The summer months are always difficult, as a lot of our favorite TV crime dramas head off the air for a while. The good news is plenty of CBS crime dramas will be back in the fall. CBS has set the fall schedule, and while there are some changes, there are plenty of returning shows to look forward to.
However, there is bad news with this. Some of the crime dramas aren’t coming back at all. They’ve been canceled, and we’re certainly sad to see them go. In fact, there’s one in particular that ended in the worst way that makes us need more of the series.
Just a note that this is about returning crime dramas. There is a new crime drama that we’re excited about watching in fall 2025!
Crime dramas returning: NCIS
In some exciting news, NCIS season 23 will be back in the fall and it is moving to a much better timeslot. The flagship JAG spinoff will return to Tuesday nights at 8 p.m. ET/PT, as we get a full NCIS Night on Tuesdays.
Season 23 is sure to pick up with Parker wanting revenge. While he and his father had some difficult moments, there was still a lot of love there, and walking in to find his dad murdered was going to set him on edge. It doesn’t help that he found out that his long-time nemesis blamed him for her son’s death, which led to her decision to kill his dad in the first place.
The question is whether Parker will turn to the team for help. And we still need some answers about who Lily is.
Crime dramas canceled: FBI: International
The worst series finale this year has to go to FBI: International. After a season that mostly focused on Wes Mitchell and forgot about the rest of the Fly Team, the season 4 finale took Wes on his own to Japan to work a case. The Fly Team was a bunch of sitting ducks for the majority of the episode, and then when it finally came to getting some answers as to whether Vo or Raines would be promoted, the show left us without closure.
Sadly, this is a series that was abruptly canceled this year. Annoying, the series did have time to rework the finale but clearly chose not to do it. It’s not being shopped around, so there is no chance of it coming back to our screens, either.
To make matters worse, FBI: Most Wanted also won't return as that series was also canceled.
Crime dramas returning: FBI
There is one show within the FBI universe returning, though. It’s all about the flagship series, and that’s a good thing considering the way the FBI season 7 finale ended. We need to know what’s going to happen to Isobel. Even if she survives, there will then be questions about who will take over while she recovers. After all, she can’t just walk back onto the job!
This series is on the move, though. It’s changing nights for the first time since its premiere, moving to Mondays at 9 p.m. ET/PT. It will be followed by the new FBI series, CIA, starring Tom Ellis.
Crime dramas canceled: SWAT
Another drama not coming back to our screens is SWAT. This series was canceled during season 6, uncanceled quickly, renewed for a seventh and final season, and the surprisingly renewed for season 8. How did it not end up with a ninth season? I guess it was a cat that ran out of lives, but only sort of, as a spinoff is in the works, but isn’t attached to a network yet.
SWAT’s series finale did work as a series ender, at least. We got some hope for the future, with a look at how the days still continue even when the cameras stop rolling. Sadly, we didn’t get to see the Stris wedding we had all been waiting for and no original cast members could make it back, but at least we got to see the team remain as a family unit at the end.
Crime dramas returning: Tracker
Sundays have transformed with the series Tracker. Justin Hartley plays Colter Shaw, a man who wants to save people, collect reward money, and live off the grid. He also wants to figure out what happened to his dad, and the second season finale brought him a little bit closer to that, but we still have a lot of questions.
At least we’ll get some answers in the fall. CBS confirmed that Tracker will be back, and it will keep its normal Sunday night timeslot straight after 60 Minutes. In the fall, that time can change now and then due to the football, but it’s a show that keeps the viewers coming, so it’s worth the risk.
Crime dramas canceled: The Equalizer
While Tracker has succeeded, The Equalizer hasn’t. Despite negotiations going on to bring a sixth and final season, CBS opted to cancel the Queen Latifah series. On top of that, we learned that the spinoff series wouldn’t happen, either. So, the world is going to be without someone making sure everyone gets justice.
That’s not all the bad news, either. Netflix is losing the first three seasons of The Equalizer in June. The fourth and fifth seasons won’t be added. In a bit of good news, season 4 is on Tubi, but you’ll need to turn to Paramount+ for season 5.
Crime dramas returning: Matlock
Okay, this is both a crime and a legal drama. After all, Matty is a lawyer, but she’s also breaking the law through a bit of fraud — not her name, but everything else she has created to become Madeline Matlock. So, it’s a series that we’re looking forward to seeing, especially since the first season ended with such a major cliffhanger.
Alfie’s potential father turned up at Matty’s door, and she welcomed him in to hear him out. While that happened, Olympia learned that Julian did get rid of the study that helped Welbrexa keep opioids on the streets, and she may be willing to side with him despite knowing it was wrong. Fortunately, the series will return on Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT in the fall.
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