ABC is putting a team of police divers on TV, and the network behind The Rookie and 9-1-1 wants you to think of both shows at once. The new crime thriller series is called Dive, and it follows an elite group of officers who solve crimes that start where the surface ends.
The show takes its setting seriously. New Orleans, a city famous for its relationship with water, becomes the base of operations. The premise is simple: crimes that happen underwater are solved by people who can breathe below the surface. That is the whole pitch.
Showrunner Steven Kane
Steven Kane is attached as showrunner. He comes to the project with credits that cross the spy and science fiction genres. Kane served as showrunner on the fourth season of the John Krasinski-led Jack Ryan series and on Paramount+’s Halo adaptation. He also co-created The Last Ship, the dystopian TNT show starring the late Eric Dane.
Kane’s resume includes a stop on J.J. Abrams’ Alias, so he has history with ABC. This new project brings him back to the network.
Producers on Board
Dive is being developed with 20th Television. Dwayne Johnson and Dany Garcia’s Seven Bucks banner are attached as producers, along with Kristina Sorensen, who is attached as an executive producer with Kane.
Casting is not finalized, and the series is still in early development. That means the show does not yet have a fixed premiere date or a full list of actors attached. What it does have is ambition.
Kane’s Franchise Ambitions
Kane has already talked about the show’s potential. He mentioned Dive at a television event in Europe back in June, quietly suggesting that the premise could expand beyond New Orleans. The idea, he said, could easily grow into new locations or involve other specialized teams.
“He quietly mentioned the series at a television event in Europe back in June, indicating how the premise could easily expand.”
Kane sees Dive as a candidate to become the next big property for ABC, provided the show finds an audience.
What ABC Already Has
ABC has spent years building a reputation for emergency services procedurals. The Rookie, starring Nathan Fillion as John Nolan, enters its ninth season. 9-1-1 heads into its tenth season.
Both shows remain fan favorites on the network. The Rookie is eyeing a midseason return that will introduce new key characters in Nolan’s story, along with a new spin-off called The Rookie North. 9-1-1 premieres this fall alongside Season 2 of its own spin-off, 9-1-1: Nashville, with crossover plans in the works.
| Show | Season | Status |
|---|---|---|
| The Rookie | Ninth | Midseason return planned |
| 9-1-1 | Tenth | Fall premiere planned |
| Dive | Early development | No premiere date yet |
The Comparison
The comparison is obvious. The Rookie is a cop show with a street-level focus. 9-1-1 is an ambulance show with a rescue focus. Dive is a diving show with a water focus.
The network has found success with both types of stories. Dive is a bet that audiences will care about crimes that happen underwater as much as they care about crimes that happen on the street or in the air.
The Setting
New Orleans is the setting. That is a city built around water, which gives the show a natural environment for its premise. The city’s relationship with water is part of its identity, and the show will lean into that.
What We Know So Far
The show’s title says it all. Dive is about going beneath the surface, literally and figuratively. The cases will be crimes that begin where the surface ends, which is a clever way of saying the show will deal with evidence and victims that other investigators cannot reach.
The Bottom Line
ABC is betting on a show that combines the tones of two of its biggest hits while taking the action underwater. The network has a proven track record with emergency services procedurals, and Dive is an attempt to extend that record into a niche that has not been fully explored on broadcast television.
Kane’s franchise ambitions are real. He sees potential for expansion, and the network is listening. The question is whether audiences will dive in.
The show does not yet have a premiere date. That will come later. For now, the premise is the star.
See the video the story is built around at Collider.
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