Spoilers ahead for Episode 7 of The Rookie Season 6, called “Crushed.”
The Rookie returned from a couple weeks of reruns in the 2024 TV schedule to deal with some heavy subjects, including the aftermath of Tim breaking up with Lucy. There was a more lighthearted storyline with Lopez and Harper deciding to share a nanny and split childcare costs. Nolan and Bailey‘s story falls somewhere in between, as there were some shenanigans about trying to find the time to make a baby along with serious concerns like finances and the risks of a geriatric pregnancy. There are more questions than answers at this point, but actress Jenna Dewan‘s real-life pregnancy raises the possibility of a time jump.
For Bailey, time is of the essence to get pregnant, with her health fears fueled by everything that she has seen women go through in the back of her ambulance. Nolan was thrown when he realized the costs of childcare nowadays compared to years ago, but still supportive. Of course, when it comes to ongoing TV shows, there’s never any guarantee that a pregnancy will actually happen for central characters, since babies can be complications, and The Rookie was recently renewed for Season 7.
But if Bailey does have a bun in the oven before the end of Season 7, I have to wonder if Jenna Dewan’s real-life pregnancy will be incorporated into the show via a time jump. It doesn’t strike me as a coincidence that The Rookie is exploring potential parenthood for Nolan and Bailey in the same season that Dewan was filming while pregnant, and posts from the actress on Instagram confirm that she’s definitely showing. Take a look:
If The Rookie does intend to incorporate Dewan’s real-life pregnancy into the show for Nolan and Bailey, then there definitely will need to be a time jump. After all, even though the actress is expecting, the series has done a pretty great job of hiding the bump for her scenes as Bailey. The Rookie can be a little fast and loose when it comes to the passage of time, so it doesn’t strike me as impossible that there could be a jump ahead before the end of the season.
That being said, I’m getting ahead of myself, since there’s currently no confirmation that Bailey will be pregnant before the end of Season 6, if at all. In the promo for the next episode, it does look like the couple will be waiting to see a doctor when all hell breaks loose in the hospital, as is wont to happen on The Rookie. Check it out:
Only time will tell if Bailey is pregnant by the end of the sixth season, let alone if Jenna Dewan’s real-life pregnancy will be incorporated via a time jump in the remaining episodes.
Keep tuning in to ABC on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET for new episodes of The Rookie, between Will Trent at 8 p.m. ET and The Good Doctor at 10 p.m. ET. You can also stream episodes of ABC’s cop drama with a Hulu subscription now.