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ABC renews 'Rookie Blue' for a second season

Missy Peregrym and Gregory Smith star in the Canadian cop drama

ABC renews 'Rookie Blue' for a second season

Missy Peregrym in this Thursday's episode of 'Rookie Blue'

Credit: ABC
ABC has renewed the Canadian-produced cop drama "Rookie Blue" for a second season, holding onto one of the summer's only original programming semi-successes.
 
Production on the second season of "Rookie Blue" will begin later this summer in Toronto. We assume ABC will hold the premiere of the next season for the summer of 2011, though that wasn't mentioned in the Monday (July 12) renewal announcement.
 
"We’re very pleased that the show has connected with viewers, especially considering the challenge of finding an audience in the summer, and are excited to pick it up for a second season," said Quinn Taylor, senior vice president, Movies, Miniseries and Acquisitions, ABC Entertainment Group.
 
Aided in no small part by a "Wipeout" lead-in, "Rookie Blue" has settled in as the summer's most-watched new series in the Thursday 9 p.m. hour, running neck-and-neck with repeats of "CSI" on CBS and finishing just behind FOX's "So You Think You Can Dance" in the 18-49 demo.
 
And in Canada, "Rookie Blue" had the highest-rated premiere for a Canadian drama series on any network in that country in over a decade. 
 
"We are so proud of 'Rookie Blue's' amazing success and are thrilled to announce its renewal alongside ABC," states Barbara Williams, executive vice-president of Content, Canwest Broadcasting. "This homegrown series has delivered record-setting audiences, and we're looking forward to giving fans even more of these fresh characters and gripping storylines in Season Two."
 
The story of a group of rookie cops learning the ropes in a Canadian city, "Rookie Blue" stars Missy Peregrym, Gregory Smith, Charlotte Sullivan, Enuka Okuma and Travis Milne. The series is executive produced by Tassie Cameron, Ilana Frank and David Wellington, plus Noreen Halpern and John Morayniss.
 
The creative troika of Tassie, David and Ilana is the secret behind the out-of-the-gate success of 'Rookie Blue,'" states Noreen Halpern, president of Dramatic Programming, E1 Television. "They tell heartfelt, immersive human stories burnished with a sexy, glossy pop sheen. We're thrilled that the stars seem to have aligned on this project, and that Canwest and ABC have been such incredible partners."
 
"Rookie Blue" is the first new network scripted show of the summer to get a second season pickup, depending on how you count FOX's possibly premature fall order for "Good Guys." We somehow don't think you should be holding your breath for "Persons Unknown," "Scoundrels" or "The Gates."

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    fred

    I'm pretty pleased with this announcement, I actually like the show. It's nothing revolutionary or anything, but it's doing its job fine, and - like some people working here - I do like Missy Peregrym, and appreciate watching her every week (in something that, if not great, remains good).

    Clearly not waiting for any other renewal, though I do watch "Persons Unknown" and thought it was a one-season-only (all-answers-revealed-in-the-end) deal anyways - much like Harper's Island was; no?

    July 12, 2010 at 5:26PM EST Reply to Comment
    • Default-avatar

      fred Damn it! Just realized that was a perfect occasion to use a "this begs the question" -- I hear you like it when misused... :)

      July 12, 2010 at 5:31PM EST
    • Gizmo_bigger_talkback_profile

      dan Fred - I appreciate your "begs the question" restraint! Regarding "Persons Unknown," while it's almost certain to have been designed as a close-ended series, I also suspect the producers had a pitch for a second season, just in case. The "Harper's Island" team had a hypothetical second season vaguely in mind, not necessarily with any of the same cast or plotlines, but as an extension of the brand... That never became relevant, of course...

      -Daniel

      July 12, 2010 at 5:40PM EST
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    Katey

    Rookie Blue better stay on for a very long time i freakin looooove this show.....and so many of my friends wish it would be a year long show but were happy its at least staying on!!!!

    April 21, 2011 at 5:08PM EST Reply to Comment
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