The long wait for CIA to arrive in the 2026 TV schedule is nearly over, with the latest FBI spinoff out of the Wolf Entertainment world arriving on CBS on February 23. The odd couple dynamic between CIA Agent Colin Glass (Lucifer alum Tom Ellis) and FBI Agent Bill Goodman (Chicago Med's Nick Gehlfuss) has been evident since the first look at the series, but what about the Chicago P.D. vet who is coming to CIA as a completely new character? Natalee Linez opened up to CinemaBlend about why she was "ecstatic" about CIA.
Fans of Dick Wolf's expansive TV world were already getting a familiar face with Nick Gehlfuss as a star, with the former One Chicago doctor sharing why he's "on cloud nine" on CIA as a new character. Natalee Linez's casting was announced a bit later, coming over to CIA after three episodes of Chicago P.D. Season 12 as Val Soto.
While that wasn't exactly enough to make her a series regular, her character's relationship with Officer Atwater as well as her job in the Windy City could have set the stage for her to recur well beyond just one season. Instead, Linez is playing Analyst Gina Rojas on CIA, and she said this when asked what interested her about returning to the Dick Wolf world as a new character after P.D.:
[CIA] was a proper audition that hit my inbox. When I got the audition, I was so excited about it, not only that it was Dick Wolf, but also just the content, the vibe of the show. I think a dream of mine has always been to be in some sort of high energy FBI-like show. I think my ultimate goal, like I put on my vision board, was 007. This literally falls so in line with that.
It would stand to reason that any actor might be excited to join a Dick Wolf project, given that there are currently no fewer than five Wolf Entertainment shows in primetime that are in double digit seasons. But the spy element of CIA appealed to Natalee Linez when she got the audition.
While the actress may not be playing James Bond on CBS Monday nights, Analyst Gina Rojas aligns with what Linez was dreaming of playing in primetime more than the character she played on Chicago P.D. did. She went on:
When I got the original audition, I just really responded to the material, and so I just went through all the proper channels. There was no offer at my doorstep. This was like one audition, callback. Next audition, callback. Then there was a Zoom with the team, and then a pin, then an interest, then it went through all the proper things for a few weeks. So when I did book it, I was literally beyond ecstatic. It was and is a dream come true.
A briefly recurring role on Chicago P.D. didn't mean that Linez was offered her CIA role without auditioning, as there was a process before she joined fellow One Chicago alums Jesse Lee Soffer and Nick Gehlfuss in jumping into the FBI end of the Wolf world.
When the audition process was finally done, she was all set to join Tom Ellis and Nick Gehlfuss on CIA... but her character has more in common with one half of the odd couple than the other. Natalee Linez previewed whether Gina aligns more with Ellis' Colin Glass or Gehlfuss' Bill Goodman:
Hands down, Colin. [laughs] Colin's a CIA officer, she's a CIA officer. I think overall, she just looks up to him, in a way. She definitely looks up to Nikki a lot, who is the DOC. But she also respects Colin a lot. She's the one watching him out on the field, literally, sometimes on drone footage. And I think she cares a lot about the safety of him, the safety of the operation.
Colin and Bill may be the lead duo of the series, but Linez also shouted out the character played by Necar Zadegan. CIA is Zadegan's return to CBS after starring in the last three seasons of NCIS: New Orleans, and she plays Deputy Chief of Station Nikki Reynard, who will evidently be somebody for Gina to look up to. But what about Bill, even though she's more closely aligned with Colin and Nikki? Linez teased what to expect from the early days of the show:
Bill is very new to her, and she actually doesn't quite know if she can fully trust him yet. I mean, how could you? She's only known him for a few weeks. So yeah, I'm interested to see, actually, the dynamic that she might have with Bill.
While there's still nearly a week left before the first episode, the full trailer for CIA not only sheds more light on the characters who will be at the center of the action, but reveals the appearance of an FBI series regular: Jeremy Sisto. Take a look:
It looks like Sisto's appearance as ASAC Jubal Valentine will be for the purpose of assigning Agent Goodman to the new joint FBI/CIA task force, but it remains to be seen just how much of the episode he'll appear in. The guest appearance on CIA does mean a double dose of Jubal on premiere night, as the very first episode of CIA debuts right after the winter premiere of FBI Season 8.
Tune in to CBS on Monday, February 23 at 10 p.m. ET on CBS for the series premiere of CIA after FBI at 9 p.m. ET, or stream next day with a Paramount+ subscription.
