, Lucy is concerned Tim is enabling his wife's destructive behavior and not taking care of himself.
	"The Switch"	4	November 13, 2018	Vincent Angell	Toa Fraser
	Sgt. Grey tests the rookies by assigning them new T.O.s, partnering Nolan with Lopez, West with Bradford, and Chen with Bishop. Nolan accompanies Lopez to court and ends up chasing an escaped prisoner, whose gratitude for their handling of his arrest leads him to tip them to a major drug bust. Bradford learns about West's struggles when he freezes during a shootout. Chen defends her relationship with Nolan to Bishop during their patrol, prompting Nolan and Chen to have a talk about their relationship.
	"The Roundup"	5	November 20, 2018	Elizabeth Davis Beall	Nelson McCormick
	Nolan struggles to deal with his breakup with Chen just as the T.O.s start an annual competition to see who can get the most felony arrests in a single shift. Bradford plays to win, even bribing a dispatcher to get the best calls, which worries Chen. Meanwhile, West dives headfirst into the competition to prove himself while Nolan and Bishop, who is refusing to play, find themselves dealing with a mob-connected banker.
	"The Hawke"	6	November 27, 2018	Fredrick Kotto	Timothy Busfield
	Nolan meets up with Jeremy Hawke, his former training officer at the academy, and learns he has fallen on tough times. Lopez and West interview a domestic violence victim who turns out to be Hawke's estranged wife Megan. Nolan and Bishop are ordered to bring Hawke in, but Hawke flees from them and goes on the run. The Mid-Wilshire cops run Hawke down in a local mall, where he makes a stand against Nolan and Bradford. Lopez and West investigate a shooting incident where the victim and his father both seem to be lying.
	"The Ride Along"	7	December 4, 2018	Robert Bella	Cherie Nowlan
	Nolan and Bishop are assigned to take Hollywood director Rupert Payne, of whom Nolan is a fan, for a ride along to research his new film. Payne observes Nolan and Bishop deescalating a situation involving a mentally impaired young man from a troubled neighborhood, which leads to a dangerous situation when Rupert tries to help the young man's family. Meanwhile, West informs Lopez that she is being considered for detective, which prompts Lopez to attempt leveraging smaller criminals into giving up a major player. Elsewhere, Bradford's wife is arrested in a drugs bust, forcing Bradford to choose, once and for all, between his devotion to his wife and his devotion to his duty as a cop.
	"Time of Death"	8	December 11, 2018	Brynn Malone	Mike Goi
	Nolan and Bishop pursue two men who tried to rob a convenience store at gunpoint. Nolan confronts one of the robbers in a nearby home and makes a split-second decision to use lethal force, leading to an investigation, interrogation, and disorientation on Nolan's part. Isabel Bradford turns informant to keep from going to prison and agrees to meet up with her dealer's supplier, but the meeting does not go as planned.
	"Standoff"	9	January 8, 2019	Alexi Hawley	John Terlesky
	Nolan manages to fight off his attacker. Meanwhile, Bradford's wife Isabel is found shot in the head but she survives. The officers, excluding Nolan, go to an apartment building to find Vance, the drug dealer who shot Isabel, but they end up in a fire fight with the dealer's crew.
	"Flesh and Blood"	10	January 15, 2019	Inda Craig-Galvan	Jessica Yu
	On Captain Andersen’s orders, Officer Nolan and Sergeant Grey are paired up for the day on patrol. Additionally, Nolan’s son and Grey’s daughter visit their dads on the job and see them in action. Meanwhile, Officer Chen is paired up with Captain Andersen and learns about Andersen's past experiences.
	"Redwood"	11	January 22, 2019	Ally Seibert & Liz Alper	Sylvain White
	An unscheduled visit by the vice president of the United States puts the station on high alert. The Secret Service tasks Officer Nolan and Officer Bishop with checking out a possible threat to the vice president while the rest of the team tries to keep the streets clear and safe for his visit.
	"Heartbreak"	12	February 12, 2019	Vincent Angell	Carol Banker
	The most dangerous day of the year - Valentine's Day - has the team on high alert, and Officer Nolan invites everyone over for a party now that he is single.
	"Caught Stealing"	13	February 19, 2019	David Radcliff	Omar Madha
	The rookies become the prime suspects after it is discovered a large sum of money used in a drug bust has gone missing
	"Plain Clothes Day"	14	February 26, 2019	Terence Paul Winter	Mike Goi
	The rookies are put to the test when their training officers accompany them out of uniform for Plain Clothes Day, which forces them to make all the decisions while on patrol. Meanwhile, Officer Nolan tries to prove he has been progressing faster than the other rookies to justify his desire of becoming a detective within five years.
	"Manhunt"	15	March 5, 2019	Robert Bella	Bill Johnson
	A former FBI agent, brought in by Grey to train the officers in hostage negotiations, becomes part of an operation to capture several felons who escaped custody when their bus crashed. West hears from one of the prisoners some disturbing claims about his father's past.
	"Green Light"	16	March 19, 2019	Brynn Malone	Valerie Weiss
	Officer Nolan gets a lesson in respect after his arrest of a gang member leads to a free-for-all on his life. Meanwhile, Officer Chen and Officer Bradford pull over Mario Lopez, who thinks he can talk his way out of a traffic violation.
	"The Shake Up"	17	March 26, 2019	Alexi Hawley	Steve Robin
	A massive earthquake rocks the city and throws everyone's patrols and its citizens into chaos. Meanwhile, Agent Russo recommends Officer Nolan for a protective detail on Brad Hayes, a witness whose dealings have put a target on his head.
	"Homefront"	18	April 2, 2019	Bill Rinier & Natalie Callaghan	April Mullen
	When a detective is arrested by Internal Affairs for lying on the witness stand, it leads to the release of three felons whose cases he worked on and the team being tasked with checking up on them. Meanwhile, Officer Nolan finds out he is being sued by a man who claims he used excessive force which led to an injury.
	"The Checklist"	19	April 9, 2019	Elizabeth Davis Beall & Fredrick Kotto	John Fortenberry
	Sergeant Grey informs the rookies that they must track down a specific set of crimes in a 48-hour period in order to qualify for their final exam. Meanwhile, Officer Nolan and Officer Bishop answer a silent alarm call at will.i.am’s house.
	"Free Fall"	20	April 16, 2019	Alexi Hawley	Michael Goi
	As the rookies prepare for a big exam to see who moves on to the next stage of training, Officer Nolan and Officer Bishop are called to the scene of a murder and learn that the victim may be tied to a potential terrorist attack on the city of Los Angeles.

Advertising and Marketing

Posters

Promotional Photos

Nathan Fillion as John Nolan

Alyssa Diaz as Angela Lopez

Richard T. Jones as Sergeant Wade Grey

Titus Makin as Jackson West

Mercedes Mason as Captain Zoe Andersen

Melissa O'Neil as Lucy Chen

Afton Williamson as Talia Bishop

Eric Winter as Tim Bradford

Promotional Videos

Official Teaser - The Rookie

The Rookie - Getting to Know The Rookie

Trivia

• This is the only season to star Afton Williamson as Talia Bishop and Mercedes Mason as Zoe Andersen. Mason is not credited as part of the main cast during episodes where the Andersen character was absent.