With CBS’ FBI Boss Possibly Taking Over CIA, Here’s What He Told Us About Working With ‘Absolute Ninjas’ On The Network TV Schedule

by

As a big fan of the FBI shows, I was relieved to see the eighth season still happening on CBS this fall, even after they cancelled FBI: Most Wanted and FBI: International. I was really excited about the new CIA show coming from the same team, but it’s been delayed. Now, production’s paused again with another change in who’s running things – there’s talk of bringing in Mike Weiss, who does FBI, to help. It actually made me remember something Weiss said about how tough it is to plan things with network TV schedules!

First things first!

More Behind-The-Scenes Changes For CIA

When the show initially announced as CIA (with a different, less appealing title), FBI: Most Wanted’s David Hudgins was chosen as showrunner and helped decide to move forward with a full series order instead of starting as a backdoor pilot. More recently, Warren Leight, who previously ran Law & Order: SVU, took over as showrunner. Just this week, Michael Michele departed the cast and Eriq La Salle stepped down as an executive producer, though Nick Gehlfuss (known from Chicago Med) remains a co-lead alongside Tom Ellis, who starred in Lucifer.

Variety reports that Mike Weiss, who currently runs the show FBI, is being considered to also take charge of CIA as showrunner, replacing Warren Leight. Production on CIA is temporarily on hold while they finalize who will lead the show, but it’s still planned to return in the 2026 TV season. They are also beginning the search for a new actor to play the role of the New York CIA station chief, previously held by Michele.

If Mike Weiss joins the CIA, he’ll be taking on a lot of responsibility while still leading the show FBI.

What Mike Weiss Told Us About Making Network TV

Okay, so FBI is back for its eighth season, and it’s only my second time covering it – I jumped on board right before Season 7 started, which had a pretty significant character exit. And let me tell you, the Season 8 premiere – you can stream it now with Paramount+ – didn’t hold back. It threw another major twist at us with yet another big death. Before the premiere aired, I had a chance to chat with showrunner Mike Weiss about what he was hoping to achieve in his second season, building on the foundation he laid in his first, and he told me…

As a huge fan of this show, I’m constantly amazed by the production team we have here in New York. They’re incredibly efficient – they manage to film each episode in just nine days! Seriously, they’re masters at what they do. We’re really pushing them to go even bigger with the action in upcoming seasons, dreaming up more ambitious stunts and sets. We’ve been asking ourselves what corners of the city we haven’t showcased in the past seven seasons, and what new locations we can explore in season eight. I’m especially excited that we’re finally incorporating water-based action – the season premiere is going to be a blast!

Even though many streaming shows now have shorter seasons with episodes released less often, FBI continues to air a full 22 episodes each season with only short breaks between them. Given the scale and complexity of the show’s action sequences, completing an episode in just nine days is incredibly fast-paced. While taking on two shows with such a quick turnaround would be a huge undertaking, director Joe Weiss emphasized that the team works collaboratively to make it happen. He explained further:

We’re incredibly lucky to have such a talented and enthusiastic cast. They often ask if they can appear in episodes with specific co-stars, and we’re always happy to accommodate those requests. With 22 episodes, we have plenty of room for ideas from everyone, like when Jeremy Sisto expressed interest in a storyline with Zeeko Zaki. We loved the idea! We’re looking forward to creating some unexpected and enjoyable pairings in Season 8.

The upcoming episode of FBI will feature an unusual team-up: Maggie will work with Eva, the team’s newest member. A short preview shows what the pair is like together, without OA and Scola. Actress Missy Peregrym says the episode will be “a lot of fun.”

The main stars of the upcoming show CIA—Tom Ellis and Nick Gehlfuss—are expected to return as the unconventional CIA agent and the strictly-by-the-book FBI agent, respectively. Joining Gehlfuss will be Natalee Linez, who previously appeared on Chicago P.D.

You can continue watching new episodes of FBI Season 8 on CBS Mondays at 9 p.m. Eastern, before Watson Season 2 airs. Both shows are also available to stream on Paramount+.

Read More

2025-11-07 05:39