ABC just rolled out its 2025 fall TV schedule for its annual Upfronts presentation, and it's missing some of the network's biggest shows, according to Deadline.
While ABC has a stellar lineup of 911, 911: Nashville, High Potential, Grey's Anatomy, and more hit shows this fall, two of its most popular dramas will, again, return with new seasons in early 2026. Of course, I'm referring to The Rookie and Will Trent.
ABC revealed The Rookie season 8 and Will Trent season 4 are lined up for midseason premieres on Tuesday nights, along with High Potential season 2. It's probably not what fans were hoping for, but the decision makes a lot of sense looking at the lineup.
The Rookie season 7 and Will Trent season 3 also premiered at midseason in 2025, and they were huge hits for ABC this spring.
Disney Television Group President Craig Erwich explained the decision to hold The Rookie season 8 and Will Trent season 4 until midseason. Here's what he said, via Deadline:
“Rookie and Will Trent is a repeat of the extraordinarily successful schedule we had last seasons. Will Trent was one of the only broadcast shows that actually grew year over year. I think one of the reasons for that was, when we start in January, we’re able to run all of the episodes straight through, and it creates this kind of momentum.”
In other words, ABC is basically running back the same schedule for 2026 that they ran in 2025, and it's hard to argue with that strategy. Most viewership metrics suggest The Rookie and Will Trent are two of the most popular TV shows of the spring.
By holding The Rookie and Will Trent for the midseason, ABC basically releases the full season without having to take multiple breaks through the season. It definitely builds momentum, allows these stories to flourish, and only seems like a good thing. That's not to say 911, High Potential, and Grey's Anatomy are wrong for their release schedules, which include multiple breaks to allow production to catch up, basically, throughout the season. It's just that the model works really well for The Rookie and Will Trent. It's interesting to see ABC double down on that release strategy.
As for exactly when The Rookie season 8 and Will Trent season 4 will premiere, that has not been revealed yet. The Deadline report did mention January as a possible premiere month for ABC's schedule. That would be in line with what we've seen, historically, for the network, and more specifically, The Rookie and Will Trent, which just had their new season premiere on Jan. 7, 2025.
Because ABC is rolling out a similar schedule for those shows in 2026 as it did in 2025, I have to assume that we'll see the season premieres for The Rookie and Will Trent in the first or second week of the new year. There's a lot of time, and a lot of things need to happen before then. We'll just have to wait and see what ABC chooses to do, but I have a good feeling we won't wait too long into 2026 before ABC rolls out new episodes of these shows.
Stay tuned for more news about The Rookie and Will Trent!