ABC Reveals Premiere Date for Nathan Fillion’s ‘The Rookie’

Nathan Fillion’s triumphant return to ABC on new series The Rookie has an official premiere date.

The new cop show will be premiering Tuesday, October 16, along with the Tuesday ABC comedy lineup that includes Roseanne-less spinoff series The Conners.

Fillion played Richard Castle in the network’s hit series Castle, and has teamed up with one of the series’ executive producers, Alexi Hawley, on the new series, which will see Fillion take on becoming a rookie police officer at a mature age.

“Starting over isn’t easy, especially for small-town guy John Nolan who, after a life-altering incident, is pursuing his dream of being an LAPD officer,” reads the series’ logline. “As the force’s oldest rookie, he’s met with skepticism from some higher-ups who see him as just a walking midlife crisis. If he can’t keep up with the young cops and the criminals, he’ll be risking lives including his own. But if he can use his life experience, determination, and sense of humor to give him an edge, he may just become a success in this new chapter of his life.”

Fillion is joined in the main cast by Alyssa Diaz, Richard T. Jones, Titus Malin, Mercedes Mason, Melissa O’Neil, Afton Williamson and Eric Winter.

Hawley, who rose to the rank of executive producer on Castle in the final season, also worked on shows like The Following and Body of Proof. He brought Fillion on as a fellow executive producer on The Rookie, along with Mark Gordon, Michelle Chapman and John Steinberg. The pilot was directed and executive produced by Liz Friedlander.

Fillion rose to fame through a number of cult-classic and sci-fi projects. He was the intrepid captain of the Serenity space ship in the short-lived masterpiece Firefly, created by Joss Whedon. He reprised that role later when the show got a movie spin-off, simply titled Serenity.

Fillion also starred in the sci-fi horror Slither in 2006, gaining him further clout in the niche worlds of genre-based entertainment. These days, he has claimed more mainstream roles like Castle, or his new gig on The Rookie, but many still think of him as the patron saint of science fiction in Hollywood.

Fillion is still expected to return for a third season of Santa Clarita Diet on Netflix, though his future on Modern Family is somewhat less clear. As the eccentric weatherman, Rainer Shine, he could be back on the air at any time.

Ready for a new Nathan Fillion-led hit for ABC? The Rookie premieres Tuesday, October 16 at 10 p.m. ET.