The Rookie: Who Plays Monica & Why Is She Familiar To Sci-Fi/fantasy Fans?

"The Rookie" has its fair share of malicious villains who give the Mid-Wilshire police precinct a run for their money. From Nick Armstrong (Harold Perrineau) — a corrupt police detective who framed John Nolan (Nathan Fillion) — to Rosalind Dyer (Annie Wersching) — a serial who took a liking to the older rookie cop — the series has always had engaging and intriguing antagonists. In the later seasons, Elijah Stone (Brandon Jay McLaren) has been a thorn in the police's side with his criminal empire. While she isn't a villain in the truest sense, Monica Stevens' ambition as an attorney has consistently kept Stone on the street.

Stevens is played by Bridget Regan, who will be recognizable to many fans of the sci-fi and fantasy genres due to her many roles across television and movies. Her most recognizable role in the genre was on the short-lived ABC series, "Legend of the Seeker." She has also been seen in other shows in the genre, including "Beauty and the Beast" with Kristin Kreuk ("Smallville," "Reacher"), "Person of Interest" with Jim Caviezel ("Passion of the Christ," "Sound of Freedom"), and "New Amsterdam" with Nikolaj Coster-Waldau ("Game of Thrones," "Gods of Egypt"). 

Her movie career is just as impressive, with appearances in "Devil's Gate" with Amanda Schull ("Suits," "12 Monkeys"), Shawn Ashmore ("X-Men," "The Rookie"), and Milo Ventimiglia ("Heroes," "This is Us"), and "John Wick" alongside Keanu Reeves. She has been around the industry in significant ways, including in several unforgettable roles.

2008 saw a loose adaptation of Terry Goodkind's fantasy novel series, "The Sword of Truth." While "Legend of the Seeker" wasn't a direct adaptation and added some characters and storylines for a more usable TV format, it kept much of the series faithful to the main story arc and characters. Bridget Regan stars as Kahlan Amnell, a Confessor with a mysterious power, who teams with Richard (Craig Horner) to find the Seeker to defeat Darken Rahl (Craig Parker), the emperor of D'Hara. When he tries to kill every firstborn to keep the Seeker from fulfilling his destiny of defeating him, his half-brother escapes. Kahlan is strong, compassionate, and powerful, becoming a needed ally for Richard.

In an interview with AMC (as reported by Slice of Sci-Fi), Regan explained how she felt when entering the science fiction genre when asked if it was intimidating. "In the beginning, it was a bit, because I was like, 'How are we going to make everyone believe in all this magic and mythology?' But then I realized there's so much freedom in it; you can say anything is possible because of magic," the star noted. "And anything can happen, which I think is really terrific for a series. We can go anywhere."

While her 44 episodes in "Legend of the Seeker" definitely accounted for her longest run in the genre, she has two other credits that stand out as legendary installments of a subgenre: the superhero world.

"I've pulled out my own teeth... My own nails... My own hair. I've burned my own flesh with a blowtorch. I'm no Nazi harlot. And you are wasting my time." 

These brutal words were uttered by the maniacal Dottie Underwood (Bridget Regan), a villain in "Agent Carter" who has a solid connection to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. She is a member of the same organization as Natasha Romanoff, AKA Black Widow (Scarlet Johansson), only years earlier. Regan appeared as the assassin from The Red Room in 10 episodes and gave us one of the more intriguing villains in the series.

She also showed up in the CW's "Arrowverse," when "Batwoman" introduced Pamela Isley to become the legendary Batman villain, Poison Ivy. She went head-to-head against Batwoman (Javicia Leslie) when she woke up after a 10-year coma to reattempt to blow up the Gotham Dam. She was eventually stopped and returned to her life with her girlfriend, Rene Montoya (Victoria Cartagena). It was a three-episode stint that proved to be one of the few great storylines in an otherwise forgettable "Arrowverse" installment.

Regan isn't a huge name in the halls of Hollywood. Still, she has proven over time that she has the ability to own the sci-fi and fantasy spaces by portraying some legendary characters in some pretty impressive franchises. With the roles as a Confessor in "Legend of the Seeker," a Widow in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and a member of Batman's rogue gallery in "Batwoman," she hardly seems to miss in the genre.