Star of The Rookie, Nathan Fillion, has a long history with DC Comics’ characters from voicing Green Lantern in animation to playing one in live-action in 2025’s Superman. Fillion isn’t the only cast member with ties the DC multiverse. Jenna Dewan plays John Nolan’s wife and Lucy Lane in Supergirl and Superman & Lois. Lisseth Chavez is Nolan’s trainee and also played an original character in DC’s Legends of Tomorrow. Yet, one of the most prominent actors who appeared in The Rookie has a secret connection to the Arrowverse that even fans miss.
In 2012, Arrow debuted, offering up a relatively grounded hero in a world without supervillains or metahumans. That all changed when a second series, The Flash, spun off in 2014 and eventually expanded. At one point, The CW had six weekly DC-inspired series that shared continuity. Dubbed “the Arrowverse,” hundreds of actors brought it to life, so it’s only natural some of them would also appear on The Rookie. There are actually dozens of actors who did an episode or two in the Arrowverse, and an episode of the network police drama. However, Harold Perrineau played a prominent role in both The Rookie and a DC show on NBC fans may not realize is supposed to be part of the Arrowverse.
Harold Perrineau Played the First ‘Bad Cop’ on The Rookie
Before Almost Ruining John Nolan’s Life, He Was a Mentor
The first season of The Rookie only ever presented idealized police officers, so Armstrong was an important character. Perrineau was a recurring guest star, and with each appearance viewers grew to appreciate him more. It was only after the death of another rookie, Chris Rios, that viewers learned Armstrong was a dirty cop. Not only did he sell department secrets to mobsters, he obstructed investigations and killed another crooked cop in cold blood.
Harold Perrineau Played a Similar Role in NBC’s Constantine,
Perrineau’s Manny Was an Angel Ally Poised to Betray the Hellblazer
As fans waited for Barry Allen’s saga to begin on The CW’s The Flash, DC’s British mage John Constantine was headed to NBC. In March 2014, Harold Perrineau was cast as Manny, a kind of guardian angel to Matt Ryan’s John Constantine. While the Hellblazer didn’t need a mentor, Perrineau’s slick celestial shared some qualities with his character in The Rookie. He had an important job, but he kept showing up to help the series’ protagonists with big problems. Similarly, like Nick Armstrong, Manny had fallen from grace.
“You’re not okay, John. You damned a girl to hell and, along with her, your soul. Now, I can’t change your fate, but I can ease your suffering.” — Manny to John Constantine in “Non Est Asylum.”
In the series finale, popular DC character Papa Midnite showed up to collect a cosmic bounty placed on John Constantine. Though his plan was foiled, and he was arrested, Manny freed him in the final scene, implying that he was the architect of the Rising Darkness. Unfortunately, despite efforts by the actors to save Constantine, NBC canceled the series. Manny’s true nature was never revealed.
John Constantine Lost His Show, but the Character Gained a Universe
Matt Ryan Joined DC’s Legends of Tomorrow as Constantine
While Manny claimed to be part of the evil threatening the world, he only ever tried to protect Constantine and his friends. His fate is forever a mystery, but John Constantine was resurrected on Arrow a year later. Fittingly, he showed up to perform a resurrection or, at least, raise the soul of Sarah Lance from hell. In interviews at the time of this first appearance, producers said Matt Ryan’s character wasn’t a multiversal variant, but rather the same character from NBC’s Constantine.
This seemed to imply that Constantine was retconned into the Arrowverse continuity. While the series on The CW frequently worked in small connections between the shows, the NBC series had none of that. While an entertaining 13 hours, Constantine had no bearing on the larger Arrowverse saga. Claiming that the series as part of the Arrowverse didn’t create any continuity problems, at least for the Arrow appearance. Eventually, Matt Ryan brought the mage to Legends of Tomorrow for another guest spot.
Soon afterward, John Constantine joined Legends of Tomorrow as a regular character, and it brought back Bailey Tippen as Astra Logue. This continued to imply that Constantine was part of the Arrowverse. The problem came when a different actor was cast as Jim Corrigan for Crisis on Infinite Earths. It’s possible that Jim Corrigan was from a different Earth, since Oliver became the Spectre for the entire DC multiverse. Despite all the disparate DC cameos in that crossover, Perrineau didn’t return as Manny.
There Are Plenty of Arrowverse Alums in The Rookie
The Crossover Extends From Series Regulars to Notable Guest Stars
