The Rookie star Eric Winter has revealed that filming is well and truly underway on the upcoming seventh season of the hit cop drama – and fans are making the same demand.
The actor gave his Instagram followers a look behind the scenes, sharing a selfie from the set featuring some of his co-stars, including Melissa O’Neil, who plays Lucy Chen, and Richard T. Jones – aka Wade Grey.
In the caption, Eric, who portrays Tim Bradford, penned: “Nothin but mid-Wilshire’s finest back on our game for season 7 of @therookieabc! Let’s go! Director @alexihawley crushing it as usual! #therookie #season7.”
Fans were delighted with the update and expressed their excitement for the new season in the comments section. One person penned: “SO EXCITED AHHHHH,” while another wrote: “LET’S GO SEASON SEVEN AHHH.”
Others, however, shared their hopes for season seven, demanding to see Tim and Lucy reconcile after their dramatic split in season six.
“Chen and Tim. That’s what we want,” penned one passionate fan, while another added: “Eric, I NEED CHENFORD BACK this season.”
A third follower joked: “If Chenford isn’t sorted, I’m suing.”
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During an exclusive interview with HELLO! in May, Eric gave us an idea of what to expect from Tim and Lucy in the new season. “I think we’re going to see Tim and Lucy continue to learn how to navigate their feelings while being on the job,” said the 47-year-old. “We’ll see them pick up in a place where they’ve shown that they care about each other and now they have to figure out, ‘can we give each other space to do our job and allow our feelings to stay in a safe place but not rush anything and hope one person doesn’t go astray?'”
The TV star also revealed that season seven finds Tim back in the field. “I do know we’re gonna see Tim back in the field training rookies, which I think is what people always loved about Tim,” he said. “I think people liked Metro Tim, but I think people do like training officer Tim, so we’ll get him back out in the field.”
The show is set to return in January 2025 and while some fans are disappointed at the longer gap between seasons, it means that the show will return with a non-stop run of episodes.
While Eric was initially “very nervous” about the scheduling, he now thinks it’s for the best. “I know how much of a priority The Rookie is to ABC and with this being an election year and a lot of time being devoted to those sorts of things, they’re trying to protect it,” the actor told us. “There would be too many gaps, and the fans don’t love that.
He added: “So they’re really trying to put us in a lineup where we can give eight episodes in a row with no interruption and so I appreciate it for that reason.”
