The 2025-26 season is quickly coming to an end, and we’re officially in that stretch of the season when all of our favorite shows begin signing off the air. For some shows, they’ll simply be signing off for the summer until it’s time to begin a new season in the fall. Others will sign off for the rest of the year and return in the new year. And then there are those shows that will sign off the air for good, be it with a planned series finale or a wave of cliffhangers from an unplanned ending.
At this point, most shows have learned their fate; however, there are several high-profile series that are somehow still waiting to learn their fates over at ABC.
Of ABC’s 10 scripted comedies and dramas, only five have been renewed as of April 6, which means the second half are all waiting to learn their fates still. 911, 911: Nashville, Abbott Elementary, Grey’s Anatomy, and High Potential are all renewed, but The Rookie, RJ Decker, Scrubs, Shifting Gears, and Will Trent are all waiting to learn their fates.
Truthfully, it would not be shocking at all for ABC to renew all five of the shows, as there are clear arguments to be had as to why each deserves to be renewed. However, of this bunch, it definitely is the most surprising that The Rookie has somehow yet to be renewed.
In its eighth season, The Rookie is soaring to new heights with the show finding millions of new fans thanks to streaming. As of March, The Rookie ranked among the top 5 of all network TV shows when it comes to total viewership and falls behind only High Potential and Dancing with the Stars when it comes to the targeted adults 18-49 age demographic.
This continues the strong trend of The Rookie becoming a formidable force in the world of streaming. In 2025, The Rookie was the tenth most-streamed non-streaming original, with over 22 billion minutes streamed on Hulu.
Not only are its ratings on the rise, proving fans are more invested than ever in the show, but ABC continues to look to the series as a franchise it hopes to expand. ABC is working on yet another spinoff for the series in The Rookie North starring Jay Ellis, with the hopes seeming to be for the show to debut as part of the 2026-27 television season.
With a spinoff in the works and in active production, it’s wild that ABC is still waiting to announce the fate of the mothership series by holding back on renewing The Rookie for season 9. Hopefully, a renewal is imminent for The Rookie as it was in early April that ABC chose to renew the show for its current eighth season.