The biggest and best shows on broadcast television are slowly but surely returning in the 2024 TV schedule, following lengthy delays due to the WGA writers strike and SAG-AFTRA actors strike. NBC wasted no time in bringing the One Chicago and Law & Order shows back to primetime, meaning that six of the nine main Dick Wolf shows finally had new episodes. The three FBIs on CBS are still weeks away from premiering to join the fellow Wolf series, but there are already some intriguing details about their first episodes back. Read on for what we know from CBS!
FBI Season 6
FBI will take back the 8 p.m. ET time slot on CBS Tuesdays when Season 6 premieres on Tuesday, February 13. The sixth season picks up after the hit show reached the 100-episode milestone with its fifth season finale, which was a grisly episode for Maggie and Co. that fortunately had a happy ending for Scola and Nina with the birth of their son.
Cast changes across the FBIs presumably mean less of Nina on the original show, however, and CBS' description for the premiere indicate that Scola will have more than the case on his mind. Here's what to expect from "All the Rage," which kicks off Season 6:
When a bus explosion kills several innocent people, the team jumps into action to take down the responsible terrorist organization. Meanwhile, Scola tries to balance fatherhood with the job.
After 100 episodes, it's safe to say that the FBI team has what it takes to take down a terrorist organization, but that doesn't mean there won't be some collateral damage along the way. For Scola, he has the added responsibility of raising a child, and actor John Boyd shared his thoughts back in 2023 about what kind of father the character would be.
Depending on how the show approaches the long span of time between the Season 5 finale in the spring and the Season 6 premiere in February, baby Douglas could be anywhere from infancy to ten months old. Wolf Entertainment's three One Chicago shows all skipped ahead six months, and the Law & Order shows had a time jump as well. That seems likely for FBI, but only time (and the sixth season return) will tell!
FBI: Most Wanted Season 5
FBI: Most Wanted has some significant cast changes in store (again), with Alexa Davalos bowing out for Season 5 as Agent Kristin Gaines. This isn't the first time that Most Wanted has said goodbye to a series regular between seasons, as Miguel Gomez exited between Seasons 3 and 4. Kristin will be replaced by a familiar face from the franchise, and Shantel VanSanten joins Most Wanted as a series regular to reprise her FBI role as Nina Chase. The casting does raise the question of if we'll see Scola and Nina parenting together, with John Boyd and VanSanten regulars on different shows.
According to CBS' episode description for the Season 5 premiere, called "Above & Beyond," the task force's first case of 2024 will take them to Virginia, all while Remy is dealing with the big reveal from the Season 4 finale:
When a mysterious deal goes south, leaving behind multiple bodies, the Fugitive Task Force heads to Virginia to put the pieces together with the help of a familiar face and new addition to the team, Special Agent Nina Chase (new series regular Shantel VanSanten). Also, Remy continues to grapple with the aftermath of connecting with his long-lost nephew.
"Long-lost" is a mild way to describe Remy's nephew, if you ask me! Remy had no idea that Corey even existed before the end of the fourth season, when he finally got some answers about his brother's death years ago. Corey was already a young adult by the time Remy met him, so it should be interesting to see how his uncle handles a relationship with him. Not least because Remy and Co. have a deadly new case to deal with!
FBI: Most Wanted returned to its 10 p.m. ET time slot on Tuesday, February 13. Like FBI, the length of the time jump between seasons could mean a lot for the state of Remy's relationship with his nephew.
FBI: International Season 3
FBI: International is the only one of the three FBI shows that ended on a life-or-death cliffhanger, and a first look at Season 3 confirms the series isn't going to skip the aftermath of the Season 2 finale cliffhanger. When the second season ended, the only characters from the Fly Team who were safely away from HQ when the bomb went off were Raines and Tank; the rest were definitely not safe from the explosion.
The first look proves that most of them live to start Season 3 – including Jamie Kellett, who I was worried about following the news of actress Heida Reed's upcoming departure – but not much else is guaranteed. One fact that has been established is that the Fly Team is getting a new member, played by Batwoman alum Christina Wolfe. CBS' episode description for the third season premiere – called June – sheds some extra light on what brings the newcomer into the fold:
The Fly Team, with the help of their new intel analyst, Special Agent Amanda Tate (new series regular Christina Wolfe), works to clean up the pieces left behind after a massive explosion rocks headquarters and their key suspect slips away.
It remains to be seen how quickly FBI: International jumps ahead in time (or doesn't jump ahead in time) following the aftermath of the explosive cliffhanger resolution. Fans can at least be happy that the show isn't skipping that aftermath due to the strikes. The newest FBI spinoff has a new showrunner for the third season, with former Chicago P.D. boss Matt Olmstead taking the reins. He steps into the role formerly help by Chicago Fire's Derek Haas, so the showrunner switch keeps the top job within the Wolf family.
As for who is certain to have survived the explosion from back in the spring... well, only one major character was missing from the first-look images for Season 3, so Smitty's fate is still unknown. We can only hope that everybody is at least intact enough to start investigating again, given that their key suspect escaped! As usual, FBI: International will air on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on CBS, between FBI and Most Wanted.
Luckily, even though One Chicago and the Law & Orders returned in mid-January, the wait for the FBIs isn't too long into the new year. All three CBS series will premiere on Tuesday, February 13 starting with FBI at 8 p.m. ET. If you want to revisit last spring's finales again before the premieres of the new seasons, you can find every season of FBI so far streaming with a Paramount+ subscription. As for Most Wanted and International, both are available streaming via a Peacock Premium subscription now.
