ABC is gearing up for The Rookie‘s backdoor pilot. The 2-episode event is the first taste of a spinoff starring Niecy Nash.
As the network states: In part one of the two-part event, titled “Simone,” Officer John Nolan (Nathan Fillion) and the LA division of the FBI enlist the help of FBI trainee Simone Clark (Niecy Nash) when one of her former students is suspected of terrorism following an explosion at a local power station.
The episode was co-written by Alexi Hawley & Terence Paul Winter and directed by Liz Friedlander.
Nash’s Simone Clark is described as “a force of nature, the living embodiment of a dream deferred – and the oldest rookie in the FBI Academy.” The spinoff would have the franchise expand beyond the LAPD.
The episodes also feature Frankie Faison as Christopher “Cutty” Clark, Kat Foster as Special Agent Casey Fox and Felix Solis as Special Agent Matthew Garza.
The Rookie stars Nathan Fillion as John Nolan, Mekia Cox as Nyla Harper, Alyssa Diaz as Angela Lopez, Richard T. Jones as Sergeant Wade Grey, Melissa O’Neil as Lucy Chen, Eric Winter as Tim Bradford, Jenna Dewan as Bailey Nune and Shawn Ashmore as Wesley Evers.
Alexi Hawley is the creator and executive producer. Terence Paul Winter, Mark Gordon, Nathan Fillion, Michelle Chapman and Bill Norcross are executive producers.
Entertainment One (eOne) is the lead studio and the show is a co-production with ABC Signature.
The two-part event begins April 24.
