All season long, there were rumblings that one of the FBI spinoffs were destined for cancellation.
The negative buzz surrounding the fates of both FBI: International and FBI: Most Wanted were both right.
CBS said, “Hold my beer,” and swung the hatchet on both shows on Tuesday afternoon.
The unprecedented move means FBI: International and FBI: Most Wanted will conclude with their fourth and sixth seasons, respectively.
The only silver lining in this messy decision is that both series will likely get some form of closure.
CBS was skewered last season for canceling NCIS: Hawai’i after three seasons, despite robust ratings, ending the Vanessa Lachey drama on a doozy of a cliffhanger.
Speaking of ratings, both FBI: International and FBI: Most Wanted had decent numbers by broadcast TV standards.
FBI: International and FBI: Most Wanted Were in Danger
Questions about both spinoffs emerged when news broke that FBI: CIA, a third spinoff, was in the works.
CBS had already been on a renewal spree and picked up some spinoffs of other popular series for the 2025-26 season, so schedule space was closing up by the day.
FBI: Most Wanted was initially a robust entry, but it faltered when it lost the bulk of its series regulars and had unsatisfying final arcs.
When Dylan McDermott was shoehorned in as the team’s leader, the damage was already done.
Producers made a good decision to transplant FBI’s Shantel VanSanten on Most Wanted, but the series has aimlessly progressed over the last few years.
It was just waiting to be put out of its misery.
As for FBI: International, it has had a creatively strong run over four seasons.
The addition of Jesse Lee Soffer this season has taken some getting used to, but the rest of the characters have been great.
CBS is Poised to Make More Controversial Decisions
Despite both series being cancelled, many of the characters will likely appear elsewhere.
That said, the cancellations don’t bode well for The Equalizer and S.W.A.T.
The long-running dramas missed out on early renewals last month, indicating that CBS was crafting a new schedule without them.
As we keep saying, the broadcast TV industry is in an uncertain place due to continued obstacles, such as lower viewership.
Without content generating enough money from linear alone, predicting what will happen is more difficult.
These cancellations set a worrying precedent. That’s for sure.
What are your thoughts on CBS binning both FBI spinoffs?
Do you think it’s a slap in the face to replace them with another spinoff?
Hit the comments.