The Rookie season 2 renewal debate: Can we count on more at ABC?
What are the odds for The Rookie season 2 on ABC? Now that we’re so close to the finale and we’re into our Renewal Debate series, now feels like the right time to take a little bit of a closer look at the subject.
Let’s start by going back in time a little bit to before this season, given that we think ABC imagined this being one of the biggest hits of the season. They had every reason in the world to think so — cop shows are popular, and they already knew that Nathan Fillion could bring in viewers at this very network. It was even airing the same night as The Conners, which has become one of their biggest comedy hits! Everything was lining up, but here we are and we can’t say that The Rookie is anything more than a bubble show for the network. There’s no guarantee it will come back, but within this article, we’ll make a case for why it could … but also shed some unfortunate light on why it may not.
At the bottom of this article, we’ve got a poll where you can share some of your thoughts on this subject, as well.
The case for a renewal – The Rookie hasn’t been dealt as strong of a hand as you’d think. While The Conners is a solid hit for ABC, most of that ratings juice trickles out before you get to The Rookie and it’s just not getting all that much when it comes to a lead-in. This is also a cursed timeslot for this network in that there have been SO many shows that have ended up canceled on the other time of airing here.
What The Rookie still has going for it is a star who is easily marketable all over the world, a studio connection that makes the show appealing to the network, and then also a great tax credit that is already in place in the event that the show is brought back for more. ABC’s a network that thinks in terms of dollar signs (aren’t most?), so they should covet this to a certain degree.
The case for cancellation – No matter how you justify the ratings, this is still a show generating only a 0.7 rating on average in the 18-49 demographic. While it’s better than How to Get Away with Murder on the schedule, it’s not setting the world on fire and you gotta wonder if another show could do better. Typically, new shows don’t suddenly spark up in the numbers for a second season, especially ones that are semi-procedural and probably aren’t going to get a whole lot of people hooked overnight.
Will The Rookie be back?
Despite the lower ratings, we actually think so, mostly because ABC still has other holes and issues with their schedule elsewhere and because this show has some merits in terms of DVR viewing and internet streams. We also think that it’d be seen as a pretty-big failure for them to cut bait on it after one season given the preseason hype and the star power, so they’ll probably retool some stuff and come back with a season 2 — don’t be shocked if there is a big-name actor added on board in the summer months to try and boost up some of those numbers.
Do you want to see The Rookie season 2 happen over on ABC? Be sure to vote, as mentioned, in the poll below!