The wait is finally over: CBS has released the first look at FBI spinoff CIA and stars Tom Ellis and Nick Gehlfuss make the perfect pair — even though they are nothing alike.
“Have you ever told a lie?” a voice over asks Ellis’ CIA Agent Colin Glass in the official trailer for the new show released on Monday, December 15.
Colin quips, “Are you serious? Isn’t lying part of the job description of the CIA?”
As the trailer continues, it becomes clear that Colin has no issue blurring the line between doing what’s right and doing what needs to be done to get results. However, his new partner, FBI’s Bill Goodman (Gehlfuss) is a little more straight-laced.
“He can be a little by the book,” Colin says while introducing Bill, revealing, “He read me the riot act for fibbing to a suspect in a safe house.”
As the special agents get to know each other, they find themselves in very stressful and risky situations. (Think undercover ops, raids, being shot at and car explosions.)
Through all the drama, Colin keeps his wit, while Bill appears to slowly come around to his partner’s way of thinking.
“So that’s in your company’s playbook?” Bill asks as the pair drive away from danger. “Yeah, because it’s very effective,” Colin playfully responds.
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Elsewhere in the video, Bill insinuates that “lying sure seems to come easy” for the CIA operative, hinting that it’s a big part of who he is.
Despite not seeing eye-to-eye on everything, Bill shows signs that he does have Colin’s back in the field.
“I’m leading them away. You’re not much use to me alive but you’re really no use to me dead,” Bill says at one point, to which Colin jokes, “I never knew you cared.”
At the end of the trailer, the duo appear to find common ground. “You guys work in the open, we work in the shadows,” Colin explains.
Bill then points out, “We both do it to keep our country safe.”
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The teaser ends with Colin saying, “Nice work partner,” cementing their odd-couple style friendship that is sure to pull in fans weekly.
The CIA trailer drop comes eight months after CBS announced that Dick Wolf was creating a spinoff to his hit series FBI, which follows the Federal Bureau of Investigation and their New York office.
CIA will center on “two unlikely partners,” one a “fast-talking, rule breaking loose cannon CIA case officer,” played by Ellis, and a “by-the-book, seasoned and smart FBI agent who believes in the rule of law,” played by Gehlfuss, the official logline reads.
“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,” CBS said in an April press release.
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While CIA was originally slated for a fall 2025 premiere, it was pushed to midseason after Warren Leight replaced David Hudgins as showrunner. (Hudgins previously worked on FBI: Most Wanted, which ended in May after six seasons.)
The future of CIA was once again called into question in November when Michael Michele, who was one of the series’ leads, exited the show before its premiere. That same month, executive producer Eriq La Salle, who directed the CIA pilot, announced his departure. Leight also stepped away from the show last month as showrunner.
Even with all the changes, CIA is scheduled to premiere in February after the return of season 8 of FBI, which will be coming back from its winter hiatus.
In addition to Ellis and Gehlfus — who is best known for playing Dr. Will Halstead on Chicago Med — CIA stars Necar Zadegan and Natalee Linez.
CIA premieres on CBS Monday, February 23, at 10:00 p.m. ET.