The Rookie Announces Major Cast Change for Season Seven – Details Inside

The Rookie has officially entered production for its seventh season. Fans were excited to see cast members Nathan Fillion, Eric Winter, and Melissa O’Neill posting from the set in LA. An exciting development came when Variety announced that Deric Augustine and Patrick Keleher would be joining the cast.

Deric Augustine, known for his roles in Shameless, Godfather of Harlem, and All American, will portray a new rookie named Miles. Miles is described as one of the latest additions to the LAPD, a Texas transfer who, despite being labeled a ‘rookie,’ is a two-year veteran of the force.

Patrick Keleher, primarily a theater star making his TV debut, will take on the role of Seth in The Rookie. According to the show’s description, Seth appears to be an ideal police officer, but the job demands quick, decisive action, something that does not come naturally to him.

Following the announcement, both Deric and Patrick celebrated with friends and fans on Instagram. Melissa O’Neill, known for her role as Lucy Chen, introduced her new co-stars on her Stories with a welcoming note: “Everybody welcome @dericaugustine @patrickkeleher.”

On June 21, Mekia Cox, who portrays Nyla Harper, confirmed that the cast and crew had returned to the set. She posted a photo of her co-stars with the caption, “Day 1 of The Rookie Season 7! #TheRookie @therookieabc.”

The new season is slated to premiere in January 2025 and will consist of 18 episodes. This time, the weekly schedule is expected to go uninterrupted. Details about the plot are still under wraps. However, Eric Winter shared some updates regarding his character, Tim Bradford.

Speaking exclusively to HELLO!, Winter revealed, “I do know we’re gonna see Tim back in the field training rookies, which I think is what people always loved about Tim. I think people liked Metro Tim, but I think people do like training officer Tim, so we’ll get him back out in the field.”

Winter also addressed Tim’s season six breakup with Lucy, explaining that season seven will focus on them navigating their feelings while being on the job. “We’ll see them pick up in a place where they’ve shown that they care about each other and now they have to figure out, ‘can we give each other space to do our job and allow our feelings to stay in a safe place but not rush anything and hope one person doesn’t go astray?'”

Reflecting on their breakup, Winter said, “I think this kind of storytelling is authentic and real. It brought me back to Ross and Rachel and Friends, where fans want to see relationships that they can relate to, even if it hurts their feelings – and fans got really upset about it.”

“When I was informed about it by Alexi, I thought it was a great opportunity for us to learn more about Tim and why he would even go through that or put her through that,” continued Winter.

“It’s not that he didn’t love her. It’s not that she doesn’t love him. He’s so lost in his identity a bit and doesn’t even love himself, and if you can’t love yourself, you can’t really be in a relationship and treat that person with respect. I think that’s what made the breakup unique and I thought it actually played out really well because it was uncomfortable.”

Source: Variety, HELLO!