Editor's note: The below contains spoilers for The Rookie Season 5, Episodes 1-9.
So far, Season 5 of The Rookie has been a blast and fortunately, we don’t need to wait too long before it’s back on our screens! After the Christmas break, the series will be returning for its midseason premiere on ABC on Tuesday, January 3, at 8 PM Eastern. Created by Alexi Hawley, The Rookie follows John Nolan, a forty-five-year-old construction worker from Pennsylvania. After helping police officers during a bank robbery, John decides to take a big chance in his life. He moves to Los Angeles to pursue a new career as an officer in the LAPD. Becoming the oldest rookie in the LAPD’s history, John embraces this significant career and lifestyle change, despite its many challenges.
Over the last four seasons, John has worked with many fellow officers, detectives, and sergeants in his station, who have formed a family of sorts that we’re now attached to as well. So, before Season 5 returns, check out this convenient cast and character guide below to refresh your memory on where we last left everyone and who plays them!
Nathan Fillion as John Nolan (Rank: Police Officer II)
First things first, putting it simply, John is a nice guy. No, he’s not perfect, but he’s incredibly friendly and charismatic, as well as our moral center in the show. One that’s honored to share advice, while similarly honored to receive it. One with a sense of humor that can also be a shoulder to cry on when times are tough. He’s gracious for all the experiences that life has dealt him so far, and what he learned from them, but he’s also excited to learn so much more, no matter how hard it may be. Fortunately, he’s got lots of caring friends, now family, by his side who have supported him every step of the way. During Season 4, we saw John become his station’s union representative, another way that he can help his friends and fellow officers. So far in Season 5, John has gotten his dream position as a Training Officer (TO) and has been assigned to train his first rookie, Celina Juarez.
Nathan Fillion has starred in many popular TV shows over the last few decades, including Firefly, Castle, and A Series of Unfortunate Events. He’s also appeared in videogame series such as Halo and Destiny and, more recently, in films such as 2021’s The Suicide Squad.
Melissa O’Neil as Lucy Chen (Rank: Police Officer II)
Lucy conducted her rookie training in the LAPD alongside John. She, too, is hardworking and determined, however, she can also be overly ambitious and eager to prove herself at times, which can sometimes undermine her actions. During her first few years on the force, Lucy has gone through quite a few traumatic situations, such as being kidnapped and trapped in a barrel far out in the desert. Despite this, she’s very strong-willed and does not let these events define her. Like John, she is always gracious for the support of her friends and remains motivated to pursue her career goals in the LAPD. In Seasons 4 and 5, having completed her rookie training, Lucy has continued to work the beat with her fellow officers. However, she is often drawn to more complicated assignments involving undercover work, which she receives guidance on from Nyla. In her social life, to many fans’ excitement, she also broke up with Chris so she could go on a first date with Tim.
Melissa O’Neil is an accomplished singer, having won the third season of Canadian Idol back in 2005. After releasing an album and doing some musical theatre, she moved more towards TV, having starred in shows such as Dark Matter, iZombie, and Condor.
Eric Winter as Tim Bradford (Rank: Police Officer III/Sergeant I)
Before joining the LAPD, Tim served as a Marine squad leader in Iran and Afghanistan. He takes his job as a police officer very seriously, with this stern attitude rarely disappearing even when he’s off the clock. Tim is grateful for his friends and family, but he struggles to show it sometimes. We first meet Tim when he’s assigned to be Lucy’s TO. Sticking to his typical nature, he’s very strict and focused purely on training Lucy, not becoming her friend. However, the two quickly develop a strong bond, which allows Tim to open up more to her and others in the station. In Season 4, with Wade’s guidance, Tim rose to the rank of Sergeant I, giving him more responsibilities and authority at the station. He also reconnected with his sister Gennifer (Peyton List) to help renovate and sell their old family home. In Season 5, Gennifer made the move to Los Angeles, much to Tim’s excitement, and he worked up the courage to finally ask Lucy out for a date.
Eric Winter has appeared in TV shows such as Witches of East End, Secrets and Lies, and Rosewood. He has also recently starred in the Hallmark films Finding Santa and Taste of Summer.
Alyssa Diaz as Angela Lopez (Rank: Police Detective I)
We first got introduced to Angela as Jackson West’s (Titus Makin Jr.) TO. Like Tim, she is strict, but she’s always looking out for Jackson and is excited to see his progress. After many years working as a TO, Angela gets promoted to her dream job as a detective at the beginning of Season 3. At this time, Angela had a few massive life changes. She got engaged to lawyer Wesley Evers and found out she was pregnant. During the chaos of both her career and family life taking off at once, she also got kidnapped by the ruthless drug lord La Fiera (Camille Guaty) at her wedding. Since being rescued, Angela has been incredibly busy during Seasons 4 and 5 as she attempts to balance her work and family life. Fortunately, she has Wesley and her friends at the station to support her. She and Wesley also named their baby boy after Jackson, who was killed by La Fiera’s men at their wedding.
Alyssa Diaz recently had main roles on TV shows such as Zoo and Narcos: Mexico, as well as a recurring role on Ray Donovan. She also lent her voice to the role of Renee Montoya in Batman: The Long Halloween, Part Two.
Shawn Ashmore as Wesley Evers
Wesley grew up in a very rich family, and while he doesn’t pride himself on this, his mother Patrice (Jane Daly) certainly does. When he first started dating Angela, Patrice greatly disapproved of their relationship, thinking that she was not worthy of the Evers name. Fortunately, over time, Wesley managed to get his mother and Angela to reconcile their differences and become friends. In Season 4, we saw Wesley become a crooked lawyer for a crime boss named Elijah Stone (Brandon Jay McLaren). Unbeknownst to the LAPD, Wesley went to Elijah for help to locate Angela after she was kidnapped but working for him was the price. Luckily, Elijah was soon taken down by the LAPD, however, in doing so, Wesley had to admit the truth about his actions. Wesley was temporarily suspended from the bar, so during his suspension, he offered free legal advice to the local community. In Season 5, he started a new job at the DA’s office, but Elijah is back on the streets, creating issues in both his personal and professional lives.
Shawn Ashmore is perhaps best known for his role as Bobby Drake/Iceman in the X-Men film series. He has also starred in TV shows such as The Following, Conviction, and The Boys, as well as the video games Quantum Break and Man of Medan.
Richard T. Jones as Wade Grey (Rank: Sergeant II)
Wade served in the US army before joining the LAPD. At the station, he is the watch commander, meaning that he oversees many, if not all, of the investigations being conducted. He often assigns officers their next assignments. He also holds briefs for larger missions, which could involve big sections of the team, and even external reinforcements/task forces such as the FBI. Over the last couple of seasons, we’ve seen Wade consider his retirement from the LAPD, something his wife Luna (Angel Parker) hopes will be sooner rather than later because of his age. During Seasons Four and Five, he has continued in his role of watch commander, while also offering both John and Tim guidance in their new career paths as a union representative and sergeant.
Richard T. Jones has appeared in many TV shows such as Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Hawaii Five-0, and Santa Clarita Diet. He also recently appeared in the films The Public and Round of Your Life.
Mekia Cox as Nyla Harper (Rank: Police Detective I)
First introduced in Season 2, we meet Nyla as she decides to stop doing undercover work after four years, hoping to become a more stable presence in her daughter’s life. She is fighting to get joint custody of Lila with her ex-husband, Donovan. Looking for a new role within the LAPD, Nyla is assigned as John’s new TO, which she initially finds hard to adjust to after her time undercover. During Seasons 3 and 4, Nyla forms a stronger bond with Lila and begins patching up her relationship with Donovan so they can amicably continue co-parenting. She also starts dating James Murray, a worker at the local community center, to who she eventually gets married. In Season 5, the newlywed couple had their first child together and Nyla is now working as a detective.
Mekia Cox has recently starred in TV shows with roles such as Amanda Warner in Secrets and Lies, Dr. Robyn Charles in Chicago Med, and Tiana in Once Upon A Time.
Jenna Dewan as Bailey Nune
Bailey was first introduced in the Season 3 finale as John’s date to Angela and Wesley’s wedding. She is a firefighter in the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD), as well as a reserve in the Army National Guard. In Season 4, Bailey and John officially begin dating, but things get rocky when her emotionally abusive ex-husband came back into the picture. Despite some early road bumps, the two are now stronger than ever as they’ve moved in together. John was getting ready to propose to Bailey too. In Season 5 though, he was happily surprised when she proposed to him instead, and of course, he said yes!
Jenna Dewan has portrayed Lucy Lane in a recurring role on the TV shows Supergirl and Superman & Lois. She has also starred in shows such as American Horror Story: Asylum, Witches of East End, and The Resident.
Tru Valentino as Aaron Thorsen (Rank: Police Officer I)
Introduced recently in Season 4, we first met Aaron as he arrived at the LAPD to begin his rookie training, with Nyla as his TO. While on holiday overseas, Aaron was labeled the main suspect in the murder of his best friend, which placed him in the media’s spotlight. Though he knew he was innocent (as was officially proven later in the season), this new public perception made navigating his professional and personal lives very difficult. His relationship with his mother also remains strained, as she tried to capitalize on his "fame" by forcing him to star in a reality TV show.
Portraying Aaron Thorsen is Tru Valentino’s first major live-action on-screen role. However, he has done lots of voice work recently in animated TV series such as Fast & Furious Spy Racers, Spidey and His Amazing Friends, as well as The Cuphead Show, playing the titular character.
Other important recurring cast members appearing in The Rookie include Brent Huff as Officer Quigley Smitty (Rank: Police Officer III), Enver Gjokaj as Nyla's ex-husband Donovan Town, Carsyn Rose as Nyla and Donovan's daughter Lila Town, Dylan Conrique as Tamara Collins, Arjay Smith as Nyla's husband James Murray, Kanoa Goo as Assistant DA Chris Sanford, and Lisseth Chavez as the new rookie Celina Juarez, who joins the cast in Season 5 with John as her Training Officer. Additionally, Annie Wersching also recurs as serial killer Rosalind Dyer, who managed to escape from police custody before her trial in Season 5. However, in a shocking twist, she was shot dead by her unknown accomplice, who evaded capture from both the LAPD and FBI. Sounds like a new big storyline is just beginning…