‘CIA’ Will Change Everything: FBI Spinoff Promises Bold New Storytelling Style

Last night marked a changing of the guard at CBS, as fan-favorite spin-offs FBI: Most Wanted and FBI: International officially handed in their badges after airing series finales. With space cleared in the schedule, and with Dick Wolf‘s beloved franchise still showing plenty of signs of life, it’s time for the turn of a brand-new spin-off, titled CIA. With Lucifer star Tom Ellis cast in the lead role, and with ER‘s Eriq La Salle reportedly tapped to direct the pilot episode of the spin-off, excitement is beginning to build for a new string to the FBI bow, which is scheduled air to back-to-back with the main series starting at 9/8c, on CBS.

In an interview with TVInsider, showrunner and executive producer, and current Most Wanted chief, David Hudgins, teased what fans can expect from the new spin-off, hinting at an evolution in the franchise’s identity as, perhaps, the procedural structure is parked in favor of more consistent dramatic through-lines. After admitting that the new show will feature “a very different style of storytelling,” Hudgins added, “with cases coming from the CIA world as well as the FBI, but [it’s] mostly the relationship between the two main leads.”

‘CIA’ Hinges on Its Central Pairing

The brand-new series is set to follow Ellis’s intelligent, unorthodox CIA case officer, Hart Hoxton, with a rule-following veteran officer opposite him yet to be cast. It is this pair that will make up the bulk of the spin-off’s dramatic tension, as the show follows the duo’s unlikely partnership after they are assigned to work out of CIA’s New York Station and keep the streets safe from criminal enterprise.

“The dynamic between these two is what I hope will be the hook of the show. A-stories and ‘crimes of the week’ are always crucial but with CIA, we have this added layer of relationship between our two main ‘odd-couple’ characters,” Hudgins also said in the aforementioned interview, adding, “I think people will want to tune in to see what’s going to happen next with these two, because there will be many ups and downs. CIA is its own show, although it does exist in the universe of the mother ship FBI.” A synopsis for the upcoming spin-off reads:

“CIA is a one hour crime drama centered on two unlikely partners – a fast-talking, rule-breaking loose cannon CIA case officer (Tom Ellis), and a by-the-book, seasoned and smart FBI agent who believes in the rule of law. When this odd couple are assigned to work out of CIA’s New York Station, they must learn to work together to investigate cases and criminals posing threats on U.S. soil, finding that their differences may actually be their strength.”