Law & Order has showcased many actors coming and going throughout its run, which will continue with Season 26 this fall on the 2026 TV schedule. Among the large ensemble cast at one point was Jesse L. Martin, who starred in Seasons 10-18 in the breakout role of Detective Ed Green. He recently talked about how he landed it, with a little bit of inside info coming into play.

Martin was on the mothership drama from 1999 to 2008, and also appeared on SVU and Criminal Intent, making him one of the longest-running Law & Order actors, and Detective Green was only his second main television role, following the short-lived Fox drama 413 Hope St. in 1997. Law & Order came by word of mouth when he heard from an old friend that the cast was changing up following Benjamin Bratt’s departure as Junior Detective Rey Curtis. That news made Martin motivated to nab the opening spot himself, as he recalled to People. Here's how he said his buddy presented that info to him:

It seems like every celebrity wants a role on Law & Order, no matter what the role is (though it helps if it's more than just Corpse #1.) The fact that The Irrational star knew ahead of time that there was a rumored interest in him was probably pretty exciting and inspiring. However, despite the excitement, it still wasn’t easy to land the role, as Martin was recurring on Ally McBeal in Los Angeles at the time, while Law & Order was filming in New York. He was determined anyway, especially following a meeting with Dick Wolf:

While the meeting seemed to go well, there was just one more hurdle in the way. The Emmy-winning producer tasked Martin with a very important assignment, one that can usually make or break auditions, and that was a chemistry read with his potential partner:

Chemistry reads are usually pretty important, as producers see how well actors work together and confirm whether what’s on paper can be perfectly translated to the screen. So it’s not so surprising that Wolf wanted Martin and Jerry Orbach, who portrayed Senior Detective Lennie Briscoe from Seasons 3-14, to get together. It is surprising, though, to hear that the chemistry test never even happened, because Martin ultimately won the role before he had the chance to be put in a room with Orbach:

I, for one, am so happy that things worked out because it’s hard to imagine Law & Order without Martin. Even though he has yet to return for the revival, I’m just glad that he was on the show in the first place. He has eight seasons under his belt, which is a lot, and while he’s busy with other projects, it’s always possible that we haven’t seen the last of Detective Green.

For now, fans can watch some of Martin’s seasons of Law & Order with a Peacock subscription.

Chicago Fire has been keeping fans on the edge of their seats for the 14^th season on the 2026 TV schedule, and that won’t be stopping anytime soon. While the season is wrapping up next month, Season 15 has officially been confirmed. However, there is about to be a big shakeup as the show moves forward.

Deadline reports that showrunner Andrea Newman will be stepping down after Season 14. She’s been with the Dick Wolf drama for all 14 seasons and has been spearheading the series for the last three. Co-executive producer Victor Teran, who has been on the series since Season 10, will be stepping in her place as showrunner and executive producer for Season 15, presumably airing this fall. The shakeup is a big one, considering Newman joined Chicago Fire as co-executive producer after the pilot.

After becoming executive producer in Season 6, she was named co-showrunner alongside co-creator Derek Haas in 2021. In 2023, Newman took over as the sole showrunner and will remain in the position until the end of Season 14. What this means for future storylines is hard to tell, but fans should likely expect some changes moving forward. In a statement, Newman said:

News of Newman’s departure, which is believed to be her decision, comes weeks after the One Chicago franchise, also consisting of Chicago P.D. and Chicago Med, was renewed. The Season 14 finale is set to air on Wednesday, May 13, and will likely set up Season 15, so fans should get some idea as to what to expect then. As of now, NBC hasn’t revealed when the show is returning, but Upfronts will be taking place next month, and the network is expected to unveil the schedule then.

Meanwhile, Chicago Fire has been seeing some big shakeups as of late. Earlier this season, Dermot Mulroney took a leave of absence after portraying Battalion Chief Dom Pascal since Season 13, but it is believed to be temporary. Daniel Kyri and Jake Lockett were announced to be departing at the end of Season 13, with Kyri wrapping up Ritter's storyline at the beginning of Season 14. Lockett has returned on a few occasions as Carver. Of course, with a show that has been on as long as Chicago Fire, exits are expected, but now it seems that’s happening behind the scenes as well, and there’s no telling what could be next.

There has been a surprising number of shows going through what Chicago Fire is going through just this year. In fact, three CBS shows are changing showrunners for their upcoming seasons. At the very least, Fire was able to find a replacement right away, and it’s someone who has worked on the show. Now it’s just a matter of waiting to see what storyline changes will be made.

For now, new episodes of Chicago Fire air on Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET on NBC, streaming the next day with a Peacock subscription.

Law & Order: SVU is wrapping up its 27^th season on the 2026 TV schedule, but the end is not yet here. NBC has renewed the series for Season 28. However, Law & Order is still awaiting news, and Law & Order: Organized Crime just got canceled after five seasons. So, now, the big question is: Are we reaching the end of Dick Wolf’s mega Law & Order franchise? Mariska Hargitay had some thoughts.

It’s hard to believe that SVU is still going on, and has been going on consistently since 1999. The show is a staple not only on NBC but on network television as a whole, and it’s hard to imagine a world without it. Despite its long reign, Hargitay, who has been playing Captain Olivia Benson since the start and is the longest-running franchise actor, still loves being on the show. That being said, there has to be an end at some point, so how long does she see SVU going? When asked by Deadline if the show could make it to 35 seasons, she just had one goal in mind:

SVU is already closing in on 600 episodes, a feat it will accomplish next season, so hitting 30 seasons seems like the next ultimate goal. At this point, it doesn’t seem too hard to achieve, but it's also not guaranteed. However, if any show has a chance to go the distance, it’s definitely SVU, which is practically considered to be the Law & Order show now instead of Law & Order itself.

The Mothership already got canceled once, and while it’s made a successful comeback, the fact that it hasn’t secured a spot for next season is troubling, especially since NBC has a handful of drama pilots to consider as well. However, the franchise managed to hold its own with SVU, so it wouldn’t be surprising if that were to happen again. It can be assumed that if there is ever one Law & Order show left again, it would be SVU. So theoretically, if it’s the last one standing by the time it reaches Season 30, that could very well be it.

Technically, there is still another Law & Order show at play, Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent. It’s based on Law & Order: Criminal Intent and is separate from the franchise. The series premiered on Canada’s Citytv in 2024 but only made its way to the States last fall on The CW. L&O Toronto is wrapping up its third season in May, with Season 2 airing on The CW sometime this fall. But, counting the actual NBC franchise, only SVU and possibly Law & Order are left.

At the very least, fans can breathe knowing there’s at least one more year left of SVU, and it shouldn’t be long until NBC makes a decision on the Mothership. Dick Wolf's TV franchise began with the Law & Order Universe, which has been around since the early ‘90s, and unfortunately, it’s bound to end someday. However, hopefully, they can do what Mariska Hargitay said and make it a few more years, if not longer.

Law & Order is still waiting for a renewal as Season 25 continues its run on the 2026 TV schedule, but it’s only a matter of time before we get an update. The show returned to its TV staple-dom years after the original run ended, and between the successful revival and numerous spinoffs, it’s hard to imagine life without the Law & Order franchise. Evidently, though, the flagship procedural nearly got canceled by the time Jill Hennessy joined the show.

Hennessy starred on the legal drama during Seasons 4-6 back in the ‘90s, so Law & Order wasn’t yet the behemoth it is today. SVU wasn’t even out yet. When Hennessy joined in Season 4 as Assistant District Attorney Claire Kincaid, NBC was close to pulling the plug, and it was all because of her and S. Epatha Merkerson’s addition to the show that the plug-pulling didn’t happen, as Hennessy recalled to Yahoo!:

Not only is it crazy to think about Law & Order being canceled before hitting its syndication benchmark, but also to think that two new cast members were the catalyst for it remaining on the air for so many more years to come. Before Hennessy and Merkerson, who portrayed Lieutenant Anita Van Buren through Season 20, joined, there were actually no women on the main cast. Dick Wolf might have been pressured into adding two female leads, but it certainly seemed to work.

Law & Order really took off after Season 4, and by Season 10 in 1999, NBC had ordered up the first and most successful of many spinoffs, Special Victims Unit. Hennessy was only on the OG series through Season 6, but it’s clear she made a major impact during her three seasons. Things would have gone much differently had she not been added, both in terms of the show and her own career, and we luckily don’t have to wonder “What if...?”

Meanwhile, Law & Order reached its milestone 25^th season in September, and things have certainly changed since the ‘90s. Of course, the cast has gone through a lot of changes over the years, but fans are still tuning in. While a Season 26 has yet to be confirmed, there doesn’t seem to be any end in sight for the series or the franchise as a whole. So we'll likely be Hennes-seeing new episodes again in the fall.

As for Hennessy, she is staying awfully busy as of late, and Law & Order was just another big stepping stone for her. The actress can currently be seen in the new Hallmark+ series Hope Valley: 1874, a When Calls the Heart prequel. Whether or not she’ll ever make a return to Law & Order remains to be seen, but she definitely has her hands full right now. However, you never know what could happen in the future.

September 25 is a special day for Law & Order and its fans, as this is when the 2025 TV schedule will usher in Season 25 of the beloved crime procedural. With over 500 episodes under its belt across 35 years (the L&O pilot aired way back in 1990), these ripped-from-the-headlines stories of love, loss, deceit, murder, and mayhem have certainly given viewers lots to look forward to week after week. But, the man behind the far-reaching franchise, Dick Wolf, recently admitted that the “perfect” episode of the drama has yet to happen.

What Does Dick Wolf Think Will Make The Perfect Law & Order Episode?

When Law & Order debuted so many years ago, I don’t really think anyone, even Dick Wolf, could have predicted how the series would go on to change television. Not only did the original become one of the longest-running scripted dramas, but it also led to not just the wide-ranging L&O franchise, but a whole Wolf TV Universe that includes One Chicago and a (recently lowered) number of FBI shows.

When talking about the drama that started it all with the Los Angeles Times, Wolf revealed that while it (somehow) hasn’t happened yet, he does believe that there’s a “perfect” L&O episode fans have yet to experience. When talking about how the writing on his shows have led to their longevity, he said:

Now, this is an intriguing idea. As much as the cast of characters has always included a number of cops and district attorneys at varying levels, they do all tend to basically agree on the right and wrong of the cases they’re collaborating on, as well as the motives and actions of suspects/criminals.

While there have always been real life issues that cause all of us real folks to live in undefined and sometimes icky gray areas of morality, Wolf’s franchise has likely mostly stuck to the lawyers and detectives in his franchise agreeing on things to make it easier to craft stories. But, as he also points out, one of the things that keeps the series strong is what most of the episodes end up being about when all the murky issues are boiled down:

While he didn’t reveal why he thinks his “perfect” episode idea always gets shot down, I do appreciate his honesty in opening up about how he butters his crime-drama bread (as well as that of the L&O franchise’s many, many employees). It’s doubtful that we’ll see his vision come to fruition any time soon, but whenever it does happen, it’ll be an episode for the record books.

The Law & Order franchise in truly one of a kind, starting with Dick Wolf's creation of the original series in 1990 and advancing to span six spinoffs, two of which are still releasing new episodes alongside the original in the 2025 TV schedule. After nearly 40 years and literally thousands of episodes mostly set in New York City, is it any surprise that actors have played multiple characters within the franchise or even reprised roles many years later? Well, former Law & Order: Criminal Intent actress Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio joined Organized Crime this year, and she opened up about what makes actors want to come back to Dick Wolf's world.

In fact, Mastrantonio isn't even the only Organized Crime cast member to leave and then return to the franchise. Christopher Meloni famously left the SVU corner of the Law & Order world as Elliot Stabler before coming back for OC nearly a decade later, while Dean Norris, Rick Gonzalez, and Michael Trotter returned as new characters. For her part, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio recurred in Season 9 of Criminal Intent as Captain Zoe Callus in 2010 before joining OC Season 5 as Isabella Spezzano. (You can find Season 5 streaming with a Peacock subscription now.)

Isabella's time on Organized Crime was unfortunately short, but she certainly made an impact over the course of her few episodes. When I spoke with Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio about Isabella's big final twist, she weighed in on coming back to the Law & Order franchise:

Apparently, Dick Wolf – who is also an executive producer on NBC's One Chicago shows, CBS' FBI shows and the upcoming CIA – knows how to run a tight ship when it comes to the Law & Order franchise to make it worth actors' while to come back. That includes paying well! Mastrantonio went on:

While many people have commutes from home to work, I'd say it's a safe bet that London to New York is pretty extreme for just about anybody! The actress had nothing bad to say about how the Criminal Intent production team and Wolf Entertainment handled her travel, and even found another perk for playing an NYPD captain instead of a beat cop or detective. She said:

Actors who play detectives are generally the ones in the Law & Order world who are running through the streets of NYC in rain, shine, or snow, and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio clearly enjoyed getting her office scenes on Criminal Intent.

Oddly enough, she may have had more action-packed sequences in three episodes of Organized Crime than all her episodes of CI Season 9! The actress elaborated on how the Wolf team has made the experience comfortable:

The television industry seems to somewhat in a state of flux, accounting for Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio's decision to return to the Law & Order franchise while some Wolf Entertainment shows have made cuts recently. SVU is losing series regulars Octavio Pisano and Juliana Martinez ahead of Season 27 in the fall, although the series is also bringing former series regular Kelli Giddish back.

Over in the One Chicago corner of Dick Wolf's TV universe, Chicago Fire series regulars Jake Lockett and Daniel Kyri are out ahead of Season 14. It was never explicitly confirmed one way or the other if the SVU and Fire cuts were for budget reasons, although one CBS exec confirmed that economics were behind FBI: Most Wanted and FBI: International's cancellations.

At the time of writing, the majority of the Wolf Entertainment shows that were not cancelled are currently on summer hiatus. That said, you can keep catching new episodes of Law & Order: Organized Crime on Thursdays, streaming exclusively on Peacock.

FBI’s latest spinoff now has the working title of just CIA, and it’s coming together rapidly. In fact, a big Chicago P.D., Law & Order and even FBI director is going to be directing the big, splashy first episode for the new show, and he’s one network TV OGs might recognize for a major acting role that came early in his career. It's a role that subsequently led to a strong pipeline of work for the now actor, producer and director.

Fans who have been in the network TV game for a long time probably know showbiz veteran Eriq La Salle from his major role on ER over the years. Regardless, since the time he played Peter Benton, he’s expanded his repertoire greatly as a producer and director in the TV game. For the last decade or so he’s been heavily involved in the Dick Wolf Universe shows like Law & Order and Chicago P.D., and now he’s expanding his repertoire to include the new FBI spinoff.

Needless to say, I’m pretty pumped. La Salle has been hugely instrumental in making Chicago P.D.’s vibe as memorable as it is. He’s directed 21 episodes of the series, which is itself a spinoff of the other One Chicago show, Chicago Fire. It’s not the only spinoff he’s done work for either, also directing episodes of Law & Order: Organized Crime, CSI: Cyber and Chicago Med, so his directing pedigree speaks for him here.

The Timing Couldn't Have Been More Perfect

La Salle’s got a little more free time on his plate now that his last acting gig On Call was canceled. That procedural was also from Dick Wolf and was the prolific producer's first to stream only. (In fact it's still available for those with an Amazon Prime subscription.) However, it was also notably his big acting role in years. The thing about working with Wolf is he often works with many of the same people for years and years, so getting to direct the pilot for CIA might not come as a surprise, but it is a welcome turn of events.

I’ve been to One Chicago Day before, where the casts and some of the creative team come to talk about the upcoming seasons of the NBC shows, and I’ve been impressed by La Salle’s investment in those series. For CIA the timing is interesting, as the show itself was initially expected to premiere as a backdoor pilot on one of the now-canceled FBI shows. Instead, now it's going straight to series and La Salle has availability at just the right time.

Who knows if things would have been different if it had been a backdoor pilot instead? Timing, per usual, is everything.

CIA’s already been dealing with a bit of an uphill battle, frankly, as two of the other FBI offshoots just got canceled by CBS, including the highly touted FBI Most Wanted led by Dylan McDermott. It was touch and go if the new Tom Ellis-led series would even officially get the greenlight for the 2025-2026 TV schedule, but as bad as the cancelation news was, at least the newest spinoff has a strong lead and a strong director helming the pilot.

We’ll have to wait and see if that’s enough to get jaded fans back on board. For now, it’s definitely been a rough spring for network TV, and you can see if your TV favorites got axed or made with CinemaBlend’s full canceled and ending rundown.

We’ve just passed the midway part of March, and yet, apparently, we are already at the time of the 2025 TV schedule when beloved shows can but ruthlessly cut for seemingly no reason. Though many fans have spent their Tuesday nights watching wall-to-wall FBI adventures on CBS for years, that programming block has now been torn asunder, as word came down recently that FBI: International and FBI: Most Wanted are both canceled and will end this May. The upcoming spinoff, FBI: CIA (don’t worry, we’ll talk about that title later) had been prepping for a back door pilot before the cancelations came down but we have an update on what’s happening now.

What’s Going On With FBI: CIA Now That International And Most Wanted Are Canceled?

It was in late January that word came down that the expansive Dick Wolf TV universe (which is spread out across two networks and nine shows for the time being), was working on yet another spinoff in FBI: CIA. That proposed new drama was originally supposed to launch as a back door pilot on the action movie-like flagship series, FBI (which is in the midst of the three-season renewal it was awarded in 2024), this spring. But, Deadline is now reporting that viewers could still see the procedural hit the upcoming 2025/2026 television schedule if it’s granted a straight-to-series order.

For those who aren’t aware, a back door pilot is just an episode of an already popular TV series that gives most of its time over to establishing new characters and storylines for a proposed spinoff. It might be one of the longest-standing traditions in the television business, and for good reason: it tends to work. But, with the plan now changing for FBI: CIA (a title that will be changed, according to the outlet), that hardly means the death knell of the show.

Apparently, the change is mostly due to producers not having the lead cast members set just yet. It’s said that FBI Season 7, Episode 19 was going to host those new cast and their characters for the back door pilot. However, that special episode was pushed back twice, until it was decided simply not to force it, seeing as how they couldn’t solidify any casting choices.

When Most Wanted and International were canceled, the outlet reported that the possibility of CIA going straight-to-series was already an option. The current thought is that that could still happen if the cast is nailed down in a timely manner.

Whether we see the new show go to series with or without a back door pilot (or not air at all, which is always a possibility), it’s being written by Wolf and spearheaded by some frequent contributors to his far-ranging franchises. It will focus on the tale of a "street-smart" CIA agent and a "strait-laced" FBI agent who work for a covert task force that investigates domestic terrorism in and around New York City. While fans of International and Most Wanted are deeply unhappy about FBI: CIA in the face of two of their favorites being axed, time will tell if Wolf has hit paydirt yet again.

Tuesday was a sad day for FBI fans. Not only were all three shows absent from the 2025 TV schedule during an off-week, but spinoffs FBI: Most Wanted and FBI: International were also shockingly canceled by CBS. News came after the network recently renewed nine of its other hit shows, including the current NCIS drama trio and Tracker, and understandably, many fans are quite upset over the cancellations, particularly with another new spinoff still on the way.

As Most Wanted and International’s cancellation news spread, dedicated fans of the Dick Wolf franchise took to social media to air out their frustrations. And there are a lot of them. X user MiddleofCanada brought up the fact that S.W.A.T. managed to get uncanceled twice, but CBS wound up axing two popular shows. Not to mention the fact that the network is also eyeing an FBI: CIA spinoff, which is now getting the short end of the stick:

Nearly any time a show gets canceled, it means having to say goodbye to fan-favorite characters, and I suppose it's a silver lining for viewers that neither of the dramas has ended their current seasons.

To that end, brandiburgos used a very appropriate Most Wanted GIF when addressing the axing, and they were pretty sad about the fact that Dylan McDermott’s Remy will no longer be on screens every week after the finale this spring:

Meanwhile on the International front, Chicago P.D. fans flocked to the spinoff when it was announced Jesse Lee Soffer was joining Season 4 as the Fly Team’s newest leader. Soffer seemed to be doing pretty well, and Wesley Mitchell was a natural fit as leader, and daenerysluvr is angry, to say the least:

What a lot of fans seem to be pointing out is that CBS has an unusual amount of spinoffs in development for the 2025-26 season, including FBI: CIA that has yet to be ordered or canceled.

SailingshipZ19 doesn’t think it makes sense, and I can’t say I disagree with this viewpoint:

Other fans are simply looking back at what they got with Most Wanted and International because even so, six seasons and four seasons is pretty decent. Even if it is very premature. fangirlofvhal brought up Soffer and Station 19’s Jay Hayden sharing the screen on International, and it makes the cancellation all the more heartbreaking thinking of what could have been:

There’s also the fact that CBS pulled a double whammy on fans so suddenly, canceling both FBI spinoffs. Matthew_26 shared what is perhaps the perfect gif to describe how everyone is feeling, especially since it was so sudden:

As with any cancellation, there’s always the possibility that FBI: Most Wanted and/or FBI: International will be saved, be it on CBS or elsewhere. But it breaks my heart that if that isn’t the case, this will be it for the two.

At the very least, there are still a chunk of episodes that fans can look forward to, and with FBI renewed through at least the 2026-27 season, there’s always a possibility the Fugitive Task Force and Fly Team will pop up every once in a while.

Dick Wolf is well-known for several successful procedural dramas that continue to dominate the 2025 TV schedule, like the Law & Order franchise and the One Chicago shows. For his latest creation — On Call, which is available to stream January 9 with an Amazon Prime Video subscription — he’ll be tackling that genre in half-hour episodes for the first time. Will Wolf’s first foray into the streaming world be as good to him as network television has been? Critics have some pretty harsh reactions after seeing all eight episodes of On Call Season 1, but I don't necessarily think that's enough to stop the Dick Wolf Entertainment train.

On Call stars Troian Bellisario as Long Beach PD training officer Traci Harmon, who is grieving the loss of a fellow officer as she trains recruits including her new partner Alex Diaz (Brandon Larracuente). Fans of other Dick Wolf projects might be excited to see a familiar face, as the trailer showed a surprise appearance from Chicago Fire star Monica Raymund. As for what else to expect from the new show, The Wrap’s Thelma Adams says viewers shouldn’t look for a huge shift away from the familiar formula, writing:

THR’s Angie Han is just glad the episodes clock in at under 30 minutes, because “at no point” does On Call justify the longer runtime of other procedurals. The writing shows little curiosity — even after all eight episodes — about the characters or the world they inhabit. The critic says:

Isabella Soares of Collider gives the series a 6 out of 10, writing that the chemistry between Harmon and Diaz is enjoyable, and the use of bodycam footage and other unique camerawork make for exhilarating action sequences. However, as other critics have said, the show fails to go deep enough to inspire potential bingers to click on the next episode. In Soares’ words:

Alistair Ryder of Looper’s response to On Call is a bit harsher, as the critic rates the series just 3 out of 10. Ryder calls watching the series “less fun than getting arrested” and says with its cliche-ridden storytelling and uninteresting characters, the only positive to this show is that it will inspire you to revisit better cop shows. Ryder continues:

Aramide Tinubu of Variety blames the half-hour runtime for why the characters — both main and supporting — are not developed and lack robust dialogue. While the body camerawork seems unique at first, it becomes overused as the series goes on and never serves to push the narrative forward. Tinubu concludes:

It sounds like On Call might have been able to use that extra half-hour in order to develop the characters more or dig deeper into some of the issues portrayed, but with the way Dick Wolf’s series have connected with viewers so well over the years, I wouldn’t be surprised to find that there’s an audience for these quick bites of fictionalized police work.

If you want to check out On Call, all eight episodes can be streamed now on Amazon Prime Video, one of the best streaming services to subscribe to.

When On Call debuts for streaming audiences with Amazon Prime subscription, fans will quickly realize this is a totally different kind of cop drama from what Dick Wolf fans are used to seeing in his other creations like the Law & Order franchise, the One Chicago shows, or CBS’ FBI dramas. But it looks like fans will get to see at least one familiar face from those worlds when it hits the 2025 TV schedule, as the new series’ first trailer has revealed a former Chicago Fire star is part of the cast.

On Call centers on veteran Long Beach police officer Traci Harmon (portrayed by Pretty LIttle Liars vet Troian Bellisario) who deals with the loss of a fellow officer while also struggling with training the next line of recruits. One such rookie is Alex Diaz, as played by The Good Doctor’s Brandon Larracuente; his initially optimistic approach will be challenged as he fully realizes just what he’s up against.

Such job stressors are on display in the show’s first trailer, which also features the surprise reveal that Chicago Fire and Hightown alum Monica Raymund is part of the recurring cast that also includes fellow primetime mainstays Lori Loughlin and Erik La Salle. Raymund famously portrayed Gabriela Dawson for years on the NBC hit before leaving after Season 6 and taking on Starz’s then-new drama. She later returned to Chicago Fire for guest spots in Seasons 7 and 8, and it seems clear her relationship with Dick Wolf remains intact.

While we're still unclear who she'll be playing, here's the first look at Raymund's On Call character:

Hopefully we’ll get some more information about her character soon, and maybe some clarification on whether or not Raymund’s new character exists in the same universe as Dawson. Stranger things have occurred in these shows.

Elsewhere in the cast, Lori Loughlin is portraying Lieutenant Bishop in On Call, and it’ll serve as her first major TV role in the aftermath of the college admission scandal. Not that she’s been completely absent otherwise, as she reprised the role of When Calls the Heart’s Abigail Stanton in a couple of episodes of Hallmark’s When Hope Calls, as well as a stellar fun-poking cameo in Curb Your Enthusiasm’s final season, on top of a return for Blue Bloods’ final season.

Meanwhile, Erik La Salle is making his first major TV return since portraying ER’s Dr. Peter Benton for eight seasons. For On Call, he’ll be playing Sergeant Lasman, but will also serve as an executive producer, as well as a director for select episodes. And let’s not forget Tulsa King’s Rich Ting co-starring as Sergeant Koyama.

Check out the first trailer below to get a look at the full cast in action.

Co-created by Tim Walsh and Elliot Wolf, On Call will release its entire eight-episode first season on Prime Video on Thursday, January 9.

Mariska Hargitay may be in her 26^th season of Law & Order: SVU, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t still surprised by her L&O colleagues, including her boss. Dick Wolf has a variety of shows on the 2024 TV schedule, including all the One Chicago and FBI series, plus he's the mastermind behind L&O. So, considering all of that, you can understand why Hargitay cracked up while telling the story about the time the world found out about her boss's funny ringtone.

The actress was appearing on Late Night with Seth Meyers, where the host brought up Wolf, and just from Hargitay’s expression, she knew exactly where this was going. She and Wolf were doing a panel at the Smithsonian, and that's when her boss's phone went off, despite being told to turn it off beforehand.

While it wasn’t the first time Hargitay heard her boss’ ringtone, she pointed out that it was extra funny because people were saying beautiful, meaningful words, and they were "all half-crying." And then you just hear the Law & Order "dun dun" in the middle of all that. Meyers played a clip of the moment too, and it’s as hilarious as you’d think it’d be:

Honestly, it’s not so surprising that the Law & Order theme song is Wolf’s ringtone, because it really is one of the best and most iconic jingles out there. But it’s the fact that his phone went off during a panel when it was all quiet and everyone was emotional that just makes the entire thing.

I don’t blame Hargitay for continuing to laugh about it. Plus, I bet that it’s going to be one of those moments that randomly comes back to mind every once in a while, and she’ll laugh all over again.

The Law & Order franchise has been around since the early ‘90s, and tons of actors have come and gone. But the one thing that has stuck through all these years is the theme song. Just hearing the “DUN DUN” part of the opening credits gets me all amped up. Not to mention that Seth Meyers had the fun idea, saying that after answering a call with that ringtone, the person should say “There’s been a murder” after getting off the phone. It’ll be like you’re truly in the show.

While one might get tired of constantly hearing the Law & Order theme song, it seems like Dick Wolf or Mariska Hargitay are not over it, in fact, they love it. It just shows the kind of impact the franchise as a whole has had and how a simple moment can instantly break the tension. There are plenty of retro theme songs that still slap, and Law & Order's is certainly one, as proven by this hilarious story from the show's lead actress.

To see Hargitay solving murders after that iconic theme song plays, you can catch new episodes of SVU every Thursday at 9 p.m. ET on NBC or stream it the next day with a Peacock subscription.

While it may feel like the 2024 TV season just started due to the WGA writers strike and SAG-AFTRA actors strike, the spring finales of some of network television’s biggest shows are on the horizon. That includes Wolf Entertainment’s One Chicago block on NBC, but Chicago P.D. starting a break doesn’t mean a shortage of crime from Dick Wolf's production company. In this instance, however, the action will take place down South rather than in the Windy City, and viewers will be in for some true crime.

Called Sins of the South, the new show will shine a spotlight on true crime stories from down below the Mason-Dixon line, which involves showcasing the drama and history of the setting. The narration will be Southern-inflected with real-life stories of murder, including first-hand accounts from the people involved in the investigations, including law enforcement and the loved ones of the victims. Similar to FBI True – another recent true crime series – the new show will use archival footage, as well as recreations. Sins of the South will air on Oxygen True Crime.

And even though NBC has not yet confirmed the finale date for Chicago P.D.’s eleventh season (or the spring finales for Chicago Fire and Chicago Med), Oxygen True Crime has confirmed when Sins of the South will debut for a dose of Wolf Entertainment crime content: Sunday, May 12 at 8 p.m. ET. Following the series premiere, the show will switch to a permanent time slot of 7 p.m. ET on Sundays.

This won’t exactly be Chicago P.D. 2.0 for fans who expect to be missing the Intelligence Unit once the One Chicago hiatus begins, since this is a true crime docuseries rather than scripted show, but it sounds worth checking out. Given that P.D. is expected to run for 13 episodes this season and Episode 10 will air on May 1, it seems like a safe bet that the Season 11 finale will hit the airwaves on NBC on May 22.

All three shows of One Chicago (as well as Wolf Entertainment’s three FBI shows and two of the three Law & Order shows at the time of writing) have been renewed for the 2024-2025 TV season. Hopefully they’ll be back to seasons of 20+ episodes, without any strikes or pandemics to cause delays, but only time will tell come fall. As for Sins of the South in the not-too-distant future, it will run for twelve episodes of one hour each.

The first episode, called “Terror in Tennessee,” will address a person who goes missing from their family on the date of a party, with the real-life plot thickening along the way. Others of the twelve episodes will take full advantage of the Southern setting, including topics like a post-Hurricane Katrina murder of a pastor in New Orleans, a triple murder on a Christmas tree farm in North Carolina, and the killing of the heir of a Miami Beach hotel.

Tune in to Oxygen True Crime on Sundays starting on May 12 for Sins of the South. As for Chicago P.D. set up north in the Windy City, you can keep tuning in to NBC on Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET for the final episodes of Season 11. This last run of eleventh season episodes will have to say goodbye to Detective Hailey Upton, with actress Tracy Spiridakos leaving as a series regular. As for whether or not Upton will get a happy ending after all of her heartache… well, we’ll have to wait and see what’s up with her potential replacement!

Chicago Fire recently delivered a big wedding episode to send off Kara Killmer in the 2024 TV schedule, but the Brettsey nuptials between Brett and Casey actually had me flashing back to the hit drama's Dawsey days. While it's been a while since any of the characters shouted out Gabby Dawson and even longer since Monica Raymund's last One Chicago appearance, I couldn't help but think back to when Dawson and Casey tied the knot. Fortunately, I also recently spoke with Raymund, and she opened up about her upcoming return to the nine-show Dick Wolf TV universe as Hightown wraps.

I spoke with Monica Raymund at SCAD TVfest in February, with her Chicago Fire follow-up series currently airing its final season. After she shared how nerve-wracking it was to leave Fire and audition for Hightown, she then opened up about her experience in directing episodes she's also performing in:

Monica Raymund has directed two episodes of Hightown, with the first in Season 2 and the second in the currently-airing third and final season. Her very first TV directing gig was back in 2018, however, with an episode of Law & Order: SVU. While Raymund's Dick Wolf Entertainment experience in front of the camera was set in One Chicago, an SVU/Chicago P.D. crossover means that Olivia Benson and Gabby Dawson live in the same TV universe.

When I asked Raymund if starting out directing in that Dick Wolf universe after all her years of Fire made her feel more comfortable, she shared that her next Wolf return is coming up soon:

Following her episode of SVU in 2018, Raymund directed three episodes of FBI over on CBS, including the episode that featured Chicago P.D.'s Tracy Spiridakos as Hailey Upton to officially connect the FBIs with One Chicago. Next up in the Wolf world for the actress-turned-director was an episode of Law & Order: Organized Crime. Fans can next expect to see her touch on FBI's sixth season.

Raymund went on to share why directing within Wolf Entertainment was the right place to start:

In addition to six full seasons of Chicago Fire, Monica Raymund appeared as Gabby Dawson in a number of Chicago P.D. and Chicago Med episodes as well. Then, she voiced Laura Romero for the Dark Woods scripted podcast series. Throw in her directing gigs, and leaving Fire as Dawson definitely wasn't the end of her time in that world.

Still, as a longtime Dawsey fan, I can't help but look back at her Gabby Dawson days every once in a while, which included after Casey's wedding to Brett. The two ceremonies could hardly be more different – not least because the courthouse wedding between Dawson and Casey didn't involve a fish store like Brettsey's – but flashing back to days gone by isn't a bad thing for a show running as long as Chicago Fire.

If you want to revisit Monica Raymund's days as Gabby Dawson, you can find the full run of Chicago Fire so far streaming via Peacock Premium subscription. Peacock is also the streaming home of Law & Order: SVU and Law & Order: Organized Crime, if you want to check out the episodes she directed there. Her episodes of FBI stream via a Paramount+ subscription.

One of TV's most prolific creator/producers who doesn't go by the name Chuck Lorre, the crime drama mastermind Dick Wolf has long boasted a stronghold on broadcast networks with franchise-sparking shows like NBC's Law & Order and Chicago Fire, as well as CBS' FBI. All three are prominent in the $ 2024 TV schedule$ , but that isn’t stopping the Wolf Entertainment head honcho from planting projects elsewhere, and everyone with a Netflix subscription will soon be able to watch his latest look at real-world violence and murder, Homicide: New York. 

Netflix’s partnership with Dick Wolf somehow floated under the radar until now, the same month in which his newest show will premiere, and so we not only already have Homicide’s first trailer, but we also already know that the project is destined for a second season, per Deadline. Such is the way when it comes to Wolf and his Midas Touch. Check out the promo below, probably without any kids around, and mark your calendars (in blood) for Wednesday, March 20.

The first five-episode season of Homicide will center on a handful of New York City’s most infamous murders, with the spotlight being put on the detectives and the legal teams who delivered justice in those cases. As seen in the trailer, things are pretty grim and grisly, which is exactly what potential audiences are looking for. 

Following the release of the NYC season, Homicide: Los Angeles will take the concept across the country to the west coast, where some of the California metropolis’ own notorious murders will be explored. No release date just yet for the follow-up, but it’s expected to drop later in 2024.

While this marks Dick Wolf’s first Netflix Original, it’s not his first unscripted project, with L.A. Fire and Rescue’s “life and death” situations offering unscripted excitement for NBC viewers. As well, he created TNT’s Cold Justice shows, not to mention A&E’s Nightwatch and Oxygen’s Criminal Confessions, among others. 

While this marks Dick Wolf’s first Netflix Original, and Wolf Entertainment’s first docuseries for streaming audiences, it’s not his first unscripted project, with L.A. Fire and Rescue’s “life and death” situations offering unscripted excitement for NBC viewers in the last year. As well, he created TNT’s Cold Justice shows, not to mention A&E’s Nightwatch and Oxygen’s Criminal Confessions, among others. 

Though Homicide was clearly in production for months before the news went public, it’s now the second streaming project overall, following the upcoming drama On Call, which will be available to stream with an Amazon Prime subscription. That will change things up from the norm for Dick Wolf shows, in that it will be 30-minute drama instead of a traditional hour-long affair.

Homicide: New York will debut on Netflix on Wednesday, March 20, presumably so audiences can binge it and go into the weekend with less murder-minded thoughts.

The Dick Wolf TV universe is made up of nine connected shows across three nights on two networks in the 2024 TV schedule, and the full slate is still going strong. Jeremy Sisto, who has played Jubal Valentine over more than 100 episodes of FBI after spending years on Law & Order, has more experience than most in the Wolf world. The actor spoke with CinemaBlend about how FBI and Law & Order taught him to avoid going "too far" as an actor.

Jeremy Sisto opened up ahead of the Season 6 case that was tragically personal for Jubal, as well as Jubal learning not to blame himself for everything in the aftermath. I took the opportunity to ask the star about his feelings on FBI hitting the 100-episode milestone, and he shared that for him, "it's great to be on something that means something to the fans." After I noted that the FBIs on CBS are a reliable way to spend an action-packed Tuesday night, he agreed and said:

Considering that the current Wolf Entertainment universe goes back to 1990 with the series premiere of Law & Order, it's no surprise that a strong instinct has developed about what works and what doesn't. The shows of CBS' FBI franchise as well as NBC's Law & Order and One Chicago aren't all identical, but they've found similar levels of success.

And as an actor, Jeremy Sisto spent three full seasons and more than sixty episodes on Law & Order as Detective Cyrus Lupo before the show was cancelled in 2010. By the time L&O was revived by NBC in 2022, Sisto had already been starring on FBI as Jubal Valentine for years. He went on, sharing what he has learned by this point in his career about not going too far:

FBI may get pretty gruesome from time to time, but what happens on the CBS drama is a far cry from what could happen on Six Feet Under on HBO! According to Jeremy Sisto, his time on FBI and Law & Order helped him develop the right instincts for how far to take his character without going too far and ruining the flow.

Sisto went on to explain what it means to him personally to be part of the FBI universe:

Fortunately, all three FBI shows are back for the foreseeable future after the prolonged hiatus due to the WGA writers strike and SAG-AFTRA actors strike. You can find Jeremy Sisto as Jubal Valentine in new episodes of FBI Season 6 on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET, followed by FBI: International at 9 p.m. ET and FBI: Most Wanted at 10 p.m. ET, all on CBS.

If you're interested in revisiting earlier episodes, all three series are currently available streaming with a Paramount+ subscription.

The biggest and best shows on broadcast television are slowly but surely returning in the 2024 TV schedule, following lengthy delays due to the WGA writers strike and SAG-AFTRA actors strike. NBC wasted no time in bringing the One Chicago and Law & Order shows back to primetime, meaning that six of the nine main Dick Wolf shows finally had new episodes. The three FBIs on CBS are still weeks away from premiering to join the fellow Wolf series, but there are already some intriguing details about their first episodes back. Read on for what we know from CBS!

FBI Season 6

FBI will take back the 8 p.m. ET time slot on CBS Tuesdays when Season 6 premieres on Tuesday, February 13. The sixth season picks up after the hit show reached the 100-episode milestone with its fifth season finale, which was a grisly episode for Maggie and Co. that fortunately had a happy ending for Scola and Nina with the birth of their son. 

Cast changes across the FBIs presumably mean less of Nina on the original show, however, and CBS' description for the premiere indicate that Scola will have more than the case on his mind. Here's what to expect from "All the Rage," which kicks off Season 6:

After 100 episodes, it's safe to say that the FBI team has what it takes to take down a terrorist organization, but that doesn't mean there won't be some collateral damage along the way.  For Scola, he has the added responsibility of raising a child, and actor John Boyd shared his thoughts back in 2023 about what kind of father the character would be.

Depending on how the show approaches the long span of time between the Season 5 finale in the spring and the Season 6 premiere in February, baby Douglas could be anywhere from infancy to ten months old. Wolf Entertainment's three One Chicago shows all skipped ahead six months, and the Law & Order shows had a time jump as well. That seems likely for FBI, but only time (and the sixth season return) will tell!

FBI: Most Wanted Season 5

FBI: Most Wanted has some significant cast changes in store (again), with Alexa Davalos bowing out for Season 5 as Agent Kristin Gaines. This isn't the first time that Most Wanted has said goodbye to a series regular between seasons, as Miguel Gomez exited between Seasons 3 and 4. Kristin will be replaced by a familiar face from the franchise, and Shantel VanSanten joins Most Wanted as a series regular to reprise her FBI role as Nina Chase. The casting does raise the question of if we'll see Scola and Nina parenting together, with John Boyd and VanSanten regulars on different shows.

According to CBS' episode description for the Season 5 premiere, called "Above & Beyond," the task force's first case of 2024 will take them to Virginia, all while Remy is dealing with the big reveal from the Season 4 finale: 

"Long-lost" is a mild way to describe Remy's nephew, if you ask me! Remy had no idea that Corey even existed before the end of the fourth season, when he finally got some answers about his brother's death years ago. Corey was already a young adult by the time Remy met him, so it should be interesting to see how his uncle handles a relationship with him. Not least because Remy and Co. have a deadly new case to deal with! 

FBI: Most Wanted returned to its 10 p.m. ET time slot on Tuesday, February 13. Like FBI, the length of the time jump between seasons could mean a lot for the state of Remy's relationship with his nephew.

FBI: International Season 3

FBI: International is the only one of the three FBI shows that ended on a life-or-death cliffhanger, and a first look at Season 3 confirms the series isn't going to skip the aftermath of the Season 2 finale cliffhanger. When the second season ended, the only characters from the Fly Team who were safely away from HQ when the bomb went off were Raines and Tank; the rest were definitely not safe from the explosion. 

The first look proves that most of them live to start Season 3 – including Jamie Kellett, who I was worried about following the news of actress Heida Reed's upcoming departure – but not much else is guaranteed. One fact that has been established is that the Fly Team is getting a new member, played by Batwoman alum Christina Wolfe. CBS' episode description for the third season premiere – called June – sheds some extra light on what brings the newcomer into the fold:

It remains to be seen how quickly FBI: International jumps ahead in time (or doesn't jump ahead in time) following the aftermath of the explosive cliffhanger resolution. Fans can at least be happy that the show isn't skipping that aftermath due to the strikes. The newest FBI spinoff has a new showrunner for the third season, with former Chicago P.D. boss Matt Olmstead taking the reins. He steps into the role formerly help by Chicago Fire's Derek Haas, so the showrunner switch keeps the top job within the Wolf family.

As for who is certain to have survived the explosion from back in the spring... well, only one major character was missing from the first-look images for Season 3, so Smitty's fate is still unknown. We can only hope that everybody is at least intact enough to start investigating again, given that their key suspect escaped! As usual, FBI: International will air on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on CBS, between FBI and Most Wanted. 

Luckily, even though One Chicago and the Law & Orders returned in mid-January, the wait for the FBIs isn't too long into the new year. All three CBS series will premiere on Tuesday, February 13 starting with FBI at 8 p.m. ET. If you want to revisit last spring's finales again before the premieres of the new seasons, you can find every season of FBI so far streaming with a Paramount+ subscription. As for Most Wanted and International, both are available streaming via a Peacock Premium subscription now.

The Dick Wolf TV universe spans nine shows across two networks as the 2024 TV season approaches, and almost every weeknight of primetime is occupied by a Wolf Entertainment procedural. While there are now three FBI shows and three One Chicago shows to go with the Law & Order series, there was a time when SVU was the only spinoff of the original. The creator/producer has opened up about how many people work across his shows, and as a viewer of all nine and longtime fan of SVU, my mind was more than a little blown by Dick Wolf's comments.

The nine scripted shows under the Wolf Entertainment banner as 2023 turns into 2024 are Law & Order, Law & Order: SVU, Law & Order: Organized Crime, Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., Chicago Med, FBI, FBI: Most Wanted, and FBI: International, and all nine are connected in one TV universe thanks to some key crossovers. During the WGA writers strike and SAG-AFTRA actors strike that left the entertainment industry at a standstill for much of the year, Dick Wolf addressed just how many people were being affected. 

Dick Wolf previously told YES! Weekly during the Law & Order/SVU days that between 120-150 people worked on each show; more recently, Wolf provided an updated figure to the outlet, saying: 

I knew that the nine-show TV universe was expansive, but 3,000 people being out of work due to the strikes is still a shocking figure for me. Wolf went on to say that the 2023 work stoppage was his "fourth strike," and the 1987 strike "went on for six months and two weeks." The most recent strike lasted 148 days, which was just shy of the 153 days in the '80s. 

Speaking over the summer when resolutions were still months away, the producer made the point that the strikes affect "everybody who works on those shows which are all shut down" and not just the writers and actors. Luckily, all nine of Wolf's scripted network TV shows are scheduled to finally return in the new year, starting with One Chicago on January 17 on NBC, the Law & Orders on January 18 on NBC, and the FBIs on CBS on February 13. 

With six of the nine shows already hitting triple digits in episode counts (as FBI hit that milestone with the Season 5 finale in the spring), Dick Wolf has clearly found the recipe for success, and he addressed his knack for producing shows that remain relevant for more than thirty years: 

Well, Dick Wolf isn't alone in wanting to watch the kinds of stories that are told in his franchise, going back to the earliest days of Law & Order and SVU! In the upcoming 13-episode Season 23, Law & Order will reach the incredible milestone of 500 episodes, after Sam Waterston's 400th episode aired as the Season 23 finale. SVU will hit 550 episodes with its upcoming Season 25. Chicago Fire will reach 250, and FBI: International will make it to 50. Fans are clearly still invested in these stories. 

While all nine shows will return in the new year, you can always revisit earlier episodes in the meantime. All three current Law & Order shows are available streaming with a Peacock Premium subscription, as well as all three of One Chicago, FBI: International, and FBI: Most Wanted. FBI can be found streaming with a Paramount+ subscription.

LA Fire & Rescue is keeping the first responder action going on NBC over the summer between seasons of Chicago Fire. Although both shows are produced by Dick Wolf's Wolf Entertainment (and available streaming via Peacock Premium subscription), the new summer docuseries is an unscripted dive into the Los Angeles County Fire Department and the emergencies that the heroes there handle. This means that the crew of LA Fire & Rescue faced more dangerous situations than they would filming for a typical scripted TV show, and executive producer Rasha Drachkovitch spoke with CinemaBlend about how they were kept safe. 

The executive producer confirmed that LA Fire & Rescue is "100% real" with "no scripted scenes" of the heroes of the LA Country Fire Department. When I asked what kind of training was necessary for camera operators and members of the crew when they filmed emergency situations along with the first responders, Drachkovitch explained:

The first couple episodes of LA Fire & Rescue that have aired on NBC so far already demonstrated just how wide of a variety of crises that the firefighters face across Los Angeles Country, which spans 2,300 square miles of different kinds of terrain. The series gained unprecedented access to filming with the fire department in dangerous situations; according to EP Rasha Drachkovitch, LA County helped to keep everybody safe. He continued:

Viewers can rest assured that the crew was safe and protected, no matter how harrowing the footage they captured may look when it airs on NBC. The executive producer had previewed an "even more powerful experience" with LA Fire & Rescue, and two episodes have aired so far to show just how the real stories compare to those in One Chicago with Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med. 

Of course, those first two episodes have also shown that there's a lot of heart in LA Fire & Rescue to go along with the crises that required protection gear. The series premiere covered the story of Dave Castellanos, a firefighter from Station 8 in West Hollywood who won his battle against testicular cancer with the help of his fellow firefighters. They worked his shifts for him so that he could undergo treatment and not lose his health insurance. The second episode followed boot firefighter Erin Scuoler throughout her training at Station 41 in Compton, which happens to be the one that receives the most calls in LA County. 

The show still has plenty more action on way, as LA Fire & Rescue hasn't yet focused on the lifeguards who are first responders on the beaches of Los Angeles County. See what's in store with new installments of the docuseries on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET on NBC, ahead of reruns of Chicago Fire at 9 p.m. and Chicago P.D. at 10 p.m. You can also find some other options on the small screen with our 2023 TV premiere schedule. 

The Dick Wolf TV universe is comprised of an unprecedented nine shows spread across two networks, and the future looks bright. After FBI, FBI: Most Wanted, and FBI: International got a double renewal from CBS back in 2022, NBC finally announced renewals for Law & Order, Law & Order: SVU, Law & Order: Organized Crime, Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med. While it’s a mouthful to say them all in one sentence (and type them), a nine-show TV universe is more than a little impressive. With all of the renewals for the 2023-2024 TV season, it’s time to start looking ahead.

Members of the Law & Order and One Chicago corners of the franchise celebrated the renewals after the good news broke, nearly a year after the FBI renewals. Now, in light of what we know, what we don’t, and what stars have said to CinemaBlend over the course of the 2022-2023 TV season, we can ponder some big questions and start speculating. I'll get into all nine shows, but with the Law & Orders lasting the longest, let’s start there! 

Why Are Law & Order And SVU Getting More Episodes Than Organized Crime?

While all three of the Law & Order shows were renewed, Variety reports that Organized Crime will only run for 13 episodes while L&O and SVU both received orders for 22. The same report states that all three will air in the fall, which would presumably mean OC ending its season much earlier than its sister series in 2024, and/or going on longer hiatuses. There’s no confirmation at the time of writing which cast members are expected to return to OC, although Chris Meloni seems like a very safe bet. 

A Possible Explanation:

This isn’t the first time that Organized Crime received an order for a shorter season than the usual 20+ for the Wolf Entertainment franchise, as the first ran for only eight in 2021. It’s also worth noting that the third strayed away from doing just a couple of major arcs per season and became more procedural. With several changes of showrunner, I can imagine that OC might just be returning to its serialized roots and focusing on one or two arcs over the course of one shorter season. 

What Does OC’s Shortened Season Mean For Stabler On SVU?

While Organized Crime and SVU both tell compelling stories on their own, is there any denying that a healthy portion of both fandoms are invested in the Benson/Stabler relationship, in some form or other? Even mini crossovers between Mariska Hargitay and Chris Meloni have been few and far between in the current Season 24 of SVU and Season 3 of OC, with one extremely notable exception. Which the actors nailed, even if it wasn’t everything that some Benson/Stabler fans were hoping for! So what does OC’s 13-episode Season 4 mean for SVU?

How Stabler Could Have An SVU Presence:

A lot likely depends on how much the production schedules on SVU and OC overlap, as it’s undoubtedly easier to send Chris Meloni over to his old stomping grounds if he’s filming his own spinoff not too far away. It’s worth noting that SVU showrunner David Graziano was also recruited to serve as OC showrunner for the final three episodes of the season, which I speculated at the time could mean closer ties between the two shows. At this point, we can only wonder and hope! After a season of Benson and Stabler rarely sharing scenes, I’d be happy with just some mentions at this point.

Can More Crossovers Happen Between The Nine Wolf Shows?

The 2022-2023 TV season has delivered two mega crossovers within the Wolf Entertainment franchise, with the Law & Order shows starting the season in the fall with a three-parter and the three FBIs recently teaming up for a case that pushed some limits and involved what one star considers an “unforgivable breach” of trust. One Chicago hasn’t delivered a three-parter since 2019 (prior to COVID shutdowns), although Chicago P.D. is responsible for the very first connection between One Chicago and the FBIs. Creating a cinematic TV event is no small endeavor.

What Cast Members Have Said About Crossovers:

In honor of the global crossover event between the FBIs, CinemaBlend spoke to actors Jeremy Sisto (Jubal Valentine) and John Boyd (Stuart Scola), and both addressed the challenges of making the three-parter that involved sending FBI’s Sisto to Italy for FBI: International. Sisto weighed in on the process of creating an event:

The actor (who is actually a Law & Order alum) went on to say that he thought that watching the three-parter would carry over into fans enjoying the shows even more in the future. John Boyd also was full of compliments for how the finished product “felt like one big movie” and was “so seamless,” but it wasn’t without complications. He said:

Over on the Law & Order side of the nine-show TV universe, two of the three shows that crossed over in the fall were more than twenty years into their runs. When I spoke with Hugh Dancy about the “terrible thing” that his character did in the latest episode of L&O, he shared his thoughts on the premiere crossover:

With the level of work that goes into any crossover, fans shouldn’t rule out any further events, but also not count on them happening on a regular basis. We should probably rule out any kind of nine-part event between all the shows unless the ties would be extremely tangential, though! 

Will Any Stars Leave The Franchise?

Although the Law & Order and One Chicago shows have held on to stars for 10+ years and counting, there’s no guarantee that everybody will stick around. Chicago Med has lost and gained a number of characters over the past couple of seasons, while Chicago P.D. lost Jesse Lee Soffer back in the fall after Chicago Fire lost Jesse Spencer earlier in the year. (Taylor Kinney’s current leave of absence is expected to be temporary.) And that's not to mention SVU saying goodbye to Kelli Giddish’s Amanda Rollins! So, are all the departures from the past couple years going to be followed by more? 

The Stars Share Why There’s No Guarantee Despite Renewal:

While early renewals are great news for fans, the guarantee that a show will be back doesn’t mean a guarantee that the whole cast will be back. With shows that regularly have life-or-death stakes and sometimes kill off characters, there are still reasons to be worried in finale season, and I'm more concerned about some potential departures than others. FBI’s John Boyd shared his perspective on getting a double-season renewal: 

Jeremy Sisto echoed his co-star’s thoughts on not necessarily have job security as an actor even when the show is going to continue. He shared:

On the whole, there’s no way to say with certainty at this point if any stars are leaving. If anybody is killed off, it will presumably happen or at least be set up in the finales in May. Then again, Jesse Lee Soffer’s departure from P.D. was announced during summer hiatus, so we won’t know for sure until the fall. 

Are Any Former Stars Returning?

The good news for the Wolf Entertainment farewells over the past couple years is that only one of them involved a character being killed off. (Rest in peace, Chief Hawkins!) Jesse Lee Soffer’s Halstead did get a pretty definitive split from working as a CPD detective on P.D., and Kelli Giddish’s Rollins seemed happy to step away from her role as a cop on SVU, but the door is mostly open. Christiane Paul even already returned to FBI: International as a guest star. Plus, Jesse Spencer’s Casey originally left Chicago with the intention of returning in three years, and the clock is ticking on that after his recent return!

Why It’s Too Soon To Say:

At this point, we don’t even know if all the current Wolf Entertainment stars will return, let alone if any will be back! Jesse Spencer did say “I don’t think so” to the idea of a “long-term” return to Fire in a recent interview with TVLine, and Jesse Lee Soffer told CinemaBlend in March that a return as Jay Halstead is “not on the board right now.” 

He didn’t rule out returning in a different way, though! When asked about interest in potentially directing Chicago Med as the 8 p.m. show after spending so much time on P.D. at 10 p.m. (and then directing his old series), Soffer shared:

Brian Tee also returned to Chicago Med to direct an episode of his former show earlier this season, so there are ways for departed cast members to work again in Wolf Entertainment without necessarily reprising their roles. It’s just a matter of time to see if any will be back, in front of or behind the camera!

Will The Nine Shows Celebrate Any Milestones?

With shows as long-running as those in the Law & Order, FBI, and One Chicago franchise, milestones tend to be inevitable. Depending on the new seasons' episode counts, the renewals should mean that SVU Season 25 will hit 550 episodes, Law & Order Season 23 will hit 500, Chicago Fire Season 12 will reach 250, and FBI: International Season 3 will reach 50. Organized Crime is approaching 50 as well, and FBI will hit 100 with its upcoming Season 5 finale. While these are all impressive totals to reach, will they actually be celebrated?

What Precedent Tells Us:

It seems safe to say that NBC will celebrate Law & Order reaching 500 episodes, after all the promotion for SVU reaching that same milestone, but I’m not quite so sure about the milestones ending in 50. Plus, Chicago P.D. hit 200 episodes earlier this year without too much fanfare. I wouldn’t be shocked if Fire reaching 250 is noted, but on the whole, my best best for a milestone that will be celebrated is L&O #500. 

Is Wolf Entertainment Finished With Spinoffs?

The newest spinoff is FBI: International after its debut in fall 2021 (although L&O’s revival return happened later), and there’s no sign at this point that another entry in the franchise is on the way. NBC and CBS have a good thing going with these series, and NBC already has two full nights of Wolf Entertainment action. 

Why Nine Might Be The Lucky Number:

With the three sections of the Wolf Entertainment universe doing as well as they are, the franchise may not need to expand any further. It’s worth noting that the last time there was an attempt at adding a fourth show on another night of primetime was Chicago Justice, which lasted just one season in 2017. 

For now, you can revisit past episodes of all nine shows streaming via a Paramount+ subscription and/or a Peacock Premium subscription, as well as catch new episodes with the FBIs airing on CBS Tuesdays starting at 8 p.m. ET, One Chicago airing on NBC Wednesdays starting at 8 p.m. ET, and the Law & Orders on NBC Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET. 

Ask most people, and they'll likely tell you that they got into Dick Wolf TV shows because of Law & Order, or one of its myriad spin-offs, like Law and Order: SVU with its popular Benson and Stabler characters.

But me? I found out about the producer through Fox’s New York Undercover, as it was my introduction to the famous television producer. Sure, I would later go on to sample other Dick Wolf shows like Chicago Fire or FBI: Most Wanted. And, I want to talk about why New York Undercover is still my favorite show of his, even today.      

Oh, and spoilers up ahead just in case you haven’t seen it yet and want to stream the series on Peacock.   

The Diverse Cast Really Resonated With Me 

Honestly, I must applaud Dick Wolf, since diversity has had an imprint on most of his shows, at least when it comes to the casts, but let me just tell you something. I didn’t grow up watching NBC, ABC, or CBS, where you might have found other cop TV shows. I grew up watching Fox, home of The Simpsons (which now also counts Disney+ as its home), Married…with Children, and Beverly Hills, 90210.   

I’ll get into Fox a bit more later, but this meant that a great deal of the content I was consuming usually had a certain edge to it. So, when it came to cop shows, I didn’t really know what to expect when it came to my favorite channel. Cops, for me growing up, were almost always white males. That didn’t bother me or anything at the time. It just was what it was. 

But then, here came this cop show on Fox with two male leads, one Black detective played by Malik Yoba, and one half-Puerto Rican played by Michael DeLorenzo. They had a white woman commanding officer played by Patti D'Arbanville-Quinn, and in later seasons, there was a female Puerto Rican officer played by Lauren Vélez, and an Irish-Italian police officer played by Jonathan LaPaglia. Since the cops were undercover, you wouldn’t see them wearing the traditional black and blue, but rather, baggy street clothes. 

I mean, man, if there was ever a cop show that was peak ‘90s (and I’m all about sharing memories about the ‘90s), then it’s New York Undercover, and its diversity was top notch.    

It Felt A Lot More Street Than Other Dick Wolf Shows At The Time 

Now, I know how I just mentioned that New York Undercover was my introduction to Dick Wolf TV shows, but I just mean that it’s the first of his shows that I actually sat down and really watched. I saw bits and pieces of Law & Order as my dad occasionally had it on. And, you know what I got out of it? A lot of people in suits talking. Most of the time they were either in courtrooms, or just leaving the courtroom.

BOOOOORRRRIIIINNNGGG. I mean, not really, and as an adult, I’ve come to respect the slower-paced, methodical approach to the show. But, back when I was a kid, I didn’t want to watch all that. It was like how my Mom used to watch Star Trek: The Next Generation. That was a show that used to put me to sleep, not keep me up at night like our very own Mick Joest. 

But, New York Undercover felt a lot more street than L&O, and really, any other show he's done since. New York Undercover had stories about drug deals gone wrong, and bank robbers, but it was more the personal lives of the characters that made it feel closer to home than what I was seeing over my dad’s shoulder while he watched L&O. 

Like Det. Torres’s (DeLorenzo) struggles with his drug abusing father, and Det. Williams (Yoba) raising a kid he had with his girlfriend when he was still a teenager himself. It struck a chord with me that still resonates today because of the struggles that I wasn’t seeing on any other shows.  

It Also Felt A Lot More Action-Packed Than Other Dick Wolf Shows At The Time 

From the very first shot in the opening theme of New York Undercover, we see Det. Torres and Det. Williams running through the streets with their guns raised, and a lot of that action did make its way into the show. 

Though it wasn’t really all about gunfights in the streets or anything like that, in a lot of ways, the combative nature of how the characters would respond to each other, even within the police force itself, made it feel like sparks were always flying, even when the guns were holstered. 

That said, it COULD get very action-packed at times. For example, I’ll never forget when a detective was shot and killed at the end of Season 3. This was especially heartbreaking as another was blown up in a car explosion in the very same season, which rocked me to my very core as a child.  

I definitely wasn’t seeing any of that on his better known series back then. His other shows, like Chicago Fire, might have “explosive cliffhangers," I don’t think I’ll ever get over that car explosion death. Never ever.    

It Was On Fox, So It Fit Nicely With Other African-American Shows At The Time 

I love Black sitcoms from the ‘90s, and some of the best of all time were on Fox. Martin, Living Single, Roc, and hell, the sketch comedy show, In Living Color, were all Fox stables. Well, I’m not sure whose bright idea it was to put New York Undercover on the same night as Martin, and Living Single, but…it was a pretty bright idea, indeed! 

As a Black person growing up in the ‘90s, I’ll always associate the cop show with my most impressionable years. And, I love the fact that New York Undercover was obviously catering toward a Black and Hispanic audience, so it felt like a show that was marketed directly toward somebody like, well, me…even if I WAS probably too young at the time to be watching it. That’s why it still feels like my Dick Wolf show. And it always will.  

Watching It Probably Led Me To Eventually Watch The Wire 

Lastly, without New York Undercover, I likely wouldn’t have watched The Wire. Or, at least not as early as I did. Let me explain. I didn’t catch the HBO classic when it first debuted back in 2002, and a lot of people didn’t, apparently. It was definitely the kind of show that was highly revered while it was still on, but became known as one of the greatest shows of all time after it ended. 

I watched it around 2008, but only because I actually stumbled upon it one night on HBO, and its Black cast made me remember New York Undercover. This was in the final season, which wasn’t the best season to start with, and I knew this. So, I vowed to watch the series from the beginning on DVD (Remember those?), and of course I fell in love with it. But, I likely wouldn’t have decided to invest my time – at least back then, anyway – if it hadn’t reminded me of my favorite Wolf series. So, I definitely have New York Undercover to thank for that! 

Those are just five reasons why New York Undercover is still my favorite Dick Wolf show, but for more info on all his dramas be sure to come back her often. 

A number of Law & Order fans were heartbroken when it was confirmed that Anthony Anderson’s Kevin Bernard wouldn’t be back for Season 22. It was an unexpected development, considering that Anderson's reprisal helped him get over the end of black-ish. It's very likely that fans are hoping that the actor will portray the New York detective again at some point. Now, months after leaving the show, the L&O alum weighed in on if he’ll return to the long-running NBC drama.

Anthony Anderson's involvement in the revived Law & Order series did help it gain traction before it premiered, which is understandable -- given his popularity coming off of black-ish. The hit ABC series even led to the 52-year-old actor being honored as a Disney Legend at Disney’s D23 Expo this year. When it comes to a return to the NBC legal drama though, he told CinemaBlend at D23 that such a thing would have to be determined by the man who created this massive franchise of legal procedurals -- Dick Wolf:

It seems that at the time, Anthony Anderson was ready to do some things on his terms. Being part of an expansive TV franchise can be time-consuming, especially when there are multiple crossover episodes per season. It was previously mentioned that a desire to developing and pitching new shows, including an hour-long drama Miraculous, was Anderson's reason for leaving after one season.

But unsurprisingly, his exit from the NBC franchise didn’t mean there are any hard feelings between him and the Law and Order family. He will be missed as former co-star Odelya Halevi said working with him was an incredible experience, while Jeffrey Donovan will miss the locals calling out his co-star by name in public. So when you read about all of that love between colleagues, it shouldn't be surprising that the 52-year-old Det. Bernard actor went on to say that he'd be open to returning if the show would have him:

I, for one, would love to see Kevin Bernard back at the 27th precinct, and I wouldn't be surprised if he does return should the show run for a while. Hey, after all, Elliot Stabler made his way back to the franchise after having been absent for a decade. So Det. Bernard will just pop up on Law and Order or headline a spinoff in the future, perhaps?

But more immediately though, the revival will not give Anthony Anderson’s Bernard a huge sendoff but will address his absence with a brief mention in Season 22. The future looks bright for both Anderson and the storied NBC franchise, and one can only hope that the two cross paths again someday. 

Law and Order Season 22 will premiere on September 22 at 8 p.m. ET on NBC and is just one of the many returning TV shows fans are anticipating for the 2022-23 TV season.

FBI debuted in 2018 to bring a new kind of crime drama to CBS, with Missy Peregrym and Zeeko Zaki starring as the agents investigating the worst kinds of criminals in New York City. Now, the show is preparing to enter production on its fifth season, and Zaki looked back on how his character was originally supposed to be very different before executive producer Dick Wolf decided to make some changes. 

Zeeko Zaki previously revealed to TIME that the character of OA was being written for a Latino actor to play (although the early character description didn’t list a race or ethnicity), but he sent in an audition tape while FBI was still early in the casting process. He later learned that his audition tape was “completely unsolicited,” but he received a callback that involved workshopping with Dick Wolf and the entire creative team to incorporate elements of his personal background. 

Now, with the show on the verge of filming for Season 5, the actor opened up about the “honor” of Wolf making those changes to include his Muslim and Egytian heritage after he nailed the audition, telling ET: 

FBI has become one of CBS’ highest-rated and most-watched dramas, so it’s safe to say that Dick Wolf and the creative team made a smart decision in adapting the OA character to Zeeko Zaki’s heritage and background. In fact, OA has arguably been the anchor of the series, as he has had more of a steady presence than other characters, including Maggie. 

Missy Peregrym’s character was absent for some time due to an undercover operation, and more recently after being exposed to sarin gas and needing to recover. Both of those instances are due to the actress taking a real-life maternity leave, in the second half of Season 2 and the second half of Season 4, respectively. (You can rewatch both seasons in full with a Paramount+ subscription.)

Peregrym will be back as Maggie – and presumably as OA’s partner, despite FBI mixing things up with the partnerships in Season 4 – in the fifth season, although she recently revealed that she won’t be back right away when the show returns in September. Their partnership has delivered a lot of the heart in a show that deals with some very heavy topics, so OA and Maggie reuniting is something for fans to look forward to. 

It’s hard to imagine FBI without Zeeko Zaki, or with OA as a different kind of character after how much the show has delved into his character and his history. That doesn’t always work out well for the agent, as the case involving sarin gas triggered some devastating memories for him, made all the worse when his partner was exposed and nearly died before he could save her. 

FBI is soon returning to production, but fans will have to wait until September 20 to see OA back in action, as well as the agents of FBI: International and FBI: Most Wanted. All three shows received two-season renewals back in May, so the future is looking bright for that shared Dick Wolf TV universe. For what you can watch while waiting for hiatus to end, our 2022 TV premiere schedule has plenty of viewing options.

The Law & Order lineup on NBC is expanding to include another show, but not another spinoff like Law & Order: Organized Crime just last year. The original series that launched a whole TV universe that will soon include nine shows over two networks is on the way back with a revival for Season 21. With the premiere less than two weeks away, creator and TV producer extraordinaire Dick Wolf has shared why the revival fulfills a dream for him.

Although Law & Order was a major hit over its many years on the air after premiering in 1990, the show was cancelled back in 2010 after 20 seasons. At the time, there were talks of a possible renewal on TNT, but nothing official came of a revival until October of 2021 with the order for Season 21 back on NBC. Creator Dick Wolf shared his thoughts on the dream of the show’s return with members of the press from NBC’s Scripted Press Day in a statement:

Dick Wolf reached all the way back to 1990, when Law & Order premiered, to credit then-NBC executive Brandon Tartikoff for believing in what would go on to become an iconic TV show that would launch a history-making spinoff with SVU. The original came up just shy of beating what was then the 20-season record held by Gunsmoke (a Western drama that is best known today for its long run). With the Season 21 revival, Wolf’s dream of beating Gunsmoke will come true… just not in the way that might have been expected back in 2010. 

Of course, Law & Order: SVU already smashed the Gunsmoke record (as did The Simpsons) at 23 seasons and counting, and the original will have to catch up if it wants to beat its spinoff with the total number of seasons. But Wolf achieved his dream of beating Gunsmoke, and he also credited Sam Waterston for the show’s success. (Waterston spoke as far back as 2015 about his willingness to reprise his role as Jack McCoy.) 

Revival showrunner Rick Eid certainly has worked with Dick Wolf for a long time, going back to 2005. Most recently, Eid served as showrunner on Chicago P.D. as well as FBI over on CBS, but has since stepped away from One Chicago. Wolf went on in his statement to share that the revival is a dream come true even beyond striking a deal after seven years, beating Gunsmoke, and recruiting Sam Waterston and Rick Eid: 

Anthony Anderson is the other former Law & Order star who is returning for the revival, fresh off of the final season of his ABC comedy Black-ish. The newcomers in the cast are Burn Notice veteran Jeffrey Donovan, The Practice alum Camryn Manheim (who appeared as three different characters during Law & Order’s original run), Hannibal’s Hugh Dancy, and Odelya Halevi. The mix of familiar faces and newcomers should make Season 21 a good fit for original series fans and newcomers alike. And if Dick Wolf is happy, why shouldn’t viewers be?

Law & Order makes its grand return to NBC in the 2022 TV schedule on Thursday, February 24 at 8 p.m. ET to kick off a brand new night of action set within the same universe, with Law & Order: SVU following at 9 p.m., and Law & Order: Organized Crime closing out the night at 10 p.m.  

When Law & Order returns to NBC in 2022, fans of the police procedural will be happy to see a couple of familiar faces returning in their beloved roles. It was previously reported that black-ish star Anthony Anderson is returning as detective Kevin Bernard, and he'll be joined in some capacity or another by fellow Law & Order alum. Sam Waterston, who played the beloved District Attorney Jack McCoy for 16 seasons in the legal drama’s original run, has been confirmed to be returning for its 21st season.

Law & Order premiered on NBC in September 1990 and ran for 20 seasons before the network announced the canellation, with its last episode having aired on May 24, 2010. But with the continued success of its spinoffs, including the long-running Special Victims Unit and the newer recruit Organized Crime, the flagship series will return, as will the legendary creator Dick Wolf and the series' signature format that first showcases the police investigation and then leads into the DA’s prosecution. Along with the familiar faces, Law & Order Season 21 will introduce some new characters to keep things interesting. Let’s take a look at an updated cast list for NBC’s upcoming Law & Order revival.

Sam Waterston (Jack McCoy)

A star of the stage and screen, Sam Waterston played Jack McCoy for 16 seasons in Law & Order’s original run, earning three Emmy nominations in that time. Although the show has been off the air since 2010, Waterston has made a handful of appearances on its spinoff Law & Order: SVU, with his last guest role as McCoy coming in 2018 for Season 19. The actor currently stars as Sol, husband to Martin Sheen's Robert, on Netflix’s Grace and Frankie, which is in its last season. Known as well for his work on HBO's The Newsroom and Netflix's Godless, Waterston will also spend 2022 recurring in the Hulu limited series The Dropout, based on the podcast of the same name. 

Anthony Anderson (Kevin Bernard)

Like Sam Waterston, Anthony Anderson has signed a one-year contract to reprise his original character, Detective Kevin Bernard, on Law & Order Season 21. Anderson has starred in black-ish since 2014 as Dre Johnson, with the eighth and final season of the ABC sitcom set to premiere in early 2022. Since Law & Order's original run ended more than 10 years ago, Anderson has appeared in movies including Scream 4 and Barbershop: The Next Cut, as well as TV shows including Guys with Kids and Treme. And you can also catch him hosting the ABC game show To Tell the Truth.

Jeffrey Donovan (Unnamed NYPD Detective)

You likely know him best as the death-defying Michael from Burn Notice, but now Jeffrey Donovan is going to get a taste of handling things above-board (presumably) as an NYPD detective on the Law & Order revival. There’s not much information on his new role in the franchise, but hopefully he’ll bring his dry humor to the streets of New York. Donovan, who previously appeared in two episodes of the drama as unrelated characters, has also had memorable roles in Season 2 of Fargo and two seasons of the Hulu drama Shut Eye.

Hugh Dancy (Assistant District Attorney)

Hugh Dancy is another new face to Law & Order, the Hannibal vet thankfully doesn't have to worry about that face being eaten through his new role as an Assistant District Attorney. Details about Dancy’s new character are being kept mum for now. Dancy’s kept pretty busy on the small screen, playing John Zabel on Season 8 of Homeland and "not-a-cult" leader Cal Roberts on The Path, on top of the aforementioned Hannibal. He’s also no stranger to the theater, most recently appearing in the 2018 run of Apologia in New York, and he'll pop up on the big screen in 2022 via Downton Abbey: A New Era.

Camryn Manheim (Lieutenant Kate Dixon)

After playing three different small roles in Law & Order during its first 20-season run — with one of them being her very first TV performance ever — Camryn Manheim is officially joining the cast for Season 21 as Lieutenant Kate Dixon. This new character serves as the successor to Lieutenant Anita Van Buren, who was played by S. Epatha Merkerson, who was unable to return for the revival due to scheduling issues. Perhaps best known for her Emmy-winning role as Ellenor Fruit on The Practice, Manheim has also appeared in Extant, Ghost Whisperer and Stumptown.

Odelya Halevi (Assistant District Attorney Samantha Maroun)

Odelya Halevi will play Assistant District Attorney Samantha Maroun when the NBC courtroom drama returns next year. Halevi doesn’t have the extensive resume of her co-stars, but has enjoyed recurring roles on the third season of the Freeform drama Good Trouble and on Prime Video’s Good Girls Revolt. She’s also had guest roles in recent years on MacGyver, Midnight, Texas and NCIS.

Law & Order Season 21 is set to premiere on NBC on February 24, 2022, and will air on Dick Wolf Thursdays (not an official branding) alongside its spinoffs Law & Order: SVU and Law and Order: Organized Crime. Check out our 2022 TV Schedule to see what other shows are coming in the new year.

When it comes to TV revivals, one of the biggest reasons creators and actors opt not to return to fan-favorite projects is having to justify the relevance and importance of catching up with characters years after their original series ended. For NBC's Law & Order and other police procedural series, however, that concern isn't the most prevalent, since many of those shows are as much about the jobs and the path to justice as they are about the specific characters. As such, franchise mastermind Dick Wolf has offered reassurance for anyone fearing Law & Order's return will be a completely different affair.

While the details are still coming together behind the scenes, we do know Law & Order is definitely returning for Season 21, with NBC having already confirmed the new eps were ordered. The legal drama's return is years in the making, with Dick Wolf telling Variety that the long journey to get to this point was worth it, and he also gave fans a hint of what's to come, saying:

Just in case anyone expected Law & Order to suddenly transform itself into the WWE's Royal Rumble, with 30 cops and lawyers duking it out to see who stands supreme in the end, Dick Wolf confirmed that Season 21 will keep the O.G. run's basic lineup intact. Now, he didn't exactly come out and say who the D.A.s will be, nor who the central police personnel will be, and that's a major question fans have been wondering about since the revival season was announced.

With Rick Eid serving as showrunner, Law & Order is confirmed to be bringing original cast members back into the fold for Season 21. However, it hasn't yet been confirmed exactly who fans will be reconnecting with. We can probably expect some kind of appearance from the 80-year-old Sam Waterston, though probably not a full-time return. As well, while S. Epatha Merkerson would be expected to return as Anita Van Buren, the actress is currently starring in fellow Dick Wolf creation Chicago Med. Another interesting question would be whether the new season will only bring back characters who were still around in Season 20, or if we'll see former leads like current Flash star Jesse L. Martin or Angie Harmon. This list could go deep into the night.

Having created some of the longest-lasting TV dramas currently airing, Dick Wolf is living proof that simple TV formulas will stand the test of time, regardless of how many others choose to change things up. Here's how he explained it: 

We may need to change the saying to "If it ain't broke, Dick Wolf must have created it." While it's not clear when Law & Order will officially make its primetime return on NBC, fans are only just getting started with new seasons from both Law & Order: SVU and Law & Order: Organized Crime, which air Thursday nights on NBC starting at 9:00 p.m. ET. Be sure to check out our 2021 Fall TV schedule to see when other new and returning shows will pop up soon, and mark your calendars for the return of Danny Pino's Nick Amaro!

FBI: International is coming to CBS to take the crime-fighting action of the FBI franchise global, starting with a three-part crossover event. The Fly Team is a group of elite operatives based out of Budapest to track and neutralize threats to American citizens, facing some challenges that agents on the other side of the ocean don't generally have to deal with. The new show will be part of the same TV universe as FBI, FBI: Most Wanted, and all of the shows executive produced by Dick Wolf, and showrunner Derek Haas weighed in on his time building up that universe and crossovers on the way.

Derek Haas has served as showrunner for Chicago Fire for ten seasons already, so he came to FBI: International with plenty of experience working in the universe of Dick Wolf shows that currently spans eight shows, two networks, and over two decades. With the highly-anticipated FBI: International premiering in the 2021-2022 TV season, Haas shared with CinemaBlend how all of his experience within the Dick Wolf universe helped him prepare the new FBI show:

FBI: International certainly has an ambitious premise in taking the action overseas and far away from the FBI shows that are already such hits with viewers, but it's coming to the small screen courtesy of some TV veterans thanks to Derek Haas, Dick Wolf, and Wolf Entertainment. With current titles ranging from the two Law & Order series to the three One Chicago shows to the now three FBIs, it's hard to argue against the recipe for success.

Plus, International is launching with a crossover that links International to FBI and Most Wanted straight out of the gate for what could be a positively cinematic experience spread over one full night of primetime. And according to Derek Haas, the premiere will be the first of multiple crossovers. The showrunner said:

Who says that being set an ocean apart means that FBI: International can't feature some characters that fans will know from other shows? Previews for the crossover event between the three FBI shows reveal that Zeeko Zaki's OA will make the trip over to Budapest to work with the International team, and in the Zoom era, it's not hard to imagine more ways for mini crossovers to happen between the shows.

Derek Haas didn't spoil the familiar faces who will appear on FBI: International, but it's something to look forward to and speculate about. After all, there are plenty of characters who could fit the bill, and OA appearing on International in the flesh provides a direct connection to a lot of other shows. Haas revealed the kinds of cases that are in store with International:

International is going to follow cases of the week rather than spin a serialized story, and the weekly cases could provide a rich backdrop for viewers to learn more about the characters who are saving lives and solving crimes overseas. The show stars Luke Kleintank as Scott Forrester, Heida Reed as Jamie Kellett, Carter Redwood as Andre Raines, Vinessa Vidotto as Cameron Vo, and Christiane Paul as Katrin Jaeger. Plus, a canine member of the Fly Team who goes by the name of Tank!

Meet the Fly Team when FBI: International premieres on Tuesday, September 21 at 10 p.m. ET on CBS as the third part of the crossover that begins with FBI at 8 p.m. ET and continues with FBI: Most Wanted at 9 p.m. ET. Following the first week, International will shift to 9 p.m. to switch places with Most Wanted, but fans are guaranteed a full night of FBI action on Tuesdays this fall!

CBS is amping up the crime-fighting action this fall with FBI Season 4, FBI: Most Wanted, and the highly anticipated series premiere of FBI: International. In fact, the network is giving the new show a big push by establishing a full night of storytelling, with all three shows airing in one big FBI block on Tuesday nights. Executive producer Dick Wolf, who obviously knows what it takes to craft a hit TV show, recently weighed in on the benefit of adding International to Tuesdays to join FBI and Most Wanted.

All three FBI shows will hit the airwaves for the 2021-2022 TV season with a big three-part crossover on Tuesday, September 21 starting at 8 p.m. ET and running through to 11 p.m. ET on CBS. While TV viewers might not always tend to check out one show and then stay parked on one network for a full night of primetime, Dick Wolf has some big reasons to believe that the FBI block has what it takes to hold onto an audience.

Speaking with CinemaBlend and other outlets at CBS' TCA Summer Press Tour, Dick Wolf shared the advantages that he anticipates for all three shows airing on one night:

Although Dick Wolf didn't name names, his One Chicago block over on NBC – comprised of Chicago Med, Chicago Fire, and Chicago P.D. – has been a big hit on Wednesdays, and there were plans for something similar for Law & Order Thursdays before a third spinoff was scrapped. FBI and Most Wanted are already hits on their own; by adding a third hour of unique content, CBS is not only appealing to existing fans of this corner of the Dick Wolf universe, but also presenting three hours of content that would fit the average binge-watch.

In an era when streaming is a formidable force in the entertainment world, drawing on the numbers that have made Netflix and other streamers so successful can only work in favor of FBI and its two spinoffs. Dick Wolf continued, saying:

Whose word about success in the television industry could possibly be more trusted than Dick Wolf's? He's been active in TV for decades now, and debuted his first mega-hit all the way back in 1990 to kickstart what would become a shared universe that is still going, more than thirty years later. If Dick Wolf says we're going to be entertained by the "dessert" of FBI: International on top of FBI and FBI: Most Wanted, then I think fans are going to be entertained!

As for the story that actually brings the three shows together for the premiere crossover despite International being set an ocean away, Dick Wolf previewed what's in store on the first Tuesday of a full FBI night of primetime. He shared:

This isn't going to be a crossover that only barely shares characters and a storyline with just tangential connections, but one that takes three slots of primetime to tell the full story. If anything, it sounds like CBS is launching FBI: International as well as bringing back the other two series with a positively cinematic event. The episodes won't air for more than another week, and ratings won't be in until afterward, but it should be interesting to see just how strong of a launch in the ratings International gets with its series premiere to close out the crossover. Check out the first look at the upcoming FBI Tuesdays!

The FBI block of the 2021-2022 TV season on CBS premieres Tuesday, September 21 with FBI's Season 4 premiere at 8 p.m. ET, Most Wanted's Season 3 premiere at 9 p.m. ET, and International's series premiere at 10 p.m. ET. Most Wanted and International will switch spots following the crossover, with the FBI Fly Team in Europe taking over the 9 p.m. slot and the consistently dark pursuits of the Most Wanted returning to the Most Wanted place at 10 p.m.

Fall TV season is fast-approaching, and it brings the premiere of CBS' FBI: International. The new show will be the second spinoff of FBI, which is entering its fourth season in September. As a show produced by TV legend Dick Wolf, the International spinoff will join a television universe including not just FBI and FBI: Most Wanted, but also five other ongoing shows between NBC's Law & Order franchise and One Chicago. So, let's take a look at how International connects to seven other shows, spread over two networks, two cities, and dozens of different characters.

First things first, however: what is this International series and why does the Dick Wolf universe need yet another show? Read on for what we know about the show so far before diving into all the connections between the current Dick Wolf shows!

What To Expect From FBI: International

FBI: International will make its primetime premiere in September to expand the CBS corner of the Dick Wolf universe to three shows in one full night of primetime, with CBS moving NCIS to a new night. International will follow the elite operatives of the FBI's International Fly Team, headquartered in Prague and traveling the world to try and track and neutralize threats against the United States from abroad.

In a departure from FBI and Most Wanted, the Fly Team agents can't carry guns overseas, so they must rely on their wits and physical strength to get the job done. The cast so far includes The Man in the High Castle's Luke Kleintank, Poldark's Heida Reed, and Lucifer's Vinessa Vidotto. So, with the show set in Europe, how closely will it actually be tied to the other shows produced by Dick Wolf? Let's take a look.

How FBI: International Connects To FBI And Most Wanted

FBI: International will connect to FBI and FBI: Most Wanted straight out of the gate. Although it didn't premiere via backdoor pilot last season like Most Wanted did with FBI in 2019, it will launch as part of a three-hour crossover in September. The night will start with the Season 4 premiere of FBI in its new CBS Tuesday night time slot of 8 p.m. ET, followed by the Season 3 premiere of Most Wanted at a special time at 9 p.m., and then finish with the series premiere of International at 10 p.m.

It's not clear at this point how the characters between the three shows will mix in the crossover, and Most Wanted at least has a major cliffhanger from last season that will need to be resolved, but the three shows will be connected from the outset. It was a bold move by CBS to launch International without centering the spinoff on an existing character and without an earlier backdoor pilot, but a three-part crossover seems like a recipe for shared universe success, particularly since that immediate crossover with FBI and Most Wanted provides a direct line over to Dick Wolf's NBC shows.

How FBI And Most Wanted Connect To One Chicago

Fans of both FBI and Chicago P.D. got a surprise at the premature end of the 2019-2020 TV season with the reveal that P.D.'s Tracy Spiridakos would be guest-starring on FBI as Detective Hailey Upton, officially connecting the NBC and CBS halves of the Dick Wolf lineup into one big shared universe. Of course, Chicago P.D. showrunner Rick Eid is also showrunner of FBI, so Upton's transition from P.D. to FBI was about as seamless as it could have been.

And Upton's temporary partnership with Zeeko Zaki's OA on FBI while Maggie was undercover (and Missy Peregrym on maternity leave) didn't just connect FBI and FBI: Most Wanted to Chicago P.D., but the entire One Chicago branch of the shared universe comprised of Chicago Fire and Chicago Med as well. The cops of P.D.'s Intelligence Unit share a universe with the Intelligence Fly Team, as do the first responders of Fire and the medical professionals of Med. And the Chicago shows aren't the only ones that P.D. connects to the FBI-verse.

How One Chicago Connects To Law & Order: SVU

The first big crossover joining corners of the current Dick Wolf universe came back in 2014 with a two-part crossover between Chicago P.D. Season 1 and Law & Order: SVU Season 15. Sophia Bush's Erin Lindsay turned up in an episode of SVU in 2014, and the crossover continued with Kelli Giddish's Rollins and Ice-T's Fin pitching in on Chicago P.D. There have been more crossovers over the years, and Chicago Fire has even participated, but SVU's setting in New York has meant crossovers with One Chicago are pretty rare occasions. But the canon connection is there!

That canon connection means that even if the Chicago shows more or less stick to crossovers with each other in the Windy City, all of the New York shows have the potential for crossovers that won't involve any contrivances or leaps of logic, since it was arguably already a bit of a stretch to get P.D.'s Upton to FBI. And that brings us to the newest Dick Wolf TV show before the premiere of FBI: International!

How Law & Order: SVU Connects To Organized Crime

Even though Law & Order: Organized Crime is only heading into Season 2 while Law & Order: SVU is less than two months away from Season 23, these are the two most closely-tied shows within the Dick Wolf universe. Not only have there already been an abundance of crossovers after just one season of Organized Crime, but Christopher Meloni played Elliot Stabler alongside Mariska Hargitay's Benson for over a decade before departing for a time, so technically Stabler has been around longer than everybody in One Chicago and over on FBI, even though Organized Crime is so new.

The partnership between Benson and Stabler is the stuff of TV legend at this point, so it just makes sense when Benson takes a break from investigating sex crimes to lend an ear to Stabler on Organized Crime and when Stabler steps away from chasing mobsters to help Benson hunt rapists and abusers on SVU. Mariska Hargitay was practically recurring on Organized Crime Season 1! Plus, both current Law & Order shows are set in New York, just like FBI. It really wouldn't take much to bring the Law & Order shows into the FBI mix. And this brings us to...

How Law & Order: Organized Crime Could Connect To FBI: International

Even though Law & Order: Organized Crime seems like the Dick Wolf show with the thinnest ties to FBI: International at this point, there's actually the potential for a pretty direct connection between the two series once International premieres. Prior to his return to New York for the Organized Crime backdoor pilot, Stabler was operating as the NYPD's "man in Rome" and chasing mobsters in Europe, and recent casting news for Season 2 (via Deadline) reveals that Vinnie Jones will play an Eastern European gangster and final member of his organization who is left.

While the casting news doesn't specify where exactly Vinnie Jones' Albi Briscu is from, hailing from Eastern Europe could provide an easy connection to FBI: International thanks to its setting in Prague. Even though there are many degrees of separation between International and Law & Order: Organized Crime, it really wouldn't take much to establish a strong tie between them, and it wouldn't even require a massive multi-part crossover. Then again, maybe they'll remain the two Dick Wolf shows with the weakest ties between them. We can only speculate until the shows all return with new episodes.

Fortunately, all seven returning shows plus FBI: International will return in the not-too-distant future, with International spinning off of FBI and Most Wanted, FBI connecting to Chicago P.D., and Chicago P.D. connecting to pretty much everywhere else in the Dick Wolf universe. All of these connected shows will premiere in the same week in September, even if the NBC lineup will be missing the next Law & Order spinoff that had originally been planned for the fall.

FBI Season 4, FBI: Most Wanted Season 3, and FBI: International premiere on CBS on Tuesday, September 21. They'll be followed on Wednesday, September 22 by NBC's Chicago Med Season 7, Chicago Fire Season 10, and Chicago P.D. Season 9. Finally, Law & Order: SVU Season 23 (fast-approaching a major milestone) and Law & Order: Organize Crime Season 2 premiere on NBC on Thursday, September 23.

The 2020-2021 season of television was a good time to be a fan of any of the shows in the Dick Wolf universe. Not only did Law & Order: SVU, the three shows of One Chicago, FBI, and FBI: Most Wanted return with new episodes after the previous season was cut short, but Law & Order: Organized Crime debuted to bring back Christopher Meloni's Stabler, and more spinoffs are on the way to bring the total count of Dick Wolf shows up to nine next season. And with so many TV shows set in the same universe, that means the potential opportunities for many crossovers between them.

I was fortunate enough to speak with a number of the stars and the showrunners from NBC's One Chicago and both Law & Order shows, as well as both FBI shows over on CBS, over the past season of television. Many of them weighed in with their thoughts on future crossovers within the big shared TV universe. So, now that all of the shows have aired their finales for the 2020-2021 TV season, read on for what the stars and bosses have had to say about possible crossovers, starting with the CBS corner of the Dick Wolf universe.

David Hudgins - FBI: Most Wanted Showrunner

FBI: Most Wanted is arguably the most isolated of the current Dick Wolf shows, as its only crossovers to date have been with parent series FBI, and really only connected to the larger shared universe thanks to Chicago P.D.'s Tracy Spiridakos appearing on FBI once prior to production shutdowns in 2020. I spoke with David Hudgins, who joined Most Wanted as showrunner for the second season, about the finale cliffhanger and the future of the show. He shared his thoughts on a Dick Wolf crossover he'd like to see if the sky was the limit, saying:

FBI: Most Wanted, meet One Chicago? There's technically only one degree of separation between Most Wanted and Chicago P.D. at this point, and P.D. is just a hop and a skip away from Chicago Fire and Chicago Med. Besides, after everything that has gone down in One Chicago over the past ten years, it's almost surprising that most wanted criminals haven't descended on the heroes of Dick Wolf's Windy City on an annual basis by this point. David Hudgins also opened up about the success of Most Wanted in helping to expand the TV universe even further with the launch of another spinoff:

Whether or not Jess LaCroix and Co. turn up in One Chicago next season, FBI: Most Wanted is launching spinoff FBI: International along with FBI, so more crossovers are definitely coming.

Marina Squerciati - Chicago P.D.

Although Chicago P.D. ended Season 8 without confirming whether or not Burgess would survive the terrible injuries she sustained in the finale, it's hard to imagine the show moving on without Marina Squerciati. The actress didn't give away details about what Season 9 does or doesn't hold for Burgess when we spoke ahead of the Season 8 finale and not too long after Law & Order: Organized Crime premiered, but she was definitely enthusiastic about the possibility of her future holding crossovers, saying:

All things considered, I think a lot of fans would be excited to see if what Christopher Meloni does over on Organized Crime means joining forces with some of the Chicago P.D. crew. P.D. has already crossed over with SVU, so the Chicago and New York branches of the shared universe have shared characters before. Why not Organized Crime?

Then again, P.D.'s most recent New York connection was to FBI rather than any Law & Order show, thanks to Upton's quick trip to partner up with OA for an episode. Marina Squerciati responded to my suggestion that Burgess and Upton go on an FBI field trip to finally share some scenes together:

Even if P.D. doesn't cross over with Organized Crime in the near future – and I'm guessing we won't be getting a Burgess/Upton field trip to FBI – we have a One Chicago star officially on board for appearances on other shows.

Ainsley Seiger - Law & Order: Organized Crime

Ainsley Seiger is one of the newest additions to the Dick Wolf universe thanks to her role as tech expert extraordinaire Jet Slootmaekers on Law & Order: Organized Crime. The SVU spinoff is actually Seiger's first TV role, and she was a fan of SVU coming in, so it was no small deal for her to be filming material with SVU's Mariska Hargitay during just the first season of OC. When we spoke ahead of the crossover that brought Jet in close proximity to Benson, Seiger explained the process of building a bridge between the two shows:

Crossovers between Organized Crime and SVU aren't going anywhere, with both shows renewed for the 2021-2022 TV season and Organized Crime ending on a cliffhanger involving both Stabler and SVU's Benson. Both OC and SVU will presumably tie to the upcoming For the Defense spinoff, so even if Jet isn't going to be hanging out with the characters from One Chicago or the FBI series, her world is still growing.

Kelli Giddish - Law & Order: SVU

The Season 22 finale of Law & Order: SVU was a big one for Kelli Giddish's Rollins, as the detective finally planted a kiss on Carisi to deliver something that Rollisi fans have been waiting a very long time for, and it may have taken them past a point of no return. They'll have to deal with it somehow in Season 23, right? Even if Benson and Stabler aren't setting the best example. Speaking with Giddish about the Rollisi dynamic and return of Rollins' dad earlier in Season 22, Giddish shared whether she's interested in crossing over with other Dick Wolf shows:

Several SVU stars have already appeared on Organized Crime, including Peter Scanavino as Carisi, Demore Barnes as Deputy Chief Garland, and of course Mariska Hargitay as Benson. Why not Rollins next? And she has also appeared on Chicago P.D. thanks to an earlier P.D./SVU shared case, so Kelli Giddish has some experience with Rollins taking her investigative talents outside of Manhattan Special Victims.

Dick Wolf And Ilene Chaiken - Law & Order: Organized Crime

The return of Christopher Meloni's Elliot Stabler to the Law & Order universe was hyped across NBC as the return of the "prodigal son," and Organized Crime received a lot of fanfare ahead of its premiere. The SVU backdoor pilot followed by the series premiere illustrated the differences and similarities between the newest and the oldest current Dick Wolf shows, while also showcasing crossover potential. Showrunner Ilene Chaiken and Dick Wolf himself spoke with press following the premiere to preview the future of Organized Crime, and they weighed in on the focus of crossovers. Wolf said:

When not dealing with production precautions that meant nixing any major events between Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med, the three One Chicago shows regularly share characters for mini crossovers, and occasionally come together for multi-episode arcs when a big enough story comes along and needs to be told with the heroes of more than one show. That doesn't mean crossovers every week, and that will evidently hold true with Organized Crime. Ilene Chaiken picked up Dick Wolf's thread, saying:

All of these shows may share a universe, but they're also all telling their own stories, so whatever crossovers that may or may not happen moving forward, there will presumably have to be some good reasons for them to happen on the Organized Crime front.

Steven Weber - Chicago Med

Steven Weber joined Chicago Med on a recurring basis in the second half of Season 6. With the departures of two series regulars in the Season 6 finale and the twist that set Weber's Dean Archer up to fill in as ED Chief for Ethan during his recuperation suggest that Weber will be back with more of a part to play in Season 7. Interestingly, Weber had already appeared in two other Dick Wolf TV shows before joining Med, with three episodes of Law & Order: SVU and one episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent (playing different characters). When we chatted back in March in honor of his Med debut, Weber shared his impression of the Dick Wolf universe:

"This world" is quite expansive with seven shows already, and growing with the addition of two more next season! It naturally raised the question of other Dick Wolf shows that he'd be interested in dropping by as Dean Archer at some point, and Steven Weber explained:

All signs point toward Dean Archer sticking around the ED at least into the beginning of Season 7, and a lot could depend on what kind of time jump is in store for Med. The finale left several story threads dangling, even if the cliffhangers weren't quite as life-and-death as Chicago Fire and Chicago P.D. When I noted to Steven Weber that the firefighters and cops of Fire and P.D. get hurt on a regular basis, he responded:

Considering Chicago P.D.'s Burgess did in fact require emergency medical help in the Season 8 finale, and the Chicago Fire Season 9 finale ended on a cliffhanger that could mean some or all of Squad will need more aid than what Brett and Violet can give out of the back of the ambo, One Chicago really can use all the doctors it can get.

Law & Order: SVU - Demore Barnes

The Season 22 finale of Law & Order: SVU ended on a more foreboding note for Demore Barnes' Deputy Chief Garland than for the rest of the key characters, as some of his comments under oath left him in hot water with the NYPD brass. Plus, he wasn't feeling great physically in the finale, and was planning to take some time off now that he's facing efforts to force him out of the department. That said, when I had the chance to speak with Barnes earlier in Season 22 with Organized Crime then on the way, he gave his thoughts on crossing over to another show as Garland:

Interestingly, like Steven Weber, Demore Barnes had appeared elsewhere in the Dick Wolf universe playing another character before landing the larger role. He appeared in the short-lived Chicago Justice spinoff that became the first One Chicago show to be cancelled. For now, fans may want to be more concerned as to whether the Deputy Chief will be able to hold onto his position in New York rather than be called on in Chicago, though!

Derek Haas - Chicago Fire Showrunner

Chicago Fire of course is the show that started the whole One Chicago corner of the Dick Wolf TV universe, and Fire has been the source of a lot of crossovers over the years. When showrunner Derek Haas dropped some preview details ahead of the Season 9 premiere last year, however, he was quick to set the record straight about what to expect due to production precautions, as well as hopes for the future. Haas said:

Chicago Fire did find ways to pull in a few other One Chicago characters for the Season 9 premiere, and off and on throughout the ninth season, but as Derek Haas predicted, a bigger crossover had to be held off on. If all goes well, the most extreme of the pandemic precautions may well lift in time for One Chicago to resume the annual multi-episode crossovers in the fall, and perhaps even share some scenes with the Law & Order and/or FBI crowds.

Andrew Schneider - Chicago Med Showrunner

As a medical drama, Chicago Med had some big challenges to face heading into Season 6, as One Chicago (as well as SVU and FBI and FBI: Most Wanted) was incorporating the real-life pandemic into the plot for the 2020-2021 TV season. I was able to check in with Med co-showrunners Andrew Schneider and Diane Frolov ahead of November's sixth season premiere, and Schneider's comments about crossovers echoed those of Fire's Derek Haas:

The new year isn't over yet, so a major crossover could well still happen in 2021. Fans will just have to wait until the fall to find out. The most recent event involving a full episode of all three One Chicago shows was back in fall of 2019, and aired pretty early in the seasons. So, if another big crossover is on the way, perhaps the timeline will be similar and viewers won't have to wait too long after Fire, P.D., and Med return with new episodes.

Rick Eid - FBI/Chicago P.D. Showrunner

Chicago P.D. boss Rick Eid pulls double duty in the Dick Wolf TV universe as showrunner of CBS' FBI as well as the NBC cop show, and it's actually thanks to P.D. sending Upton over to FBI at the end of Season 7 that there's even room to speculate about the NBC shows crossing over with FBI and Most Wanted at this point. There were no signs that the shows on two different networks existed in the same TV universe before Upton showed up and made speculation a whole lot more fun. Answering some questions for CinemaBlend last fall ahead of FBI Season 3 (and FBI: Most Wanted Season 2), Eid said:

As P.D. fans will remember, Upton's trip to FBI ultimately had a big impact on her arc in One Chicago. She did well enough working with the feds to earn a fancy job offer, and it was that offer – which was a huge opportunity but would have meant leaving CPD, Chicago, and her partner – that was the game-changer for her and Halstead to make a big step. As Rick Eid commented in early 2021 before P.D. returned from winter break:

Upton of course chose to stay in Chicago and start a relationship with Halstead, but that relationship has run into some obstacles thanks to Voight putting the wrong kinds of pressure on Upton, prompting her to ask Halstead to marry her in just about the most desperate and non-romantic way possible in the Season 8 finale. But hey, at least they love each other, and they have Voight's decision to send Upton to FBI to thank for that step forward.

The various stars and bosses of One Chicago, the two Law & Order shows, and the two FBI shows dropped plenty of comments worth considering during the months ahead without any new episodes. The seven current Dick Wolf shows are expected to return to NBC and CBS in the fall, with Law & Order: For the People and FBI: International premiering in the 2021-2022 TV season as well. As for what you can watch in the meantime, be sure to swing by our 2021 summer TV premiere guide for some options!

TV will quite possibly never see another show quite like Law & Order, the seminal crime drama that ended its historic 20-season run in 2010, and before today was the flagship for six produced spinoffs and the postponed Hate Crimes offshoot. Now, mere months after franchise creator Dick Wolf finally brought Christopher Meloni back into Mariska Hargitay's orbit with Law & Order: Organized Crime, NBC has cut the brake lines and directly put in a straight-to-series order for a new L&O entry that won't hinge on Elliot Stabler and Olivia Benson's on-screen chemistry for some strange reason.

That's right, NBC announced that the next chapter in this expansive and fan-favorite franchise will be titled Law & Order: For the Defense, and not Law & Order: Benson And Stabler Sitting In A Tree K-I-S-S-I-N-G or anything of that sort. Rather than focusing on the authoritative aggressors in the courtroom and on the streets, as it's gone in the past, the new series will shine a justice-serving spotlight on a group of lawyers working at a criminal defense firm, and the show aims to "take an unbiased look" at what goes on. Considering the kinds of high-profile court cases that have made headlines in recent months and years, things could get uncomfortable muddy, assuming viewers won't be witnessing a long line of completely innocent characters on trial week in and week out.

Wisely, Dick Wolf has tapped arguably one of the best possible creatives possible to steer the ship for Law & Order: For the Defense. The new spinoff's showrunner, and one of its executive producers, will be Carol Mendelsohn, who was the big boss on CBS' megahit crime procedural CSI for 14 seasons. Mendelsohn also knows quite a bit about expanding TV universes, as she served as EP and creator/co-creator for each of the Crime Scene Investigation follow-ups, including CSI: Miami, CSI: NY and CSI: Cyber.

While you might think that Dick Wolf has seen it all at this point and doesn't get all that excited by much, the prolific TV producer is quite enthused about this project, both for its subject matter and for its creative force. Here's how he put it:

At this time, no further details were revealed about specific plotlines, potential cast members or any kind of a timeline for when Law & Order: For the Defense will go into production. That said, because it's a Dick Wolf show, and because we've seen what a well-oiled crossover machine the One Chicago franchise has turned into, we can probably expect to hear about shared universe characters soon after casting kicks off. Oddly enough, the new spinoff will almost definitely hit the small screen well after Paramount+'s upcoming CSI revival debuts.

While waiting for casting news for Law & Order: For the Defense, be sure to catch up with Law & Order: SVU and Law & Order: Organized Crime before their current seasons return to NBC from hiatus on Thursday, May 13.

Spoilers ahead for the latest episode of FBI: Most Wanted on CBS, called "Winner."

The latest episode of FBI: Most Wanted saw LaCroix and his team join forces with Amy Carlson's Jackie Ward to chase down a man who escaped before his trial and went on a murder spree, and in the process delivered a connection to Law & Order. Yes, the youngest Dick Wolf show just included a cameo from the Dick Wolf show that started it all on the small screen, but not necessarily how fans may have expected.

Since a crossover between Chicago P.D. and FBI effectively created one gigantic Dick Wolf universe, FBI: Most Wanted shares the same TV universe as Law & Order. So, a Law & Order cameo on Most Wanted wasn't out of the realm of possibility considering the size of that cast over its twenty seasons on the air, even though Law & Order and FBI: Most Wanted are just about the most separate shows in the entire franchise.

Well, a Law & Order cameo did indeed come to Most Wanted, but not in the form of any actors reprising their roles or plots resurfacing. Take a look at what FBI: Most Wanted delivered for eagle-eyed Law & Order fans:

Hello, Law & Order DVD box sets! In "Winner," LaCroix and the team's investigation took them to the home of Travis Russel, who earned his spot on the Most Wanted list for murder and running from prosecution. Travis' home is more or less a gigantic mess, but his belongings make it clear that he's a big fan of law enforcement TV, and that includes a few seasons of Law & Order. Dun dun!

Of course, those don't seem to be the real box sets of the real Law & Order series, so FBI: Most Wanted didn't just rupture the Dick Wolf space time continuum by including Chris Noth or Sam Waterston or Jerry Orbach on the covers. This was just a fun Easter Egg courtesy of the FBI: Most Wanted team, and it definitely put a smile on my face.

And in fact, this wasn't the only tie between FBI: Most Wanted and a Law & Order series in "Winner," although it would have taken more than just sharp eyes for fans to catch on to the other. Take a look at what you, like me, may well have missed:

The co-writer of FBI: Most Wanted's latest episode wrote for the first season of Law & Order: SVU! In fact, Wendy West is credited as the writer of SVU's "Wanderlust," which aired back in 1999 as the fifth episode of a show that would go on to run for at least 24 seasons. This connection means that the youngest current Dick Wolf show (for another month or so, anyway) shares a writer with the oldest current Dick Wolf show, with SVU outlasting the original Law & Order.

None of this is to say that FBI: Most Wanted's agents are suddenly going to start hanging out with Olivia Benson or spending tons of time with the cops in Chicago or even investigating crimes with Maggie and OA on FBI on a regular basis despite the possibilities, but the Easter Egg and shared writer serve as reminders of not just how expansive the Dick Wolf universe is, but also how long it has been running. In fact, if you need a refresher on how all these shows connect, take a look at our breakdown:

New episodes of FBI: Most Wanted air on Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET on CBS, following new episodes of FBI. Law & Order: Organized Crime will soon take Most Wanted's place as the youngest Dick Wolf show on the airwaves, but another FBI spinoff may be in the works to follow Christopher Meloni's return to his old Law & Order stomping grounds.

The CBS corner of the expansive Dick Wolf TV universe has been going strong ever since FBI debuted back in 2018, with spinoff FBI: Most Wanted launching in early 2020. Both shows returned to CBS for a two-hour block of primetime in the 2020-2021 TV season, but now it seems that the network isn't done expanding its slate of Dick Wolf shows. Another FBI spinoff is in the works, and it could affect Chicago Fire over on NBC depending on the development process.

An FBI spinoff called FBI: International is developing at CBS, with Deadline reporting that the third show would focus on the FBI's international operations, as opposed to the domestic crimes investigated by Maggie and Co. on FBI and the Most Wanted criminals chased by the agents of FBI: Most Wanted. Although the project has not yet advanced beyond working on deals (with no official comment from CBS at the time of writing), Dick Wolf veteran Derek Haas is attached as writer and presumed showrunner.

If the name "Derek Haas" rings a bell, then you're likely a fan of One Chicago over on NBC. Haas created Chicago Fire back in 2012, and that show is nine seasons in with at least two more to go. He currently serves as showrunner, and has an executive producer credit on Chicago P.D., but his active role on Fire is what raises the question of whether FBI: International could see him switch networks to focus on the new show.

On the one hand, One Chicago shows changing showrunners isn't unprecedented. Andrew Schneider and Diane Frolov stepped took over as Chicago Med showrunners in 2015 after the initial showrunner stepped down, and Rick Eid took the reins of Chicago P.D. starting with Season 5 in 2017. P.D. was previously run by Matt Olmstead. It's not unimaginable that Derek Haas could depart Chicago Fire to focus on FBI: International.

On the other hand, Derek Haas has been running Chicago Fire for nine seasons already, so he would presumably know everything he needs to know to balance another show on top of Fire. There's also the point that Rick Eid is currently the showrunner of both FBI and Chicago P.D., which is proof that deals are possible that one showrunner can split duties between two shows on two different networks within this expansive shared Dick Wolf universe.

The shared Dick Wolf universe across two networks is so expansive because of a crossover in the 2019-2020 TV season between Rick Eid's two shows, which brought Chicago P.D.'s Upton to FBI and connected FBI and FBI: Most Wanted to the three One Chicago shows and what will soon be two Law & Order shows. FBI: International would bring the show count up to eight, and really open the door for some truly wild crossovers.

That said, FBI: International sounds like something brand new for this Dick Wolf universe. The three One Chicago shows are obviously based in Chicago, and both Law & Order shows will be set in New York. FBI is in New York, and Most Wanted travels across the United States for cases. An international series would tread new ground, even if its premise indicates that it could be more standalone than the other seven series.

Of course, all of that is assuming that CBS moves forward with FBI: International with Derek Haas on board. The show has not received a series order just yet, but I find myself wondering if a prospective third CBS series means that the network is aiming for its own version of NBC's successful One Chicago Wednesday, to take over a full block of primetime. That would mean a change for CBS Tuesday nights, which currently includes NCIS as well as FBI and FBI: Most Wanted. Then again, NCIS' future is uncertain at this point.

Only time will tell if CBS gives a series order to FBI: International. For now, there is plenty of FBI action with new episodes of FBI at 9 p.m. ET and FBI: Most Wanted at 10 p.m. ET on CBS Tuesdays.

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Starting with the launch of Chicago Fire in 2012, the One Chicago franchise has produced some of the most watched and talked about shows on NBC. With the additions of Chicago P.D. and Chicago Med in 2013 and 2015, respectively, the properties from Dick Wolf Productions have found a way to combine action, drama, and (sometimes) comedy to create a combined universe of diverse characters, situations, and locations throughout the Windy City. As unlikely as it may seem, there may be some out there who have missed the boat and want to know where they can binge Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med streaming.

Fortunately, with a franchise as successful and omnipresent as One Chicago, there are multiple avenues to take to watch episodes streaming (both new and classic). Luckily for you, we’ve put together a list of all the places where you can watch the Chicago-based first responder dramas with only a few clicks. That being said, let’s break down where you can watch Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med streaming.

Where Are Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D. And Chicago Med Streaming

If you don’t want to miss a single second of action on Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med, Peacock is going to be your best option. Not only will you be able to watch new episodes of each of the current seasons, but you can also watch all previous seasons without even creating an account. It should be noted, however, that Peacock Premium is required to watch the latest episode of each of the One Chicago series the week they air on NBC. If you aren’t bothered by waiting a few days to watch something like Chicago Fire’s explosive and epic “Bottle” episode and don’t want to subscribe, a free account could be the way to go.

Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med are also streaming on Hulu, but only the five latest episodes from each show’s current season can be streamed. Those wanting to watch previous seasons will have to go the Peacock route.

Watch Chicago Fire streaming on Peacock here. 

Watch Chicago P.D. streaming on Peacock here. 

Watch Chicago Med streaming on Peacock here.

When Will Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D. And Chicago Med Be On Netflix?

Considering how all seasons (previous and current) of Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med are streaming on Peacock (NBC’s streaming service) and only the five latest episodes are available on Hulu, the chances of catching any of the One Chicago series on Netflix (at least here in the United States) are slim to none.

A Refresher On How One Chicago, SVU And FBI Are Connected

Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med (and the quickly cancelled Chicago Justice) are all part of Dick Wolf’s One Chicago Franchise, but that isn’t the only shared universe to which these shows belong. You can check out CinemaBlend’s thorough, yet easy to read breakdown of how the Chicago franchise, Law and Order: SVU, and FBI all connect to Christopher Meloni’s organized crime spinoff by clicking here.

Well, that about sums up everything there is to know to watch Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med streaming, as well as some background information on the other shows from Dick Wolf Productions. Make sure to check out CinemaBlend’s 2021 TV schedule for the latest information on each of those shows and countless others returning this year.

Another installment in the Law & Order: SVU shared universe is in the works to return Christopher Meloni's Elliot Stabler to the small screen, but executive producer Dick Wolf has already fired somebody from the developing show. Craig Gore, who was hired for the Stabler spinoff, has been fired after making threats toward looters via social media.

Craig Gore revealed via Instagram posts (which have seemingly since been taken down) that he was in West Hollywood, California when a curfew was enacted in response to looters, posting a photo in which he was toting a very large firearm. In the comment section of his photo, Gore went even further:

Following Craig Gore's post and comments, super producer Dick Wolf (who is behind series like FBI, FBI: Most Wanted, and the three One Chicago shows on top of the various Law & Order installments) quickly fired him. THR reports Gore had been hired back in early May to write for the upcoming Law & Order: SVU spinoff starring Christopher Meloni.

Dick Wolf explained his decision to swiftly fire Craig Gore via a statement, saying:

The Christopher Meloni-starring SVU spinoff is still early enough in the development stages that no stars other than Meloni have been announced (although his wife and son are likely candidates, based on some SVU details), so the loss of Craig Gore probably won't impact the project much. As for Meloni himself, he took to Twitter to make it clear that he didn't even know who Craig Gore is, let alone sympathized with his statements.

Craig Gore has no shortage of experience in crime-based dramas like what the Stabler spinoff presumably would have been. He has worked on multiple seasons of CBS' S.W.A.T. and NBC's Chicago P.D., the latter of which falls under the Dick Wolf banner. Gore worked as executive producer and writer for both S.W.A.T. and Chicago P.D., and also wrote for The CW's short-lived mystery series Cult, which ran for 13 episodes in 2013.

Craig Gore isn't the only person in television to wind up in hot water due to commentary on current events, with Lea Michele of Glee fame attracting attention and losing a sponsorship after a comment on Twitter. At the time of writing, Craig Gore himself hasn't taken to social media to address his firing or the comments that resulted in the loss of his job that will keep him from contributing to Christopher Meloni's long-awaited return as Elliot Stabler.

To relive some of Stabler's days on Law & Order: SVU, you kind find the full series streaming on Hulu, several seasons streaming on Amazon Prime, and the show's streaming arrival on the upcoming NBC service Peacock, which launches in July. For more viewing options, be sure to check out our 2020 summer premiere schedule.

The Law & Order franchise got one of its biggest jolts in years recently when NBC announced that SVU vet Christopher Meloni would be returning as the hard-hitting Elliot Stabler, not for his former digs, but within a completely new spinoff series. It'll be the first time he'll reprise the role after vacating Law & Order: SVU in Season 12, and as one might have imagined, his former co-star Mariska Hargitay had something to say about it.

Having portrayed Detective-turned-Captain Olivia Benson ever since Law & Order: SVU started up back in 1999, Mariska Hargitay is as much the backbone of the NBC drama as franchise creator Dick Wolf. So fans were definitely looking for her response to Chris Meloni's return to the crime drama's world. Non-coincidentally tying things in with the actor's recent birthday, Hargitay shared the following message:

Mariska Hargitay's post racked up multiple hundreds of thousands of likes, and over 10,000 comments in less than 24 hours, so you know people are pumped about the potential for Olivia and Elliot to reunite in some way. And what better first step than for Christopher Meloni to post an adorbs reply to Hargitay's welcome-back message?

Since Instagram's top comments can be completely random, here's a shot of how Christopher Meloni responded to his former co-star, which no doubt got fans even more excited for what's to come.

Saddle. Up. In. Deed. Or should I say "in-steed." Does Stabler's return as the mane character mean we're all in on horsey jokes at this point, or what? Hee-Haw & Order: SVU, anyone? Anyone? (Incidentally, I do not want to see a rural comedy sketch show about horse sex crimes being investigated, regardless of if Meloni would be involved or not, even though he would definitely rock that role.)

Anyway, back to fully celebrating things that ARE happening, such as Chris Meloni's return to the world of network crime dramas after years of taking on quirkier roles in shows such as Syfy's bonkers comic book adaptation Happy, and reprising Wet Hot American Summer's Gene for Netflix's prequel and sequel shows. Not to mention his far more serious role in Hulu's The Handmaid's Tale.

Conversations about Christopher Meloni's return had started happening all over again more recently once the subject of Law & Order: SVU's fate came into question ahead of its historic renewal that will continue its reign as the longest-running TV drama. It didn't seem likely that anything as major as "a new Law & Order show" would happen in order to bring Meloni back, but we're all the happier for it. May the actor have

Because every set of two beloved characters interacting deserves a video compilation, here's one for Elliot and Olivia.

Law & Order: SVU is having to end this season early due to production shutdowns, but showrunner Warren Leight revealed what fans could have expected to see during those eps, which might factor into how next season starts off. For now, though, we're waiting just like everyone else to see how things will play out.

With only a few weeks left to go, Law & Order: SVU will close out Season 21 on Tuesday, April 21, at 10:00 p.m. ET.

NBC has had a good thing going with Dick Wolf's three One Chicago series and the long-running Law & Order: SVU, and now the network can keep that hot streak going for several more years thanks to huge renewal orders. Yes, well before season finale season, NBC handed down multi-year renewals to Wolf's Law & Order: SVU and One Chicago.

Law & Order: SVU, Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med all scored renewals ffor three more seasons. This mega renewal guarantees SVU through Season 24, Chicago Fire through Season 11, Chicago P.D. through Season 10, and Chicago Med through Season 8. NBC isn't done making history with SVU, and maybe One Chicago could set some records of its own if its three shows continue going strong!

The renewals for four of NBC's biggest shows come with famed producer Dick Wolf (who has brought success to the network ever since Law & Order premiered way back in 1990 to launch a shared universe that is still going strong) signing a new five-year deal to remain with Universal Television, which is a division of NBCUniversal. Dick Wolf has been with NBCUniversal for the past 36 years, although he does have a couple shows airing on a rival network.

These renewals are only the latest pieces of good news for fans of Dick Wolf's NBC series. His vast library of series will be available on NBCUniversal's upcoming streaming service Peacock. This library includes the Law & Order and One Chicago franchises, although all of those shows do technically share a universe.

Dick Wolf, who weighed in on why his shows have lasted so long, stated that he's "gratified and excited" about the new five-year deal with NBCUniversal, the agreement bringing Law & Order and One Chicago to Peacock, and the three-year renewals for the four ongoing series. He shared that Wolf Entertainment is "now supercharged." As for NBC, Entertainment Chairman Paul Telegdy said this:

Mariska Hargitay certainly wasn't wrong about Law & Order: SVU not ending any time soon, although the actress did once almost quit SVU. Of course, there are no guarantees that Hargitay will stick around for another three years, but until news breaks about her future on SVU, fans can at least take heart that the renewal means three more years for Christopher Meloni to drop by! And the One Chicago renewals mean that NBC's version of the Windy City won't run out of crises any time too soon.

Of course, the three shows of One Chicago were already likely to be renewed for the 2020-2021 TV season. The shows are almost ridiculously consistent in ratings and viewership, regularly ranking among TV's top seven most-watched dramas and showing serious growth with delayed viewership, especially Chicago P.D. SVU's future was a little less certain, in my book, since its Live+Same day ratings aren't the best and it has already been running for over two decades.

Now that fans don't have to worry about these four Dick Wolf shows getting the axe any time soon, they can shift those worries to the characters that might and might not stick around. Mariska Hargitay would be a huge loss for SVU, since she has been the center of that series as Olivia Benson ever since Elliot Stabler left. Chicago Fire, P.D., and Med arguably all have some characters that would be difficult to lose, but they're far more ensemble dramas than SVU. And people die a lot in One Chicago!

See what happens next on Dick Wolf's dramas with Chicago Med, Fire, and P.D. airing at 8 p.m., 9 p.m., and 10 p.m. on Wednesdays, with Law & Order: SVU airing Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET on NBC.

It's no secret that Dick Wolf has been behind some of the longest running television shows in the past few decades. Law & Order started his reign over the primetime crime drama, with Law & Order: SVU carrying the baton into the current day. Wolf is also the man behind the supremely popular Chicago franchise, with three shows (Fire, Med and P.D.) that focus on first responders in that famously windy city. With several big hits under his TV producer belt, you can bet that Wolf has an idea of why his shows seem to beat the odds on a regular basis.

Law & Order ran for 20 seasons and is the second longest running scripted primetime show, and it's second only to...you guessed it: SVU, which just began its twenty-first season. Law & Order: Criminal Intent ran for 10 seasons, which is nothing to sneeze at, and the Chicago shows, all currently hits in their own right, are at Season 8 (Fire), Season 7 (P.D.) and Season 5 (Med) with no signs of slowing down any time soon. So, why does Dick Wolf think he's had so many long-lasting dramas? Turns out it's all about what happens behind the scenes:

Here, here! I mean...uh, if you were thinking that Dick Wolf was going to wax poetic about how important casting is to his many successful shows, or locations or even discuss how necessary the right timeslot is, you were wrong. While I'm sure each of those things, and many more aspects, are important, Wolf believes that what every hit show must have is solid writing and a fantastic showrunner to make sure that and all the other crucial elements are in place before filming each week.

When CinemaBlend and other outlets had the chance to sit down with Dick Wolf at One Chicago Day recently, the veteran television producer of over 40 shows made it clear how much he appreciates the men and women who keep his many TV ships afloat every season. And that appreciation of his showrunners mostly stems from the fact that they are also writers, just like Wolf, and he clearly has tons of respect for anyone who can put words on pages at a steady clip. This is likely especially true when it comes time for a show crossover.

After writing on Hill Street Blues in the mid-1980s, and writing and producing on Miami Vice from 1986-1988, Dick Wolf moved on to creating his own shows to write, and has, of course, become quite successful. As he said, he still considers himself to be a writer at heart, and once words are in your veins, they never quite let you go. So, he fully understands what it's like to be one of those people who spends "all their time in rooms, alone" in order to create a show that, hopefully, connects with enough folks to keep people entertained / employed for years to come.

You can check out the action-packed, sometimes kinda gruesome, in-house romance filled and ripped from the headlines work of Dick Wolf and his showrunners when his Chicago franchise airs Wednesdays on NBC, starting with Chicago Med at 8 p.m. EST, followed by Chicago Fire and Chicago P.D. Law & Order: SVU airs Thursdays on NBC at 10 p.m. EST, and FBI (which just began Season 2 but is already branching out into franchise territory) airs on CBS, Tuesdays at 9 p.m. EST.

Fall is a competitive time for network television shows. Old favorites are returning, but facing competition from a host of new series which might become the new darlings of TV. Now, we can officially congratulate one show for actually managing to grow its audience after it premiered this season. That's right folks, the CBS crime drama FBI is our winner!

Out of all the shows that have debuted this fall on the big four broadcast networks (NBC, ABC, CBS and Fox) FBI is the only one to pull in more viewers in week two than it did during premiere week. FBI returned for Season 2 on September 24, and when a week of delayed viewing is included, it netted a 1.56 rating in the oh so important 18-49 demographic, while the week two rating went up to 1.58 in the demo for an increase of 1.2821%.

FBI is the latest crime drama in an impressive string of hits from super producer Dick Wolf, who created the series with Craig Turk. The show follows the inner workings of the New York branch of the FBI as they investigate the most serious crimes, including terrorism, counterintelligence and organized crime, to try and keep the country (and state) safe and make it a better place. FBI stars Missy Peregrym, Zeeko Zaki, Jeremy Sisto and Ebonee Noel, among others.

While FBI didn't exactly rise a ton in its second week, being able to bring in more viewers is still an impressive feat for a show that's only in its second season. It's managed to do something this season that bona fide hits like NCIS (which is in the midst of the Ziva Renaissance), Chicago Fire (where a major character was killed in the premiere in a very gruesome way), Grey's Anatomy (which just featured a Charmed reunion) and Empire (currently in its final deadly season) weren't able to do after debuting, so, good on FBI.

Speaking of NCIS...according to The Wrap, FBI is second in total viewers only to that veteran show (which just happens to serve as its lead-in every week) and everyone's favorite tear-jerker This Is Us where non-sports and non-news programs are concerned. While FBI is only considered a moderate success right now, with it ranking as the 30th highest rated show on broadcast television, the fact that it's been able to grow its audience is surely a good sign that the show might have real staying power.

And, in case you're wondering, there were other shows that came close to taking the title in this particular race. Over on Fox, we had 9-1-1 (2.61 for debut, 2.60 in the second week) as a contender, CBS featured Mom as an also ran (1.35 for debut, 1.34 in the second week), ABC saw Single Parents try its best (1.17 for debut, 1.16 in the second week) and NBC had The Good Place throw its hat into the ring (1.26 for debut, 1.24 in the second week).

So, the situation is looking pretty good for FBI, and if you haven't jumped onto this particular crime procedural train just yet, maybe you should. There's no reason for you to be the only one around the water cooler on Wednesday mornings who has no idea what everyone else is talking about, right? You can catch FBI (which is already working on expanding the franchise), Tuesdays on CBS at 9 p.m. EST, and keep up with all of this fall's debuts with our 2019 fall premiere guide!

It's that time again One Chicago fans! The first mega-crossover of this season between Chicago Fire, Chicago Med and Chicago P.D. airs tonight, and it's been promised to be the most intertwined, three hour crossover we've ever gotten from the franchise. While filming on any TV show as intense and (frequently) action-packed as these dramas tend to be can be trying in normal circumstances, it turns out that working on the big crossover episodes is an even more difficult affair. So difficult, in fact, that super producer Dick Wolf actually admitted that "nobody likes" the process.

I had the opportunity to visit One Chicago Day recently along with other outlets, and when Dick Wolf sat down with us he was asked about the process he and his showrunners go through to put each of these large crossovers together, and whether or not they draw inspiration from current events. And, while he did answer the question, he also gave us a lot more insight into just how grueling these shoots are.

Phew! Sixteen days in a row? Without time run errands, watch trash TV or do a deep conditioner on my hair on Sundays? Forget about being exhausted, I'm already dead just thinking about the grind that everyone involved in the Chicago franchise goes through to bring us these crossovers every season. If I could instruct all of them to stop whatever they're doing right now and take a two-hour nap, I would.

Also, think about how many times you've done something really hard that turned out well, but decided not to do it again because it kinda seemed like too much trouble. According to Dick Wolf (and he would know), even though literally everyone behind the scenes and in front of the camera for the Chicago crossovers would rather not be making them, they still do it...every single year.

Obviously, a lot of their determination to put their own comfort and sanity aside for several weeks and make these crossovers comes from the fact that fans absolutely eat them up every season. Each series is a hit in its own right, but bringing the casts together has definitely been good business for Chicago Fire, Med and P.D., not to mention Dick Wolf and NBC.

It's not hard to imagine, either, why it would feel like filming and assembling all three hours just never stops. There were probably several times in the past couple of weeks where everyone thought they finally had what they needed on film, only for the editing process to reveal repeated "ugh" moments that Dick Wolf mentioned, leading many folks back to film the same scene again. No wonder Wolf had a dinner for all of them and had to promise that crossover shooting would at least stop before it actually aired. I'm sure they were thrilled!

This year's crossover, titled "Infection" will follow the teams from Chicago Fire, Med and P.D. as they try to solve a case we've never seen before on the series: that of a weaponized flesh-eating disease which has the city on lockdown and is spreading a lot faster than anyone would want. "Infection" will air across all three Chicago hours, tonight, Wednesday, October 16 on NBC and kicks off with Chicago Fire at 8 p.m. EST.

Mariska Hargitay has now played Detective Olivia Benson on Law & Order: SVU for over 20 years. With that in mind, you might think the NBC series would be at least somewhat close to wrapping up its run, but if you ask its lead, she’s happier than ever playing the TV detective.

In fact, Law & Order: SVU was still a Top 50 show when it aired during primetime last year. It has also opened the door for Mariska Hargitay to take on a slew of opportunities outside of her TV role. Many of these opportunities, like her charity the Joyful Heart Foundation, directly relate to the work Detective Benson does on TV each week. According to Mariska Hargitay, all of this means she is more invested than ever in the NBC show. Or, as she put it:

It’s interesting how art can sometimes inform life and vice versa, but Mariska Hargitay’s most famous role has also turned her not only into a well-known TV personality, but also someone who advocates in a related field.

Also in the profile for the NY Times, longtime producer Dick Wolf also confirmed that playing Detective Benson has been a big boon for Mariska Hargitay, also noting she seems to be happy where she’s at.

There was a point in time when ratings were still the one major force behind cancellations and renewals and there was seemingly a question of whether or not Law & Order: SVU would go on. Yet, it endured, and Oliva Benson stayed on as the main character in the series. Over time, the show has continued to push through in its late-primetime slot, and has maintained relevance in the ratings. In fact, it has also been a proven winner for repeats on networks like USA.

In addition, Law & Order: SVU has also been a winner on streaming. Over at Hulu, the show actually skews more toward younger viewers, which is surprising in some ways, although I’d guess the audience for streaming skews younger in general.

All of this good news last season led Law & Order: SVU to land a Season 21 renewal, a season that will kick off this week on NBC.

While it will likely be some time before we learn whether or not Season 22 is in the cards, Mariska Hargitay seems to be in a good place with the character and her career – and not just from the acting component. In fact the actress has previously said there was a time she wanted to quit, but is now “so grateful” for the gift of her NBC job.

She also mentioned she’d be happy to stay 25 years. So, provided the show still maintains relevance in its timeslot, we may still see new episodes for a few years to come.

Law & Order: SVU will return to the schedule Thursday, September 26 at 10 p.m. ET. To take a look at the other network favorites returning over the next few weeks, be sure to check out our full premiere schedule.

Typically, NBC and CBS exist on television as rivals. This last TV season saw a throwdown for primetime supremacy between This Is Us and NCIS, and while CBS typically does edge out all the major networks in viewership, NBC can do well in the most coveted ratings demos. Now it appears the two networks are receptive to some crossover between two dramas, and it's all thanks to major television producer and procedural mastermind Dick Wolf.

Now, plans aren't set in stone, but the idea is that Dick Wolf wants to crossover CBS' FBI or upcoming spinoff FBI: Most Wanted with one of his shows at NBC. That means either series could pair up with one of the shows in the Chicago franchise, or even the legendary Law & Order: S.V.U. Wolf added that both networks are receptive to the idea, but he's unsure if they'll figure out the details to make it happen.

The reason Dick Wolf hasn't exactly decided which shows will be crossing over between networks is due to the fact that he hasn't figured out "which story wins." The winner in this instance would get to have its story stretch between two shows on two unrelated networks in a television event that doesn't happen all that often. It's not completely rare, however, as The Flash and Supergirl crossed over a few years back and Ally McBeal and The Practice did long before that.

Dick Wolf is no stranger to crossovers and has done quite a few of them in recent years. In fact, Wolf has done at least one crossover a year between two of his shows on NBC since 2013, and has seen a lot of success frequently blending his Chicago franchise together. There have been established shared universes between all of the shows on NBC, so being able to incorporate Wolf's FBI or FBI: Most Wanted into that would be neat.

So which is the most likely series to crossover? As Dick Wolf told Variety, it depends on who has the strongest story, but it wouldn't be hard at all for Law & Order: SVU (which recently had a spinoff delayed) to crossover with FBI. Both shows are set in New York, and as Wolf said during the Monte Carlo TV Festival, connecting their work wouldn't be all that hard to do.

Geography has never kept Law & Order: SVU from working with Chicago Fire, Chicago Med, and Chicago P.D., so really the two shows being located in the same place isn't a huge advantage. With that said, could SVU be the better option because it would shut out Chicago and make for an easier two-show crossover? Right now a three show crossover doesn't seem like a possibility, but who knows what will happen if CBS and NBC pull this off.

How CBS' FBI Compares To Dick Wolf's Other Crime Dramas

CinemaBlend will keep an eye on the situation and report on whether or not this cross-network extravaganza is going to happen. In the meantime be sure to stick with us for the latest and greatest news in television and movies.

Over the past few decades, TV super producer Dick Wolf has become known for the hard hitting dramas that he's brought to NBC. From the original Law & Order to Chicago Fire, he's someone that people look to when thinking about how to successfully bring intense drama to television, and begin franchises that see characters and storylines cross over on a regular basis. Well, many people were surprised when Dick Wolf's latest drama, FBI, hit CBS last fall, but the show has been a ratings winner and now, it's getting a spinoff.

FBI is still in its freshman season, but a plan has already been set in motion to introduce characters for a proposed spinoff on the series this spring. The new show, which, right now, is titled FBI: Most Wanted, will first air as a backdoor pilot during an episode of FBI. Even if you're not familiar with the term "backdoor pilot," you've probably seen at least one if you watch any show that's gotten a spinoff. Basically, one episode of the flagship series is used to set up the world, characters and major conflicts that will be seen should the spinoff get a series order and end up on the air. And, CBS has actually already given FBI: Most Wanted a series commitment, meaning that a pickup for several episodes is very likely.

As the title of the proposed spinoff implies, FBI: Most Wanted will focus on a specialized team of FBI agents who are tasked with tracking, locating and then bringing in the dangerous criminals of the FBI's most wanted list. According to Deadline, casting is currently underway for the new show and its special episode, which will be written by Wolf and frequent collaborator Rene Balcer, a writer / producer who also worked on Law & Order, and directed by fellow Law & Order contributor Fred Berner. FBI: Most Wanted comes from Dick Wolf's Wolf Films, Universal Television and CBS TV Studios, and Wolf will serve as an executive producer along with Peter Jankowski and Arthur W. Forney.

While Season 1 seems very early to even think of doing a spinoff from a show, we have to keep in mind that this is Dick Wolf that we're talking about here. First off, FBI has already gotten a Season 2 renewal, likely due to the fact that the federal procedural is CBS' number one new series in total viewers and also the number two new series overall this season, with a weekly average of almost 13 million viewers. While those stats are amazing, and any network worth its advertising time would want to get in on a potential franchise created by Dick Wolf, word is that this idea didn't just come up once FBI became a ratings powerhouse.

Apparently, Wolf sold FBI to CBS with the idea that, if successful, it would become the flagship series in a franchise of at least three shows. And, if FBI: Most Wanted does well, there's word that Wolf already has an idea for the third show. Of course, even if you're not a fan of any of the many, mostly long-lasting Law & Order shows that have hit the small screen over the years, you'll probably know that this is what happened with Chicago Fire when it debuted in 2012. A spring episode of that series' first season was used as a backdoor pilot for Chicago P.D., with those two shows and a third spinoff, Chicago Med, going on on have several large and small crossovers every season.

There's sure to be more information coming on FBI: Most Wanted in the next few weeks, so be sure to stay tuned to CinemaBlend for all the latest updates!

Spoilers lie ahead for the series premiere of FBI on CBS.

Dick Wolf is a legendary producer on the small screen thanks to the Law & Order franchise over on NBC, so it came as something of a shock when news broke that Wolf had a new show in the works at CBS. The new show is called FBI, and it stars Missy Peregrym and Zeeko Zaki as FBI agents based out of New York City. The premise of the series makes it sound more or less like a version of a Law & Order series set at the FBI rather than NYPD, so a big question was how FBI would compare to Dick Wolf's other crime dramas. The series premiere has finally aired, and we can finally say how FBI stands up against the various Law & Order shows.

The series premiere kicks off with a bomb explosion in an apartment building that kills a number of innocent people living there, including a 7-year-old boy who only wanted to go inside and play video games. FBI Agents Maggie Bell (Missy Peregrym) and OA Zidan (Zeeko Zaki) arrive on the scene in time to save some lives, but many others were lost, and the death of the little boy after Maggie prevented his mother from going in to try and find him makes the case personal for her. That was only the first of several explosions, and the agents had to work as quickly as possible to find the bombs before the worst could happen again.

With the help of brilliant analyst Kristen Chazal (Ebonee Noel) and her quick ability to learn how to defuse, as well as Special Agent In Charge Dana Mosier (Sela Ward) and Assistant SAC Jubal Valentine (Jeremy Sister), Maggie and OA track the explosions to white nationalist Robert Lawrence (Dallas Roberts), who set the deadly chain of events in motion. They stop the last bomb from going off in time for the next case to break.

The series premiere established FBI as a crime procedural, and although the stakes of the episode were higher than most cases of Law & Order over on NBC, this was the very first episode. The odds are probably pretty good that the FBI agents won't be chasing down domestic terrorists in every single episode, and not just because the show likely doesn't have the budget to show off as much destruction as was in the premiere on a weekly basis. The stakes will undoubtedly remain high; they just won't be domestic terrorism high. All of this said, FBI may not be a procedural exactly as we've come to expect from Dick Wolf crime dramas. This isn't Law & Order: FBI.

First, foremost, and most obvious is the fact that FBI is set at the Federal Bureau of Investigation rather than the NYPD or even the Chicago PD. Maggie has resources that the detectives over on Law & Order: SVU would love to have. The technology is vastly more advanced and readily available for the agents than on any of Dick Wolf's other dramas. They don't have to pull strings or call in favors to gain access to databases only available to federal agencies.

It's obviously too soon to say what exactly FBI will do with its characters, as Maggie is really the only one who got much of a backstory. That said, signs point toward more of a focus on character development than Dick Wolf's Law & Order series generally deliver. Of course, focusing on plot rather than character development isn't exactly a bad thing. The Law & Order franchise has been going for decades now, with SVU potentially breaking a record in the not-too-distant future. Still, an emphasis on character development -- if FBI does indeed pursue such a course -- could set it apart from other procedurals, and not just Law & Order. The mystery of what happened to Maggie's husband needs to be solved, and OA's history already seems intriguing.

FBI also doesn't seem to intend to devote time to the legal aftermath of the agents catching (or not catching) the bad guys. Unless future episodes go in some wildly different directions, we shouldn't expect half of each episode to be devoted to something other than solving cases and chasing down criminals. The details of putting the bad guys behind bars may take place after the credits. The lawyers may stay mostly off screen.

Perhaps most notably, FBI stands apart from Dick Wolf's other crime procedurals due to the simple fact that it airs on CBS. Dick Wolf's series on NBC take place in the same universe. Any and all shows in the Law & Order franchise are also in the same universe as the Chicago franchise currently comprised of Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med. Although perhaps FBI would benefit from a character from a hugely successful TV show helping to launch it (as the next Law & Order series may), airing on CBS means it can establish its own continuity without needing to account for major events that happen on other shows. FBI is a fresh start, and viewers don't need to do any kind of research into other shows to get what's going on.

We'll have to wait and see if FBI will be as much of a hit as Dick Wolf's other TV crime dramas. New episodes air on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on CBS as one of the many new shows in the 2018 fall TV lineup.

NBC recently announced a new spinoff to the Law & Order franchise, Law & Order: Hate Crimes, and while many are excited about more crime drama, some on the internet are asking why? Whether the question is aimed to ask, "Why another Law & Order show" or "Why this subject matter," NBC Entertainment's Lisa Katz has an answer. The network's co-president of scripted programming addressed the questions in the initial announcement for the show, and laid out why NBC is making a Law & Order show about hate crimes:

Lisa Katz mentioned that while it's great that Law & Order: SVU is still chugging along for Season 20, the network is excited to bring a new entry in the Law & Order franchise to viewers. While the subject matter of SVU isn't necessarily played out, Katz also pointed out the timeliness in doing a show like Law & Order: Hate Crimes, also noting the extensive these issues are relevant in today's world. Katz added that hate crime numbers have risen into the double-digits in the United States' ten largest cities and that the topic is one with a lot of stories that are "begging to be explored."

With Law & Order: Hate Crimes exploring those stories, creator Dick Wolf also hopes it will encourage the masses to engage in conversation about these incidents. The creator pointed to the impact he believes shows like Law & Order: SVU have had on society and hopes that Law & Order: Hate Crimes can do the same thing:

Co-creator of Law & Order: Hate Crimes Warren Leight appears to agree with Dick Wolf, and indicated there are far more things to consider in these cases beyond who is right and wrong. Leight, who was also the former showrunner of Law & Order: SVU, specifically credited the investigators of these crimes in New York, a city in which he stated was "complicated and diverse." Leight added that he's excited to collaborate again with Wolf, and help shed some light on the reality of this issue.

Viewers will get their first glimpse of Law & Order: Hate Crimes through Law & Order: SVU at some point in the future. For more on what's coming to television before or after that, be sure to visit our fall premiere guide.

The Law & Order franchise is one of the most successful in TV history thanks to the longevity of the original series, Law & Order: SVU, and Law & Order: Criminal Intent. NBC gave a few other spinoffs a shot, although never with as much success as the first three. Now, a brand new show is in the works that will give Law & Order its sixth spinoff. The new series will be called Law & Order: Hate Crimes.

Unsurprisingly given the success of Dick Wolf with both the Law & Order and Chicago series, NBC went ahead and gave Law & Order: Hate Crimes a series order right off the bat. Audiences are guaranteed 13 episodes of the new series' first season, which indicates that NBC has faith in the new project. Hate Crimes will be set in New York City and based on the real-life Hate Crimes Task Force. The task force works to uphold a zero tolerance policy against all kinds of discrimination. The real-life task force is the second oldest bias-based task force in the United States, so Hate Crimes will undoubtedly have plenty of cases to use as inspiration.

Law & Order: Hate Crimes will be closely connected with Law & Order: SVU, which is set to kick off its twentieth season later this month. The real-life Hate Crimes Task Force works under NYPD's actual Special Victims Unit and with SVU's detectives to tackle hate crimes cases. The odds are pretty good that the Hate Crimes team will work with the folks in SVU, especially since the new show will launch in the second half of SVU Season 20, presumably with a backdoor pilot.

It should be interesting to see how Law & Order: Hate Crimes performs compared to past Law & Order spinoffs. Unlike the flopped Law & Order: LA, this new show will be set in New York, and a connection to SVU couldn't hurt, especially if the backdoor pilot leaves the door open for more crossovers between the characters. SVU hasn't hung on for two decades because fans no longer connect to the format, and it's possible that those fans could sign on for Hate Crimes. Of course, Trial by Jury was set in New York and didn't last more than 13 episodes before being cancelled, so we shouldn't count on Hate Crimes being an automatic hit. If it is a hit, could it be a new home for the SVU detectives if that show goes off the air after breaking a certain record?

Given that Law & Order True Crime has not been renewed for a second season, Hate Crimes could bring the franchise back up to two shows on the air, even if the Law & Order shows do technically exist in the same universe as the Chicago shows and crossed a major character over in the latest TV season.

You will get your first look at Hate Crimes when SVU introduces it on the small screen, presumably in the spring. Law & Order: SVU Season 20 premieres on Thursday, September 27 on NBC with a two-hour episode. For more viewing options now and in the not-too-distant future, check out our fall TV premiere schedule.

Fans of NBC's procedural series Chicago P.D. were thrown for a loop a few months ago when it was announced that actress Sophia Bush would be leaving the show. At the time of the announcement, no real reason was given for her leaving the series, though, producer Dick Wolf did later say it was "her decision." Now that Bush has penned a new pilot deal with 20th Century Fox, the actress has come forward with more details about her departure from Chicago P.D. Apparently, the answer is as simple as "because I wanted to."

Following her new commitment with 20th Century Fox, some people took to spectating that this was the reason for her departure from Chicago P.D. On an Instagram post revealing her new deal (via TVLine), Sophia Bush replied to a comment believing she was likely cut from Chicago P.D. and that she didn't leave of her own volition. Bush wrote back:

That might be one of the more honest and simple answers for why an actor would leave a project. While we don't know why exactly Sophia Bush felt she was done with Chicago P.D., you have to respect her decision. Either way, Bush is moving on to greener pastures thanks to an all-new deal she inked with 20th Century Fox. Apparently after fielding several offers, Bush made a pilot deal with 20th Century Fox in which she will star in a comedy or drama pilot for the studio. She will also develop and executive produce additional projects for the company. It's no doubt an exciting deal for Bush, as she transitions into a more creative role in the business.

Formerly, Sophia Bush played a detective for four seasons on Chicago P.D. as Detective Erin Lindsay. In the conclusion of Season 4, Lindsay was written off the show when she left Chicago to take a job with the FBI. Bush also formerly starred in One Tree Hill as Brooke Davis. She can also be seen in films like John Tucker Must Die, The Narrows, and the recently released Marshall, starring Chadwick Boseman. She can next be seen in the upcoming film Acts of Violence.

We're not quite sure when you can next expect to see Sophia Bush back on television, but we wager it'll be pretty soon thanks to her pilot deal. In the meantime, make sure to stick with CinemaBlend and we'll keep you updated with new information as soon as it becomes available. Keep track of all the shows that are happening right now with our handy fall TV premiere schedule!

When it comes to TV spinoffs, few working producers are more knowledgable than NBC stalwart Dick Wolf, who had last year put into development a new show spinoff within the Law & Order franchise, meant to branch off from the long-running SVU, which itself shows no signs of ending soon. But the project, which would use the FBI as its law enforcement of choice, is currently being put on hold, and according to NBC Entertainment president Jennifer Salke, it's because things are a little too heated surrounding the real life source material. In her words:

Not a lot of facts had come out about the Law & Order: SVU spinoff, beyond its FBI ties and its setting of New York City, and I suppose that's best, considering it means nobody has anything to be disappointed about. Beyond the project's delay, of course. It hasn't been shelved forever, though, since Dick Wolf and his creative team probably put enough effort into it by this point to dissuade a complete scrapping. Jennifer Salke says they will return to the concept in five months or so to talk about picking it back up.

No one should give this reasoning a double take of disbelief, as society's increasing awareness is making it harder for TV networks and studios to take on traditional genres and occupations. Last year's election battle between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton put the FBI in the public spotlight over multiple issues, including Clinton's emails and the allegations over Russian hackers playing a part in the election process. FBI chief James Comey was under investigation himself, thanks to his role in researching data for the other points. It wouldn't be impossible to slap an FBI drama together that purposefully distanced itself from real-life incidents, but authenticity always helps, and if there's nothing wrong with waiting, go for it.

How much faith do Jennifer Salke and Dick Wolf have in the future of their proposed Law & Order FBI series? Enough that they're likely going to plant one big seed for Benson on SVU that could sprout into a new series. Here's how she explained it in her talk with Deadline.

Dick Wolf was also developing another show about the FBI, though not within any of his current franchises, as it would be an unscripted series for USA with actual FBI consultants. (He's also presumably planning three more Chicago dramas and another Cold Justice spinoff.) And while it's a bummer that hit particular project is getting put on the back burner, at least that Menendez Brothers spinoff should have smooth sailing.

Law & Order: SVU airs Wednesday nights at 9 p.m. ET, only on NBC. To see when other shows will be hitting the small screen soon, head to our midseason premiere schedule.

Chicago P.D. is about to make some big changes. One of the stars will be leaving the show and heading over to Chicago Justice. When the new show debuts, the cast will eventually be joined by none other than Detective Antonio Dawson, as actor Jon Seda will be leaving his role on Chicago P.D. behind to join the newest Chicago spinoff.

Jon Seda's Intelligence Unit detective started his work as a recurring guest star on Chicago Fire, and then moved over to Chicago P.D. as one of the leads when the show started in January 2014. The first two seasons of the show were filled with drama for Dawson. His son was kidnapped by a drug lord and finally returned safely after a lengthy chase; the job led to strain in his marriage and his wife eventually divorced him and took the kids to live with her. The character has been at a bit of a standstill for the past season, so it makes a lot of sense to move Dawson along to help start up the new Chicago Justice spinoff. Seda will join cast members Joelle Carter, Carl Weathers and Philip Winchester on the legal drama.

Aside from the helping hand that would be Dawson heading over to Chicago Justice as far as getting viewers to check out the new show, it would also give the character something different to work with. Deadline is reporting that Chicago boss Dick Wolf is the one who wanted Jon Seda and his character to head over to the brand new drama. Apparently, the decision was a creative one that would allow Dawson to have the more stable job that he's been looking for as a father. The character will completely leave his Intelligence work behind, and will now work as an investigator for the District Attorney's office.

The last season of Chicago P.D. saw the character of Antonio Dawson continue to be a good, strong cop, but his personal story had stopped at him being a recently divorced father of two. The Chicago shows thrive not just on workplace drama, but on the personal trials of the characters. As such, Dawson is, clearly, no longer one of the main characters on the show; he simply hasn't been given enough to do lately to classify as a major member of the team anymore. There's no word yet on how or when Dawson will make the full move over to his new gig working for the DA's office, but Chicago Justice is slated to debut at some point during midseason.

So, do you think it's a good idea to move Antonio Dawson over to Chicago Justice? Will you miss the character on Chicago P.D.? Let us know in the comments below.

Producer Dick Wolf has had a hand in creating some of the most successful TV franchises of all time. There has been at least one Law & Order series on the air since 1990, and two more entires are on the way. The newer Chicago franchise is going strong with upcoming spinoff Chicago Justice set to join Fire, P.D., and Med on NBC in 2017. Now, Wolf has another show in the works, and his magic touch may be enough to create another big hit. He is currently working on an FBI series for USA, and if it's anywhere near as successful as Wolf's past ventures, we could well see spinoffs sooner rather than later.

The new series will be an unscripted program produced with the help of the FBI. USA has not yet given an official count of how many installments we should expect for the first season, nor a proper title, but insiders have reported that the network is looking to break the footage into six to eight episodes. Filming is already underway and has been for a while, according to Variety. The show may benefit from going into production before many people have heard of it and learned what to expect.

Dick Wolf will function as an executive producer as well as the creator of the project. He'll be joined as executive producer by Anne Beagan, who currently works in the office of public affairs for the FBI offices in New York. The collaboration should guarantee a show that is both entertaining and mostly accurate to the dealings of the real FBI. It's actually one of two FBI-based projects for Wolf, who is also working on a potential scripted FBI series for NBC.

As a sister network to NBC, USA should be the perfect place for Dick Wolf's new unscripted series. As anybody who has ever channel-surfed will know, USA seems to constantly air marathons of the various Law & Order shows. In fact, more than one hundred hours of Law & Order franchise reruns are broadcast on USA per month. Those repeats have proved popular enough with audiences that the unscripted series could find a comfortable home on the network, which is working with Dick Wolf for the first time on this project.

Dick Wolf is better known for his scripted projects, but he has delved into the unscripted and reality in the past. He produced the TNT unscripted procedural Cold Justice for three seasons on TNT, which in turned spawned a short-lived spinoff called Cold Justice: Sex Crimes. The in-development Law & Order: You the Jury is planning on taking real court cases and giving TV audiences the chance to vote on how effective witnesses and lawyers are. Could be interesting.

Over on the scripted side, though, NBC has ordered a first season of the unscripted Law & Order spinoff Law & Order: True Crime, which will initially focus on the case of the notorious Menendez brothers' murder trial. True Crime has not yet started production, and NBC hopes to get it on the air in the second quarter of 2017. Given that filming has already begun for the USA project, we may get to see the unscripted FBI series before we see the next Law & Order spinoff.

Either way, it may be a while before we get to see any new series from Dick Wolf. Luckily for fans of what he has to offer, both the Law & Order and Chicago franchises will be back on the airwaves in the near future. Check out our TV premiere schedule to see when those and other shows are officially back this fall.