‘The Rookie’ Boss Talks Chenford’s ‘Cathartic’ Premiere & Return of Liam Glasser

To take down high-value targets, the LAPD has to trust the last person they want to in The Rookie Season 8 premiere on Tuesday, January 6: Monica (Bridget Regan). But hey, at least there’s some good news for Chenford fans!

Last we saw on the ABC drama, Monica made a deal using intel she had, and now, in the first episode of the new season, titled “Czech Mate,” the LAPD, FBI, and Interpol head to Prague with her to go after high-value terrorists operating both in and out of the U.S. Nolan (Nathan Fillion) and Bailey (Jenna Dewan) will be dealing with Monica in Prague, while others in Los Angeles have their hands full as well. Meanwhile, Tim (Eric Winter) made it clear he wants to move forward — and in together — with Lucy (Melissa O’Neil), but she was asleep and didn’t quite hear that … meaning that needs to be addressed as well.

Below, The Rookie showrunner Alexi Hawley previews what to expect in the first episode in Prague, with Chenford, and more.

You’re kicking off the season in Prague, Monica’s back. What can you say about how much time has passed and how has Monica been making trouble for everyone in that time?

Alexi Hawley: Not a lot of time has passed. We pick up a few storylines pretty close to when — it’s only a few days later. In the interim, they’ve been gearing up for this operation basically that we kick off at the top of the episode, which is sort of the first of what we set up to be several Monica task force, go get some big bads with her storytelling.

Disney/Mike Taing

Talk about bringing the show to Prague and who’s having the most trouble when it comes to Monica’s deal and being in Prague with her?

Yeah, I mean, coming into Season 8, you always want to do something bigger and better. You want to make the audience excited to come back. And so I got the idea of, “Let’s go somewhere,” which is not a thing that happens in a Season 8 show, but I’m like, “We can figure out how to pay for it ourselves, so let’s go do something that feels bigger than Los Angeles and something that feels heightened in a really fun way and fish out of water for our characters and all that sort of added up to this.” And I think, ultimately, just given how great Bridget is as an actor and how compelling Monica can be, that sort of putting her with Nolan and Bailey as her babysitters while this operation is going at the same time, there’s a strike team back in L.A. trying to get ready for with our characters for the other part of this takedown. Yeah, it was just really fun to plot and to write and all that kind of stuff.

How is it going for Nolan and Bailey dealing with Monica?

I mean, they have her number for sure. So what I love is that they’re very simpatico about her, and nobody trusts her even a quarter of an inch. And so there’s some playfulness and banter to it, but at the same time, they’re watching her like a hawk. So it’s fun.

You left Chenford on the verge of getting back together. Lucy fell asleep. Tim wants them to move in together. What can you say about what’s coming up there and where’s Lucy’s head and heart when it comes to a future together? Because we know where Tim’s is.

Yeah, look, I mean, I think ultimately I’ve gone on the record saying that Chenford fans should be happy this coming season, and I stand by that, but I do think that at the end of the day, Lucy still needs a conversation. It’s not as easy as just saying, “Will you go out with me again? Will you move in with me again?” Whatever it’s going to be. I mean, he did break our heart, and we’ve been working them closer together. I really love that we took the time to do that, even though it might’ve been a little infuriating to some people, but I think it needed to be earned. And so I think obviously this first episode is going to be cathartic and then we’ll see where we go from there.

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What are the chances of seeing Liam Glasser (Seth Gabel) again?

I think they’re pretty good. [Laughs]

Does that mean it’s planned?

I mean, we’re shooting Episode 15 right now, so I don’t want to say more than that. But yes, I think you have a good shot at seeing Liam Glasser again.

Are there any other returning characters that you can preview are coming back?

There are. I mean, at some point, we definitely need to see Oscar [Matthew Glave] again because he is always a joy. Yeah, there’s going to be some characters coming back. I mean, the Glasser storyline will come back in a very interesting way and pull some people along with that, I think, is safe to say.

The Rookie, Season 8 Premiere, Tuesday, January 6, 10/9c, ABC