CBS is once again looking to spin off one of its major crime drama franchises: EW has learned that Criminal Minds will have a new planted spinoff episode later this season.
The as-yet-untitled project focuses on a “division of the FBI that helps American citizens who find themselves in trouble abroad.” We’re told the show is likely to have an entirely different cast than the original series, which is on its 10th year, but sources say that factor has yet to be determined.
Adding a more international angle to the series makes sense in light of the recent success NBC has had with global thriller The Blacklist, and Showtime with its acclaimed overseas-set current fourth season of Homeland.
CBS will shoot the spin-off pilot in February and will air the episode in the Criminal Minds slot later this season. Criminal Minds showrunner Erica Messer will write the pilot, with Messer, Mark Gordon, and Nick Pepper serving as executive producers.
Unlike the sprawling CSI and NCIS franchises, the FBI-based Minds has proved trickier to expand. In 2011, CBS launched another spinoff attempt, Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior, which had a single short-lived season.
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