‘We Haven’t Done A Pilot’: Nick Gehlfuss and Michael Michele Join ‘CIA’ Cast With Tom Ellis
Find out where the cast and crew stand on ‘CIA’ and how long you’ll have to wait
The world of television’s FBI is still expanding. Since the announcement of the new spinoff series, CIA, there has been a bit of mystery surrounding who would be joining the cast, but a major update recently revealed who will be sharing the adventures alongside Tom Ellis in the new drama series. Find out who you can expect to appear on your screen and when CIA is set to air!
Who will star in ‘CIA’?
The series was initially announced to be in the works back in January 2025 and it was officially ordered to series in April. At the same time, Tom Ellis was cast in the lead role of CIA Agent Hart Hoxton. You might recognize Ellis from his roles in shows such as Lucifer (2016-2021), Tell Me Lies (2024) and most recently, The Thursday Murder Club (2025).
Joining Ellis on this new venture are Nick Gehlfuss and Michael Michele. Gehlfuss will take on the part of Ellis’ by-the-books, seasoned partner, who believes in following the rules. It’s not certain what Michele’s exact role will be in the show, but it will be some kind of supervisory role in the CIA. No name for either character has been revealed.
This won’t be Gehlfuss’ first time in the Dick Wolf universe, either, as he previously starred in Chicago Med as Dr. Will Halstead. The actor has been featured in the Chicago-based series since 2015 and even ventured into Chicago Fire and Chicago P.D. You can also catch Gehlfuss in other projects, including The Newsroom (2013), Shameless (2014), Love & Mercy (2014) and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (2015).
Michele has previously acted in ER (199-2002), How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days (2003) and Dynasty (2019-2022). She has had minor roles in shows such as Law & Order: SVU (2007), House (2007), Gossip Girl (2011) and Blue Bloods (2016).
As for the rest of the cast, that is a mystery for now.
When will ‘CIA’ premiere?
Originally, the new spinoff series was set to air in the fall as a part of the 2025-2026 CBS season lineup, but things have changed since then. It now seems that the premiere will most likely air during the midseason in early 2026.
The cast and crew have not yet begun any filming for the series, but production is expected to commence sometime this month. Ellis confirmed to Collider in August that filming will begin in September since CIA will be a midseason show.
“We haven’t done a pilot, which is a really strange experience for me,” he commented. “That normally is your time for finding your character, finding out what the show is, experimenting with tone and all those different things. We haven’t got there yet.”
He continued, “But the script is in a really great place… Initially, we were going to be a spin-out series from FBI. The more it’s gone on, I think we’re actually gaining our own identity.”
The show will be executive produced by Dick Wolf, Warren Leight, Eriq LaSalle, Paul Cabbad, Nicole Perlman, David Chasteen and Peter Jankowski, with Leight also serving as the showrunner.
Be sure to keep up to date with changes for CIA and tune in only on CBS.
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