Article Overview
ABC has officially cancelled The Rookie: Feds after season 1.
The spinoff did not reach the same level of success as The Rookie, its parent series. However, it still performed well and gained a growing viewership, especially with delayed viewing taken into account. The show's cancellation may have been influenced by the prolonged work stoppage caused by strikes, making it more difficult for networks to justify renewing a show that did not achieve overwhelming success.
ABC has finally revealed the fate of The Rookie: Feds season 2, putting an end to months of uncertainty. The spinoff, which followed Simone Clark (played by Niecy Nash-Betts), the oldest rookie in the FBI Academy, was created by Alexi Hawley and Terence Paul Winter. Alongside Nash-Betts, the show featured a talented cast including Felix Solis, Frankie Faison, Britt Robertson, Kevin Zegers, and James Lesure.
Unfortunately, after wrapping up its first season in May 2023, The Rookie: Feds will not be returning for a second season. This cancellation was confirmed by TVLine. In addition, ABC also announced that The Good Lawyer, a potential spinoff of The Good Doctor, will not be moving forward.
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Why The Rookie: Feds Was Cancelled
The main cast of The Good Lawyer would have featured Kennedy McMann, known for her role as CW's Nancy Drew, and Felicity Huffman from Desperate Housewives. The storyline would center around McMann's character, a lawyer who suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Contrary to The Rookie's initial breakout success, The Rookie: Feds had a more modest start, though its ratings remained steady. The spinoff premiered to an audience of 2.2 million viewers and a 0.3 rating in the highly sought-after demographic. However, reflecting the evolving landscape of television consumption, the show experienced an increase in viewership when accounting for delayed viewing. Additionally, strategically adjusting its timeslot and capitalizing on its connection to its parent series, The Rookie, proved advantageous.
The spinoff garnered an average of 4.3 million viewers and an improved 0.5 demo rating when considering live viewing and seven-day viewership. However, according to TVLine, it only outperformed Alaska Daily and The Company You Keep in the demo among all the dramas aired by ABC during the 2022-2023 TV season. Both of those shows, along with Big Sky, were cancelled over the summer. Nonetheless, the strikes may have also contributed to the show's cancellation. As negotiations with the writers and actors were delayed for months, prolonging the work stoppage to unprecedented levels, analysts and reporters have observed that it becomes increasingly challenging for networks to justify renewing a show like The Rookie: Feds, which did not achieve runaway success.
Source: TVLine
Editor's P/S
As a Gen Z fan, I'm disappointed to hear that ABC has canceled The Rookie: Feds after just one season. I was really enjoying the show and had high hopes for its future. I think it had a lot of potential and could have been a great addition to the "The Rookie" franchise. I'm not sure why ABC decided to cancel it, but I'm hoping that they will reconsider and bring it back for a second season.
I think "The Rookie: Feds" had a lot of things going for it. The cast was great, the writing was solid, and the action sequences were top-notch. I especially liked the character of Simone Clark, played by Niecy Nash-Betts. She was a strong and inspiring character who I think a lot of people could relate to. I also liked the way the show explored the challenges of being a woman in the FBI. I think it's important to have shows that represent the experiences of women in different careers, and "The Rookie: Feds" did a great job of that.