‘Rookie Blue’ banks on chatter about new season in Canada helping U.S. launch

TORONTO – Most shows actively battle plot spoilers. But “Rookie Blue” is practically begging for some to leak out with the sixth season premiere set to air in Canada one month before the U.S. debut.

The sudsy Canadian cop drama returns to Global on Thursday to reveal the fallout from an explosion that ripped through the evidence room and the impact that Marlo’s pregnancy will have on Sam and Andy’s burgeoning romance.

There’s a lot to dissect for fans of the long-running series, notes star Peter Mooney, who jokingly calls for a nationwide ban on tweeting or blogging about upcoming revelations that won’t air on ABC in the U.S. until June 25.

“We can’t tell. We can’t announce any spoilers across the border,” Mooney says of the lag between Canadian and U.S. broadcasters. “Don’t spoil it for your American friends!”

Kidding aside, Mooney says pre-season chatter should actually help the U.S. launch, noting that a similar strategy last year seemed to pay off.

“The dialogue that starts percolating before it airs south of the border is really great and it’s great to see people’s investment in the show just kick up and ramp up as the season’s just about to start.”

Fans wary of spoilers are generally savvy enough to avoid them, he adds.

Aside from dealing with the Marlo/Sam/Andy triangle, Mooney says the new season will offer “something big” that will reveal a lot about what makes his character Nick Collins tick.

“As an actor I was really excited. We go further into Nick’s past in this season…. It sort of all comes out.”

Things begin with Nick thinking about joining ETF, until a new addition to 15 Division causes him to consider sticking around. That all has to do with a character introduced last season named Juliet, played by former “Being Erica” star Erin Karpluk.

“The show’s growing and changing with us as the cast grows and shifts,” Mooney says of the drama’s evolution.

“We’re now seasoned in some ways but there are so many situations coming at us — we’re always a rookie on some fronts.”