Television May 13, 2026
'The Rookie’s’ Melissa O’Neil on Finale Kidnapping: ‘Iconic Chenford’ (Exclusive)
Disney/Jenny Anderson
Melissa O’Neil, Mekia Cox and Lisseth Chavez are promoting their show “The Rookie” at ABC Upfronts.
“Extra’s” Tommy DiDario spoke with Melissa, Mekia and Lisseth, who talked about Tim and Lucy being kidnapped right after their romantic engagement in the Season 8 finale.
Calling it “iconic Chenford," Melissa quipped, “We give you a little bit, we take it away, we give you a little bit more, and then we strip it away. I think people love that.”
When asked how the crew will react to Tim and Lucy being kidnapped, Lisseth said, "I don’t know… My instinct is just going to be to go find her.”
Mekia added, “I think the audience really loves when we all have a mission to do together and especially if it’s to save one our crew and now it’s to save two of our crew, and it’s like the two that we love and the fact that we all knew that this wedding, this engagement, was about to happen and now they’re gone.”
Mekia teased that the premiere of Season 9 will be “epic” as the crew goes on a mission to find their friends.
As for what they hope for their character in the new season, Lisseth shared, “I would like to go fully undercover, but, like, unrecognizable undercover where just like people are like, ‘Was Selena in this episode?’”
Mekia wants her character to “coach” Selena, saying, “I’ve been there and I’m not exactly trying to do that as much anymore.”
Melissa wants to return to the “old-school beat cop patrol stuff,” saying, “I want to see us int the cars. I want to see us stopping people on the street, dealing with traffic situations. I kind of miss that a little bit… It would be really sweet to get back to our roots.”
Tommy also spoke with Eric Winter about his take on the kidnapping since he plays Tim on the show.
He said, “It was a big bang at the end that we didn’t see coming for sure and very dramatic style, but I think that’s what 'The Rookie’ always does so well, right? We take something so simple that should be straightforward and we turn it into a big ordeal and it’ll kick us off into a strong Season 9.”
Eric thinks that Tim and Lucy will “wake up in different rooms and we don’t know what’s going on and we’re coming to and then it’s just panic."
