Niecy Nash to star in spinoff of "The Rookie"

The next 'Rookie': ABC is hoping to enlist a new "Rookie" for its prime-time lineup.

The network is working on a potential spinoff of its fourth-year cop drama, "The Rookie," which stars Nathan Fillion ("Castle"). Surprisingly, viewers won't have to wait long to get a glimpse of what that spinoff, and an expanded "Rookie" universe, might look like.

Niecy Nash of "Claws" and "Reno 911!" fame is set to guest star in two upcoming episodes of "The Rookie," and her two-episode arc will serve as a backdoor pilot -- that's when a spinoff concept is pitched through an episode (or two, in this case) of an existing series.

Nash will play the role of single mom Simone Clark, "a force of nature, the living embodiment of a dream deferred -- and the oldest rookie in the FBI Academy" (per ABC). In the episodes, LAPD Officer John Nolan (Fillion) and the Los Angeles division of the FBI enlist Clark's help when one of her former students is suspected of terrorism following an explosion at a local power station.

"I'm so excited to guest star on 'The Rookie' and bring Simone Clark to life," Nash said in a statement announcing her upcoming role. "She is a spirited and spicy fish out of water. The cast is amazing and I can't wait to play!"

A "Rookie" spinoff would be a solid move for ABC, especially since franchises are a big part of today's broadcast network landscape.

CBS has several FBI and NCIS shows (not to mention the "CSI" revival); CW has the Arrowverse, its "All American" shows, and a number of sequels in the works; Fox has the 911 franchise; and NBC has three Chicago and Law & Order series. ABC has "Grey's Anatomy" and its spinoff, "Station 19," which are both renewed for the 2022-23 season, but that's pretty much it … unless ABC proceeds to make a new franchise out of "The Rookie," of course.

Munn's the word: Production is already underway on AMC's "Tales of the Walking Dead," and we now know that "The Newsroom" actress Olivia Munn is one of several actors who have boarded the new anthology series.

AMC recently revealed that Munn, Danny Ramirez ("The Falcon and the Winter Soldier"), Loan Chabanol ("The Transporter Refueled," 2015), Embeth Davidtz ("The Morning Show") and Jessie T. Usher ("The Boys") have joined a cast that already includes Terry Crews ("Brooklyn Nine-Nine"), Parker Posey ("Lost in Space"), Jillian Bell ("Brittany Runs a Marathon," 2019), Anthony Edwards ("ER") and Poppy Liu ("Sunnyside"). Few details have been revealed about any of the characters they'll play, or how many episodes they'll appear in.

"Olivia, Danny, Loan, Embeth and Jessie are the latest massive talents that will bring new worlds of 'The Walking Dead' to life with big, daring, different, emotional, shocking, scary and crazy stories," franchise executive producer and writer Scott Gimple said in a statement. "We're excited for them to come walk with us."

Showrunner Channing Powell, also a writer and producer on "The Walking Dead" and "Fear the Walking Dead," stated, "Somehow we have lucked into the greatest cast -- Olivia, Jessie, Embeth, Danny, Loan. We've been hoping these episodes will feel like unique, little films, and with this range of actors, we are well on our way."

The third spinoff in the franchise, "Tales of the Walking Dead" is a stand-alone series about new and familiar characters within the "Walking Dead" universe. Franchise producer/director Michael E. Satrazemis will direct the first of six episodes with his "Fear the Walking Dead" cinematographer Adam Suschitzky ("Yellowstone").

Look for it this summer on AMC and its streamer, AMC .

From TGS to CBS: Comedian Tracy Morgan ("The Last O.G.") is heading to CBS for one night only.

Morgan, who got his start in the Fox prime-time series "Martin" before his seven seasons in NBC's "Saturday Night Live" (and seven seasons on "30 Rock" after that), will guest star in an upcoming episode of "The Neighborhood." The episode is scheduled to air March 28 on CBS, and it will mark Morgan's first appearance in a live-action network sitcom since "30 Rock" ended in January 2013.

In "The Neighborhood" episode titled "Welcome to Bro Money, Bro Problems," Morgan will play Curtis Butler, the often-mentioned younger brother of lead character Calvin Butler (Cedric the Entertainer, "Barbershop," 2002). Calvin is resentful of his mother's relationship with Curtis, a super lottery winner who loves spending his money and showering people with over-the-top gifts.

"Cedric the Entertainer and Tracy Morgan as brothers?" posited showrunner Meg DeLoatch ("Family Matters") in a brief statement. "[We're] looking forward to one of the funniest family dinners in history."

Morgan's guest appearance in "The Neighborhood" also marks a reunion with Cedric the Entertainer as the two standup comics previously worked together on 2014's "Top Five," starring, written and directed by Chris Rock ("Spiral," 2021).

More recently, Cedric appeared in the early seasons of Morgan's TBS comedy series, "The Last O.G.," in which he played the role of halfway house owner Mullins. Cedric has since stepped back from that role, but Morgan, who is set to receive the Friars' Club top honor in May, remains at the center of the series, which is still awaiting renewal for a fifth season.