CBS adds new 'NCIS,' 'FBI' and 'CSI' series in fall programming crime wave

CBS is leaning even further into its initial-heavy drama franchises next season with a third "FBI" series, the return of "CSI" and a new "NCIS" set in Hawaii that replaces the canceled New Orleans version of the show.

The most-watched network will detail plans to advertisers at a virtual presentation Wednesday. It's moving "NCIS" to Mondays, from its longtime Tuesday home; "Bull" will shift to Thursdays; and producer Dick Wolf's "FBI" trio will air in a block on Tuesdays, just as NBC does on Wednesdays with Wolf's "Chicago" franchise and will do on Thursdays this fall with his "Law & Order" block.

All told, about a third of CBS' 22-hour primetime schedule consists of "NCIS," "FBI" and "CSI" series, and three more hours are remakes of former series: "The Equalizer," "Magnum P.I." and "S.W.A.T."

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CBS Entertainment chief Kelly Kahl defends the strategy: "Look at what's working in this current environment," he says in an interview, citing depressed network ratings and an emphasis on streaming. "Franchises work live on air, delayed and they stream very well. They check all the boxes."

The new dramas include "CSI: Vegas," a sequel to the original 2000-15 hit set in the gambling mecca, that will star Paula Newsome and reunite original cast members William Petersen, Jorja Fox and Wallace Langham.

Also due: "NCIS: Hawai'i," an Aloha-state spinoff centered on Pearl Harbor division Special Agent Jane Tennant (Vanessa Lachey). And "FBI: International" centers on a Prague-based International Fly Team that investigates threats to Americans from abroad.

"SEAL Team" will air for four weeks on Sundays before shifting to parent ViacomCBS' Paramount+ streaming service, where drama "Evil" is migrating and freshman drama "Clarice" is expected to follow.

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A lone new comedy on the fall schedule is "Ghost," based on a British format, which Kahl calls an "irreverent" companion to three Chuck Lorre shows that surround it. "Ghost" stars Rose McIver ("iZombie") as a freelance journalist and Utkarsh Ambudkar as an up-and-coming chef who convert a rundown country estate they inherit into a bed and breakfast, but find it’s inhabited by the ghosts of dead residents.

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Cancellations include "NCIS: New Orleans," after seven seasons, "All Rise," "MacGyver," "Mom" and "The Unicorn."

On tap for midseason are "Smallwood," a comedy starring Pete Holmes as a professional bowler; and "Good Sam," starring Sophia Bush ("One Tree Hill") as a heart surgeon who contends with her colleague and father (Jason Isaacs).

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CBS fall schedule

Monday: 8, "The Neighborhood"; 8:30, "Bob Hearts Abishola"; 9, "NCIS"; 10, "NCIS: Hawaii"

Tuesday: 8, "FBI"; 9: "FBI: International"; 10, "FBI: Most Wanted"

Wednesday: 8, "Survivor"; 9, "Tough As Nails"; 10, "CSI: Vegas"

Thursday: 8, "Young Sheldon"; 8:30, "United States of Al"; 9, "Ghosts"; 9:30, "B Positive"; 10, "Bull"

Friday: 8, "S.W.A.T."; 9, "Magnum P.I."; 10, "Blue Bloods"

Saturday: 8, Drama repeats; 10, "48 Hours"

Sunday: 7, "60 Minutes"; 8, "The Equalizer"; 9, "NCIS: Los Angeles"; 10, "SEAL Team"

(All times EDT/PDT; new shows in bold, new time slots in italics.)

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: CBS fall schedule: New 'CSI,' 'NCIS,' 'FBI' series in crime wave