The NCIS franchise has never been shy about expanding its map. From D.C. to Los Angeles, Hawaii, and beyond, CBS has built one of TV's most enduring procedural universes. But NCIS: New York has something its predecessors couldn't manufacture: a city that does some of the storytelling itself.
That starts with CBS's bold decision to actually film the new series in New York City. This isn't a case of slapping a few skyline shots between scenes shot elsewhere. Production has been rolling across the five boroughs, with LL Cool J, Scott Caan, Jacqueline Byers, and Shane Harper spotted filming in Brooklyn and Central Park. The choice gives the spinoff an immediate visual identity before viewers even meet the new characters.
Location, Location, Location
TV has a long history of asking audiences to accept one city as another, and the NCIS franchise is no exception. NCIS: Los Angeles was built around L.A. production and the Paramount lot, while NCIS: Origins used Southern California locations. NCIS: New York is taking a different route—producing in the city it calls home.
That distinction matters. A case in Brooklyn feels different from one in Manhattan, and a chase through Central Park needs no dialogue to explain why it matters. The danger with any spinoff is that familiarity breeds sameness, but NCIS: New York has the chance to feel distinct because its surroundings are distinct.
CBS's Commitment to Authenticity
Filming in New York is a significant commitment from CBS. Location production isn't the easy, interchangeable option for a network procedural, especially when a series could recreate streets and offices on a cheaper lot. Yet CBS is putting NCIS: New York on the ground, starting in July with shoots in Brooklyn and Central Park. New York's production infrastructure and tax incentives help offset costs, but building a series around the city still requires a dedication to location work that studio-based shows don't.
The network has placed this show in the middle of an all-NCIS Tuesday: the original at 8 p.m., New York at 9, and Origins at 10. The business logic is clear—give franchise fans a new hour without leaving the universe—but that also puts pressure on the spinoff to justify its existence. If NCIS: New York were just another version of the same show with a different sign on the door, viewers would rightly wonder why they needed it. The New York production gives CBS a much better answer.
LL Cool J's Return Adds Weight
The other major piece is Sam Hanna. LL Cool J isn't playing a brand-new character; he spent 14 seasons as a defining face of NCIS: Los Angeles and has appeared elsewhere in the franchise. Now he's returning to his hometown to lead a new team alongside Scott Caan's Nick Schaeffer. Hanna already has history with viewers, but putting him back in New York gives that history somewhere meaningful to go. He's not just on another assignment—he's coming home, and the series follows him there.
Jennifer Beals, Byers, Harper, and Devin Druid round out the field team, offering fresh personalities around the returning lead. The result could be exactly what the franchise needs: a new branch with a reason to exist. New York provides that reason, giving the series a visual language that can't be copied by changing an establishing shot. CBS's willingness to film there gives that choice weight, while Hanna's return provides the connection longtime viewers crave.
When NCIS: New York premieres on October 6, 2026, the question won't be whether the city can make this one feel like its own thing—it already does. For more on how CBS is shaking up its lineup, check out this look at another franchise shake-up or when shows lose their way.
