CBS has been responsible for some of the biggest TV cancellations in 2025 so far, from S.W.A.T.’s third axing (resulting in its upcoming Hondo-led spinoff) to The Equalizer to a pair of already established FBI spinoffs and then some. By and large, FBI: International co-creator Derek Haas has kept mum about the network drama’s fate, as he’s been busy putting the first season of Jensen Ackles’ new drama thriller Countdown together.
Now, Haas has addressed the unfortunate circumstances that left FBI:International fans without a properly conclusive ending for Wes, and told TVLine how he felt after hearing the cancellation news, saying:
I was so sad to hear about the cancellation, because I loved Jesse Soffer as Wes on the show and really thought it was a dynamic cast addition in Season 4.
Dick Wolf and served as the showrunner for its first two seasons, while also co-showrunning his other Wolf-based series, Haas stepped down from those duties on both shows in 2023 in order to embark on creating new projects such as the aforementioned Countdown.
CBS’s Fall TV lineup, and she pointed the finger of blame at financial issues, saying:
We have to be fiscally responsible, and ultimately those deals and the shows just weren’t penciling out for us for an economic perspective.
Since then, I don’t believe any follow-up explanations have been offered that shine a brighter light on what elements of the show became too financially irresponsible. While it’s fairly common for network execs to tighten their budgetary belts around the 7-season mark, when contractual rasies become more of a factor, FBI: International would only have been heading into its fifth season, led by two actors who’d only joined the year prior.
Whatever the reasoning may be, fans’ best bet for now might be to start hoping that the upcoming CIA spinoff will feature some International vets as guest stars, or that it will offer other kinds of character updates when it arrives.