Hot Picks: The Rookie

At a time when the international drama market is dominated by limited series, The Rookie could hold some appeal to mainstream broadcasters crying out for a case-of- the-week crime procedural with US production values and a recognisable cast.

EOne president, international distribution, Stuart Baxter describes it as “an enjoyable, accessible cop show that has the feel of a classic precinct show like Hill Street Blues”.

Launching on ABC later this year, the 13-part series is based on a true story. It stars Nathan Fillion as John Nolan – “the oldest rookie in the LAPD”.

At an age when most people are at the peak of their career, Nolan moves to LA to pursue his dream of being a cop. Surrounded by rookies 20 years his junior, he must navigate the dangerous and humorous world of a young cop.

According to Baxter, Fillion’s involvement is a huge boost to the show’s prospects. “He is remembered and loved by buyers for Castle, which ran for eight seasons and did well for man broadcasters around the world. We’ve already had some initial offers based on his involvement.”

Also significant, says Baxter, is that this is a Mark Gordon production.

“Since eOne acquired Mark Gordon’s company in 2015, Mark has take on a much more central role in our scripted development and production [he was named as chief content officer in January 2018]. He is well known to buyers for many series that have succeeded internationally.”

While Europe’s free-to-air channels are obvious targets for eOne, Baxter is not ruling out SVoD platforms. “Netflix and Amazon have both started looking at procedural shows more closely again. Netflix has found that it can encourage a kind of millennial-parent co-viewing experience around shows like Grey’s Anatomy,” he says.

Other shows on the firm’s Mip TV slate include crime caper Caught, Burden Of Truth and The Detail, a female-fronted drama that Baxter says has the feel of Cagney & Lacey or Scott & Bailey.