CBS may be planning an additional extension of the “NCIS” brand because… duh.
According to Deadline.com, “NCIS” and “NCIS: LA” executive producer Shane Brennan would be behind the possible spinoff, which would be introduced in a two-hour planted spinoff airing as part of “NCIS: LA” later this season.
The new “NCIS” vehicle would focus on a mobile team of agents, living together and working together and traveling the country fighting crime. Think “NCIS: Scooby-Doo,” minus the ghosts? Or “NCIS: Road Rules,” minus the hooking up?
“NCIS” was, itself, a planted spinoff from NBC castoff “JAG” and spawned “NCIS: LA” in a two-part planted spinoff in 2009. Since its premiere in September of 2009, “NCIS: LA” has joined the mothership in creating the most watched drama block on TV by a wide margin. Given the success of the “NCIS” brand and CBS’ difficulties generating any drama with even close to the same overall audience for years — including a failed attempt to spin off “Criminal Minds” — the idea that the network would want a third “NCIS” platform is the very definition of a no-brainer.
The arrival of a third “NCIS” would also coincide with the decline of the network’s previous platinum franchise. CBS cancelled “CSI: Miami” last spring and based on its Friday night ratings, the chances of “CSI: NY” lasting beyond its current ninth season are remote. The mothership, “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” still a reliable time period winner in its 13th season, appears to be safe.