‘CIA’ EP David Hudgins Teases ‘FBI’ Offshoot and Crossover Potential (Exclusive)

The FBI franchise is expanding with a new series, and executive producer and showrunner David Hudgins shared some details with PopCulture.com.

CBS ordered CIA, starring Lucifer’s Tom Ellis, to series for the 2025-26 season.

Hudgins, who previously served as showrunner on the now-canceled FBI: Most Wanted, confirmed to PopCulture that the show was “originally conceived as a backdoor pilot in FBI.” The episode was set to air during the seventh season of FBI, but due to casting issues, it kept getting pushed back, and then it was too late. Despite there no longer being a backdoor pilot and the canceled spinoffs, the new series was still on track to earn a straight-to-series order at CBS.

“Now the viewers will meet these characters in the series premiere,” Hudgins explained. “The relationship between the two leads will be a huge part of the show.” Ellis has been cast as Hart Hoxton, a fast-talking, rule-breaking, loose-cannon CIA case officer who gets assigned to work out of the CIA’s New York Station “with a by-the-book, seasoned, and smart FBI agent who believes in the rule of the law.”

“When this odd couple are assigned to work out of CIA’s New York Station, they must learn to work together to investigate cases and criminals posing threats on U.S. soil, finding that their differences may actually be their strength,” reads the official logline.

Since CIA is a universe expansion of FBI and was going to start as a backdoor pilot, could fans expect a crossover between the two? “While they exist in the same universe, CIA is its own show,” Hudgins said. “But as I’ve learned from years in the Wolf camp, never say never.”

While a crossover between FBI and CIA is not off the table, don’t expect the Fugitive Task Force or Fly Team to show up. When asked if there was a chance characters from FBI: Most Wanted and FBI: International could show up, all Hudgins had to say was, “No.” Of course, fans can always hope they appear on FBI, which is guaranteed to go through at least the 2026-27 season, which is better than nothing.

As of now, a premiere date for CIA has not been revealed, nor has any other casting news come out, but more information should be released in the coming months, and the excitement is continuing to build. Hudgins admitted that exploring the “‘odd couple’ relationship between the two leads – one being a CIA agent played by Tom Ellis and the other an FBI agent – will be a big part of the show” and there will be a lot to look forward to when CIA premieres this fall, airing on Mondays at 10 p.m. ET on CBS, streaming the next day on Paramount+.