

According to a Deadline article CBS has made the tough decision to cancel two of its FBI spinoffs—FBI: Most Wanted and FBI: International. Deadline explains that FBI: Most Wanted will wrap up after six seasons, while FBI: International is ending after four. Both of the series are produced by Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television and feature well-known actors like Dylan McDermott (Most Wanted, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit) and Jesse Lee Soffer (International, Two of a Kind), who previously starred in other Dick Wolf productions like Law & Order: Organized Crime and Chicago P.D.
According to Deadline these major cancellations leave the original FBI series in its seventh season with a multi-year renewal in place, now acting as as the company’s sole active show on CBS. The move also improves the chances for FBI: CIA, a new spinoff currently in development. A backdoor pilot for FBI: CIA is set to air as an episode of FBI, and with casting underway, the series is likely to receive a “straight-to-series order”per Deadline.
Deadline goes on to say it remains uncertain whether Universal TV and Wolf Entertainment will attempt to find a new home for the two canceled spinoffs. Both shows still deliver strong ratings, often outperforming several CBS dramas that were renewed, such as NCIS: Origins, NCIS: Sydney, and Elsbeth. The article goes on to say a similar move happened last year when Law & Order: Organized Crime shifted from NBC to Peacock, so a streaming or cable network pickup isn’t out of the question. If no alternative platform is found, the production teams will adjust their current episodes to serve as series finales per Deadline.
Deadline says CBS’s decision largely comes down to finances and scheduling constraints. The FBI franchise is produced by an outside studio, Universal Television, and the network has faced tough negotiations with NBCUniversal in recent years. Additionally, with several series already renewed such as NCIS, Tracker, Fire Country, and Matlock, Deadline says CBS needed to make room for new projects. Next season’s lineup will include two new dramas: Sheriff Country, a Fire Country spinoff, and Boston Blue, which is tied to the Blue Bloods universe per Deadline. Other potential new series include FBI: CIA, an Equalizer spinoff starring Titus Welliver (The Last Ship, Bosch) , and Einstein, featuring Criminal Minds alum Matthew Gray Gubler (Profession, Dollface).
With FBI: Most Wanted ending, the fate of actress Shantel VanSanten (One Tree Hill, The Flash) remains unknown. Her character recently transferred from FBI to Most Wanted, where she had a child with Scola from the original series. Given Wolf Entertainment’s history of moving characters between shows, a return to FBI could be a possibility says Deadline.