Inside Line: Scoop on #OneChicago, Abbott Elementary, Ghosts, Andor, CSI, Blue Bloods, Rookie, Walker and More

Do you have any fun teasers of what will happen on Abbott Elementary? –B.J.
When we spoke with co-showrunners Justin Halpern and Patrick Schumacker, the former effused, “I’m so excited for people to see our Halloween episode. I think it’s one of the best things we’ve ever done. When I think about it, I’m like, ‘Oh, man, people are going to lose their mind about this.'” Schumacker in turn added, “I did not envy our director, Shahrzad Davani, on that episode. It was such a puzzle putting it together with, obviously, everybody in crazy costumes. And there’s more action than one might expect.”

Will we learn more about or explore Tim’s backstory/family this season on The Rookie? –Ashley
In a word, yep! “We love Peyton [List], who plays his sister, so she’ll come back, and we’ll dive into that a bit more,” showrunner Alexi Hawley told me. “Ultimately, there’ll be Dads house to sell, so, ‘What is that like?’ Yes, we’ll definitely keep going with Tim’s backstory.” Bonus scoop for Inside Line emailer Bonnie: Helena Mattsson will be back as Ashley.

Will Joe Hill be around a bit more in Blue Bloods Season 13? His presence makes the show more interesting. –John
Showrunner Kevin Wade told me that he expects to have Will Hochman around as Joe “a fair amount” this season — starting with the Oct. 7 premiere, “where’s theres some crossed wires in an investigation between him and actually Erin and Anthony, and Danny.” Echoing what you said, Wade likes Joe as “a wonderful character to write who’s a Reagan and who’s not a Reagan. He did not drink the whole vat of Kool Aid of ‘duty and honor and NYPD’ and that stuff. We love to have a little outlet where we don’t have to be so ‘true blue’ about the whole thing.”

What’s in store for Chicago Fire‘s Brett now that things with Casey seem to be over? Will we see more of her family, or something new for her at work like a trainee paramedic on ambo? –Lotte
There are no plans at the moment to see Brett’s family, “but it’s definitely possible,” co-showrunner Andrea Newman says. “We talk about her half-sister Amelia a lot and her relationship with her. That’s important to Brett, so we may loop her back into Amelia’s life a bit, too.”

Any news on whether we’ll finally get a “Deeks, M” NCIS: Los Angeles episode, exploring more of Deeks’ past? –Karen
As has become an annual tradition of sorts, I brought this question, again, to showrunner Scott Gemmill, and this time he answered, “I think, actually, it’s probably time. I just have to make sure that Eric [Christian Olsen, who plays Deeks] doesn’t write it himself. He writes [an episode] usually once a year.”

Will we get to meet Arman’s estranged dad on The Cleaning Lady this season? –Yolanda
That’s currently a capital-M “maybe” from co-showrunner Melissa Carter, who revealed that Arman and his father nearly shared a scene back in the Fox drama’s first season. But “it just felt too early,” Carter admits. “It didn’t feel like we’d been through Arman’s journey in a deep enough way to introduce that character.” As for a Season 2 appearance from Arman’s old man, the EP says “it might happen… but we also feel like Arman is a man that wants to forge his own path and make his own way, and [his father] is a vestige of the past. So far, we’re moving him forward. But it’s not completely off the table.”

During a recent Pitch Perfect rewatch, I was reminded of the beautiful, unique singing voice of Utkarsh Ambudkar. Can you see if there are any plans for Ghosts‘ Jay to belt out a tune or two in the future? –Beth
“We would love that. We currently don’t have plans for that, but yeah, he’s an incredible improvisational rapper, like world class,” executive producer Joe Wiseman says, noting that Ambudkar was part of Freestyle Love Supreme, an improvisational hip-hop comedy group started by Lin-Manuel Miranda. Adds EP Joe Port: “There is a lot of singing in the Christmas special, but not Jay.”

What’s the latest on another season of Dexter: New Blood? –Craig
We recently ran your Q by Showtime Networks president Gary Levine, but he answered, “It’s too soon to say. We’re still basking in the glow of the limited series, which was everything we hoped for.”

Is there any hope for a slightly bigger crossover this season on Chicago Fire/P.D./Med? –Ingmar
A big three-way crossover is still a challenge to orchestrate with COVID protocols, but “it’s a possibility,” co-showrunner Andrea Newman says. In the meantime, it sounds like we’ll be getting more mini crossovers: “There’ll be some fun stuff not only with our show, but in the #OneChicago universe with Violet’s family this year,” Newman reveals.

I am really looking forward to Kit and Bell’s wedding in Season 6 of The Resident! Will the show bring back Bell’s stepson and Kit’s daughters we don’t often see for the event? –Melissa
Yes to the first half of your question, no to the second. Series co-creator Amy Holden Jones confirms that Conrad Ricamora’s Jake will attend the Episode 100 nuptials, as will his daughter Sammie. Alas, “Kit’s daughters are not going to be there,” Jones says, though exploring them in the future is “definitely a possibility. All the [Season 6] episodes aren’t written yet, but having them react to Bell will be a great thing to do.”

Is there any chance we’ll see Dr. Rhodes, played by Colin Donnell, on Chicago Med again? –Cindy
“I don’t think you can ever rule that out,” says executive producer Diane Frolov, adding that the idea has been discussed in the writers’ room. Adds EP Andrew Schneider: “Colin was a guy we loved working with, and he was a very strong member of the cast for a long time. We would welcome to see him again.”

What can be teased for Season 3 of Walker? –Alex
Cordell already has a partner in Cassie, so you might be wondering where that leaves Trey if he should decide to join the Texas Rangers. When we last spoke to showrunner Anna Fricke, the writers were still in the early stages of planning Season 3, “but we’re thinking Captain James really put his neck out in making some special calls to see if it was even possible for Trey to become a Texas Ranger and for his time in the military to count,” she said. “Captain James really believed in him and has sort of heavily personally recruited him. So we think it might be a good opportunity to sort of put James back on the beat, as it were.”

Do YOU want scoop on a favorite show? Email InsideLine@tvline.com! Questions left in Comments will not be read and may very well count against your final score. (With additional reporting by Vlada Gelman, Keisha Hatchett and Rebecca Iannucci)