Packing years of experience and a .45 automatic, L.A. detective Nick Pulovski figures he's got all the help he needs. He's also got all the help he doesn't need. His new partner is The Rookie.
Veteran cop Nick Pulovski is used to playing musical partners; many of the partners he's had in the past have died on the job, and often as a result of Nick's risky tactics. But the rookie who's been assigned to help Nick bust a carjacking ring is almost as hotheaded as he is … and when Nick gets kidnapped, his newbie partner is his only hope.
The Rookie (1990) is a action, crime, drama and thriller film directed by Clint Eastwood, released on December 7, 1990 with a runtime of 2h 1m. It stars Clint Eastwood, Charlie Sheen, Raúl Juliá and Sonia Braga. Viewers rate it 5.9 out of 10 across 636 ratings.
Watch the official trailer for The Rookie before you stream it.
Official trailers, teasers, clips and featurettes for The Rookie.
Trailer
Trailer
Clint Eastwood
as Nick Pulovski
Charlie Sheen
as David Ackerman
Raúl Juliá
as Strom
Sonia Braga
as Liesl
Tom Skerritt
as Eugene Ackerman
Lara Flynn Boyle
as Sarah
Xander Berkeley
as Blackwell
Coleby Lombardo
as David's brother
Pat DuVal
as Interrogator #1
Mara Corday
as Interrogator #2
Jerry Schumacher
as Interrogator #3
Pepe Serna
as Lt. Ray Garcia
Directed by Clint Eastwood, written by Scott Spiegel and Boaz Yakin, produced by Steven Siebert, David Valdes and Howard G. Kazanjian.
Average viewer score of 5.9/10 from 636 ratings.
***Eastwood’s forgettable detective flick with Charlie Sheen*** This is another Clint Eastwood cop thriller. What immediately comes to mind? The five Dirty Harry films, right? Or “The Gauntlet” (1977)? All great or near-great Eastwood cop pictures. So you'd expect the same from 1990's “The Rookie,” costarring Charlie Sheen as the sidekick. Well, you'd be wrong. Something keeps “The Rookie” from attaining the…
Reviewed on March 10, 2019
Decent action flick, rubbish buddy cop movie. The reason for the latter is that Clint Eastwood and Charlie Sheen just don't really work as a pairing, when I think of great buddy cop duos - see the preceding <em>'<a href="https://letterboxd.com/film/lethal-weapon/" rel="nofollow">Lethal Weapon</a>'</em> or the succeeding <em>'<a href="https://letterboxd.com/film/rush-hour/" rel="nofollow">Rush Hour</a>'</em> - I…
Reviewed on February 5, 2022
There is a movie with James Woods that I keep mistaking for this one. Anyway, it falls under the "What did you expect?" category of flick. It's not good... it's not bad either. No one expected it to be a box office bomb, no one expected it to be the next big thing either. They set out to make a fun and entertaining throw away cop movie and that was exactly what they ended up making, a fun and entertaining action…
Reviewed on May 14, 2023
Pretty paint-by-numbers buddy-cop movie where Eastwood pretty much plays a Harry Callahan and Charlie Sheen completely miscast as the titular rookie character. Raul Julia, a Puetro Rican playing a German, seemed to be having a good time at least. The action and stuntwork was at least top notch making for an enjoyable enough watch even if the movie was a good 15-20 minutes too long. Certainly this was Eastwood's…
Reviewed on January 5, 2026
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The Rookie (1990) is currently available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube and Fandango At Home. No subscription streaming option is listed right now, so availability may change.
The main cast of The Rookie (1990) includes Clint Eastwood, Charlie Sheen, Raúl Juliá, Sonia Braga and Tom Skerritt. The film was directed by Clint Eastwood. You can see the full cast and crew list, with character names, further up this page.
The Rookie was released on December 7, 1990 and runs for 2h 1m.
The Rookie (1990) holds an average rating of 5.9 out of 10 from 636 viewer votes, and is a good pick if you enjoy action, crime and drama films. Read the viewer reviews on this page to decide for yourself.
Yes. The official The Rookie trailer is embedded in the trailer section of this page and plays instantly, no download or sign-up required.
