- - Jenna Dewan's Character on 'The Rookie' Faces Tough Job Decision in D.C.

Paulette CohnFebruary 3, 2026 at 5:11 AM

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On last week's “Cut and Run” episode of The Rookie, Bailey Nune (Jenna Dewan) was offered a new job by Colonel Russell Wilkes (Tuc Watkins), her former commanding officer. The one catch is that it is in Washington, D.C.

SecDef has tasked Russ with putting together a working group inside the Pentagon. A team of his own choosing. They would spearhead bringing battlefield medicine into the 22nd century. It is the most consequential assignment of his career and Bailey is the first person he asked to be a part of it.

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John Nolan’s (Nathan Fillion) reaction was that it is “just an honor to be nominated.”

“The fact that he called me first, that’s pretty great,” Bailey said.

To which John responded, “Our life is perfect right now. There’s no way we’re messing that up.”

And Bailey agreed, pretending she isn’t interested while actually still thinking about it.

Jenna Dewan, Nathan Fillion, Tuc WatkinsDisney/Mike Taing (Disney/Mike Taing)

The next morning, John mentioned the job offer to Angela (Alyssa Diaz) and Nyla (Mekia Cox),. He told them that since it’s in D.C., it’s a non-starter, but Nyla thinks differently.

“It may be a non-starter for you, but I bet your over achiever of a wife is seriously thinking about it,” she said.

John realized Nyla was right. “If that’s something she wants to do, relocating to D.C. could be cool.”

“Not,” Nyla said. “I spent time there during my joint ops days. It took me about three weeks to unclench every time I came home.”

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But Russ doesn’t give up easily. He dropped by to see Bailey at home and told her he couldn’t leave L.A. without giving it one more shot. And while he was there, he saw what a nice life she and John have created.

“I’m not a doctor or a scientist with a Ph D,” Bailey asked. “Why me?”

“Having a few extra letters after your name doesn’t make you a genius,” Russ said. “I also know if I bring you a problem, you won’t rest until you’ve looked at it from every conceivable angle twice before bringing me a solution.”

Bailey promised to think about it. Then Russ baited her by saying, “If you don’t want the job because it’s not the right fit, or the right time, but deciding you’re not good enough before somebody else can, that’s the coward’s way and I know you’re not a coward.”

So, that night Bailey made a fancy dinner in order to entice John into a conversation, letting him know that she’s still thinking about the job offer.

“Before you tell me no or tell me 100 reasons why it won’t work, spend some time to explore the idea.”

She asked John to explore what a transfer to DC PD would mean, and she agreed that if they came to different conclusions that they would abort the idea. “Either we’re both in or we’re both out,” she said.

John said, “I want to do everything I can for you to be happy, so I will do everything I can from my end to see if it’s feasible. We’re in this together."

But when John does explore the idea, everything he learns is negative.

Nyla tells him that maybe she’s spoiled by LAPD, but what she saw was “being a cop there means a lot of crowd control around government offices, crappy weather: storms in the weather, swampy weather in the summer. You get two weeks of cherry blossoms a year and that’s about it.”

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And Sgt. Grey (Richard T. Jones) also doesn’t have good news to share about a transfer.

“You do know that you would have to start at the very bottom again, including redoing the academy” he explained. “You were five years younger [last time]. You would get a pretty hefty signing bonus, but your annual salary would be much less than you make in L.A., plus the cost of living in D.C. is just as expensive. So, in the long run, your bonus really wouldn’t make a difference, especially if Bailey is only making a government salary.”

Later that night, John told Bailey that he did his due diligence, but he doesn’t think he can make the move. It would mean starting all over again as a rookie, but this time instead of being 45, he’d be 50.

Then Bailey hits him with, “What if I’m not ready to say no?”

John reminded her of what she had said the night before about both of them had to agree.

She said, “I meant it when I said it, so where does that leave us?”

On tonight’s “The Network” episode, Bailey continued to push Nolan to move to DC, and he’s none to happy that she hasn’t dropped the issue.

“I fail to see how moving to DC for your job is for us,” Nolan told her.

To which Bailey responded, “Happy wife, happy life. I totally get that DC police would be a lateral move at best and at this stage of your career, starting at the bottom is a no-go but going to federal would be a step up, right? There are multiple federal law enforcement agencies that would be lucky to have you.”

“You’re just not going to give up on this, are you?” John asked

“It’s my dream job,” she replied. “Would you just investigate if there is a federal cop job that would excite you?”

Nolan promised Bailey that he would check it out and he did. He finagled his way onto the FBI/LAPD Monica task force, so he would have a chance to discuss transferring with FBI Supervisory Special Agent Matt Garza (Felix Solis), but the news wasn’t good.

Garza told him that the age cut off not just for the FBI but for any federal law enforcement agency is 35, and Nolan is 50. And even if age wasn’t an obstacle, the odds of being assigned to DC right out of Quantico are non-existent.

So, that night, while in bed, Nolan told Bailey, “I am not moving to D.C. I’ve been playing along because I love you and I want you to be happy, but I can’t tear my life apart to do that.”

“I’m not asking you to,” she said.

“Yeah, you are. And I keep wondering why isn’t our life here enough for you,” he asked.

“I didn’t realize you were so mad,” she responded. Then she added, “It’s not that it’s not enough for me, I just want to go do this.”

Nolan asked, “But why? And don’t say it’s because the job is so cool because so is being a fire fighter and a soldier and all the other things you do in your spare time.”

“Something tells me you think you already have the answer to this,” Bailey said.

“I think you have a pathological need for movement,” Nolan said.

“Pathological?” she queried

“Yeah, and we’ve joked about it,” Nolan said. “About how you can’t sit still and how a day off means doing six different projects. I thought it was cute, but it’s not. What are you afraid will happen if you stop moving? If you let yourself be happy with what you have and where you are?”

Bailey answered, “Nothing. I just got excited to go do this job. Why are you blowing it up like this?”

“I’m trying to save our marriage,” Nolan told her truthfully.

“I didn’t realize it was in jeopardy,” Bailey said, and she got out of bed and left the room.

It looks as if Bailey is determined to take the job in DC no matter what. A bicoastal relationship would be difficult, but this could the show’s way of writing Bailey out if finding storylines for her character are becoming an issue.

The Rookie airs Monday nights at 10 p.m. ET/PT on ABC. Streams next day on Hulu.

Next, The Rookie’s Nathan Fillion Teases Oscar’s Season 8 Return

This story was originally published by Parade on Feb 3, 2026, where it first appeared in the TV section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”