‘The Rookie’ Star Not Returning for Season 7: Tru Valentino Exits

The Rookie will be down an officer in Season 7. TVLine reports that Tru Valentino will not be returning as Aaron Thorsen for the upcoming season of the ABC procedural. Valentino joined the series in Season 4 in a recurring role when Aaron joined the LAPD as a rookie after being acquitted of his best friend’s murder. The rising TikTok star proved his worth and has since been a fan-favorite, especially once Valentino was upped to series regular in Season 5.

The news comes after Valentino was absent from the cast’s appearance at San Diego Comic-Con last month. Additionally, Deric Augustine and Patrick Keleher will be recurring in the new season. By the end of Season 6, it didn’t seem like Aaron was planning on leaving any time soon, but he had been through quite a lot recently, including being on the brink of death. It’s unknown if Valentino will be back at the beginning of Season 7 to wrap up Aaron’s story or if that will just be done off-screen and viewers will simply be given a reason by another character.

The reason for Valentino’s departure is unknown, and it’s also unknown if he could ever return. That might all depend on how Aaron is written out. It will take some time to get used to, though. Even though he was only on the series for a few seasons, he certainly became a beloved part of The Rookie pretty quickly.

The bad news just keeps coming for fans of The Rookie. It was previously announced that Season 7 will not be airing on ABC’s 2024 fall schedule but instead, midseason 2025, along with fellow procedural Will Trent. There is some good news about the delay, however. All 18 episodes of The Rookie Season 7 will have a consistent, non-stop run, meaning there will be no breaks for the entire season. If there’s a cliffhanger in an episode, fans won’t have to be waiting a week or longer to find out what happens, so the wait for the new season will definitely be worth it.

Fans will have to tune in to Season 7 of The Rookie in early 2025 to see how Aaron Thorsen will be written off and if there is ever a chance he could make a return, even if it’s briefly. The first six seasons are streaming now on Hulu.