The Rookie season 5 is scheduled to premiere on Sunday, September 25, at 10 PM EST (7 PM PST). Eager fans have been waiting for a year for the arrival of season 5 after the previous season wrapped up on September 26th, 2021. However, geographic restrictions mean The Rookie season 5 isn’t available in many countries. In this post, we’ll explain how a Virtual Private Network (VPN) allows you to get around this and watch The Rookie in the UK, Spain, France, or anywhere else you might be traveling to.
Note that in this post, we’re only recommending official sources for watching The Rookie season 5. You’ll find that most unlicensed streams are low resolution with interruptions in the form of lag and buffering. Some unauthorized streams may even be taken offline for copyright infringement. For high-quality, stress-free streaming of The Rookie season 5, you better stick with the official sources listed below.
The Rookie Season 5 will only be shown on region-locked platforms. If you’d like to watch it while traveling abroad via your usual streaming service from home, you’ll need to use a VPN.
How to watch The Rookie season 5 abroad with a VPN
The streaming platforms showing The Rookie season 5 use your IP address to identify your location. If you’re in another country, the content will be geo-blocked. However, a VPN lets you change your IP address and spoof your location, unblocking The Rookie season 5 from anywhere in the world.
Here’s how to watch The Rookie season 5 online from anywhere:
- Sign up with a reputable VPN provider. We recommend NordVPN, although we can also recommend Surfshark and ExpressVPN as two reliable alternatives.
- Next, download one of the VPN’s apps or, if you prefer, a browser extension. Be sure to check that you’re installing the correct app version for your device.
- Open the VPN app and connect to a server in the US. This is how you get a US IP address to unblock ABC, even if you’re traveling abroad.
- Navigate to ABC and sign in via your TV provider to watch live TV and the latest episodes. Alternatively, sign up with a TV streaming service (more on these later).
- All ABC content, including its live streams, should be unblocked in your location. If not, we recommend you clear your browser’s cache and cookies.
The Rookie season 5 will air live on ABC. That’s why you should test your VPN with ABC before the season 5 premiere. If you encounter any issues, you’ll have time to contact your VPN’s customer support.
TRY THE TOP VPN FOR ABC RISK-FREE
NordVPN is offering a fully-featured risk-free 30 day trial if you sign up at this page. You can use the VPN rated #1 for ABC with no restrictions for a month - more than enough time to test it out with all of your favorite streaming services.
There are no hidden terms - just contact support within 30 days if you decide NordVPN isn't right for you and you'll get a full refund. Start your NordVPN trial here.
How to watch The Rookie season 5 on US TV
The Rookie season 5 will premiere on its original network, ABC, on Sunday, September 25. There are a couple of ways in which you can watch online. The first is by signing in via your US cable TV provider. In this case, simply go to the ABC website or app and enter your cable TV login details. This is typically an email address or username and password. Note that you can watch ABC episodes one week after they premiere without signing in.
Don’t have cable TV? The good news is that you can still live stream ABC and The Rookie season 5 cable-free. To do this, you’ll need to sign up with a TV streaming service. The following options include ABC in their packages: FuboTV, Hulu with Live TV ($69.99 USD per month), and YouTube TV ($64.99 USD a month) and include free trials.
The trouble with ABC and the aforementioned TV streaming services is that they’re only available in the US. This means that you need a US IP address to watch. If you’re traveling abroad, you can get one by using a VPN to connect to a server in the US. Once connected, all content should be unblocked and available to access as usual. NordVPN includes a 30-day money-back guarantee to try it out with ABC risk-free.
Where else can I watch The Rookie season 5?
Canada
Fortunately, The Rookie season 5 will also be broadcast in Canada from September 25. However, as it’s on CTV, which doesn’t support any over-the-top services, you’ll need a cable TV subscription. You can then watch online via the CTV Go app. If you don’t have cable TV, you should be able to stream The Rookie season 5 on Crave (the first three seasons are already available on the streaming service). However, there has not yet been word on a broadcast date so you may have to wait.
You may already have access to Crave via your TV provider. If not, the price of a subscription starts from $9.99 CAD per month. A 7-day free trial is available for first-time subscribers. Note that accessing CTV Go and Crave requires a Canadian IP address. To get one, you’ll need to connect to a VPN server in Canada.
UK
If you’re in the UK, you can watch The Rookie on Sky Witness. However, you’ll have to wait a little longer because season 5 won’t be available until after its initial US airing on ABC. You may already have access to Sky Witness if you have a Sky TV subscription. In this case, you’ll be able to watch online (when it becomes available) via the Sky Go app.
Note that you don’t need to commit to a Sky TV contract to watch Sky Witness. The channel is also available via Now, an online TV streaming service. You can live stream several channels with the Entertainment Pass, including Sky Witness. This costs £9.99 per month (currently £4.99 a month for the first three months) and is cancellable at any time. There’s also a seven-day free trial.
Sky TV and Now is only available in the UK. As such, you’ll find their content to be geo-blocked abroad. You can get around this by connecting to a VPN server in a UK city. Once you’ve done this and obtained a UK IP address, you’re all set.
What can we expect from The Rookie season 5?
There’s no word as yet as to how many episodes we can expect in The Rookie season 5. The last season consisted of 22 episodes, while season 3 was a little shorter with 14 episodes.
Season 4 of The Rookie left fans on the edge of their seats after Tim and Lucy took things to the next level in their relationship. Whether the relationship is legit or not isn’t known just yet, but we know they’re posing as a couple for an undercover operation, so season 5 will reveal the truth. Aside from that love interest, we’re hoping to see where John and Bailey’s relationship is headed, whether Nyla will return from maternity leave, and so many more loose ends need tying up!
Which cast members are returning for The Rookie season 5?
The majority of the cast is returning for season 5 of The Rookie. This includes the following cast members at the time of writing (assuming there aren’t any last-minute departures):
- Nathan Fillion as John Nolan
- Alyssa Diaz as Angela Lopez
- Richard T. Jones as Wade Grey
- Mekia Cox as Nyla Harper
- Melissa O’Neil as Lucy Chen
- Eric Winter as Tim Bradford
- Jenna Dewan as Bailey Nune
- Shawn Ashmore as Wesley Evers
- Tru Valentino as Aaron Thorsen