Jackson West is one of the main characters in the first three seasons of The Rookie. The ABC police procedural drama revolves around John Nolan, who joins the service in his 40s, becoming the oldest rookie at the LAPD.
Jackson, played by Titus Makin Jr., is John's teammate, who comes from a family of cops. A rookie himself, Jackson is initially trained by Angela Lopez and later by Doug Stanton. Being the first LGBTQ character on the show, he soon became a fan favorite.
However, his journey in the show is abruptly cut short, as the character is killed off. So when does Jackson die in The Rookie? Jackson is killed by a drug gang in the season 4 premiere, while he tries to save Angela.
When does Jackson die in The Rookie?
Jackson West dies in The Rookie season 4 episode 1, Life and Death. In the season 3 finale, the officer and Detective Angela Lopez are kidnapped on her wedding day. The fourth season’s premiere starts with security footage showing that Jackson has been shot and killed during his abduction by the drug cartel.
On the other hand, Angela is kept alive as La Fiera, the cartel lord, plans to steal her unborn baby to raise as her own while grieving the loss of her child. Meanwhile, Jackson fights back against his kidnappers. He scratches the person who shoots and kills him, leaving behind DNA under his nails.
This clue helps the LAPD identify his killer as Armando DeLeon, a 17-year-old gang member. The team is devastated by Jackson’s death but has to stay focused on rescuing Angela, who is taken to La Fiera’s compound in Guatemala.
The team comes up with a plan to sneak into the country, and after a violent shootout, they are able to escape back to Los Angeles safely, along with Angela. Three months later, Angela gives birth to her baby and names him Jackson to honor her fallen teammate.
She then visits Jackson’s grave and remembers him for his bravery and sacrifice. Jackson becomes the second major character to die in The Rookie after Captain Zoe Andersen’s death in the first season. However, he rarely finds a mention in the later episodes of the show.
Why was Jackson killed off in The Rookie?
Jackson’s death in The Rookie was not a creative decision, instead, it was forced as actor Titus Makin Jr. wanted to leave the show. In an interview with TV Line, showrunner Alexi Hawley opened up about Jackson’s abrupt departure from the show and said:
“It’s heartbreaking, but I didn’t really have a choice. He [Titus Makin Jr.] wasn’t coming back, and because of the way we set things up with the [Season 3] finale, there was just no way to tell that story without Jackson…. But we lean really hard into honoring how he was the heart of the show, and it was definitely impactful for us to have to deal with that.”
Makin Jr. has never explicitly confirmed why he decided to exit The Rookie. However, there were reports of the actor wanting to move away from the show even before the third season’s premiere.
At the time, Makin Jr. was impacted by the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. He wanted to address the issues of racism and police brutality in the show, which were finally incorporated in season 3 as Jackson was assigned to Doug Stanton, a racist training officer.
Talking about why he did not want to return to the show in the third season, Makin said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly:
“I was watching the news, and I was like, 'I can't do this. I can't go play a cop on a show and not talk about the fact that I'm a Black cop.’ My character hadn't addressed any of that.”
However, following the plot changes, Makin Jr. decided to continue with his character for another season, before quitting the series ahead of the fourth season’s production in 2021.
The Rookie seasons 1 to 6 are available to stream on Hulu.
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