The youngest member of the NCIS TV franchises is coming to an end. It has been announced that the current seventh season of NCIS: New Orleans, will be its lasts. The series finale is scheduled for May 16, 2021, which will be the procedural's 155th episode.
NCIS: New Orleans stars and is executive produced by Scott Bakula. The series revolves around the local field office that investigates criminal cases involving military personnel in New Orleans. Bakula had this to say about the show ending:
"Sad to end our love affair with this phenomenal city but so grateful for all the friends we made along the way. I will miss the music. Big thank you to CBS for seven years."
There wasn't an exact reason given for ending NCIS: New Orleans but showrunner Chris Silber is already working on NCIS: Hawaii at the network and it's reportedly very close to a series pickup. Hawaii would be the fourth series in the franchise with the parent series, NCIS, awaiting word on a season 19 renewal. According to "The Hollywood Reporter", NCIS could be near its end because its star, Mark Harmon, currently has a deal that ends this season. CBS is keen on ending the show if Harmon leaves so a deal is being worked out for Harmon to return for a handful of season 19 episodes should the show be renewed. The other spinoff, NCIS: Los Angeles, is awaiting word on a season 13 renewal which reportedly looks good at the network. Harmon executive produces NCIS and NCIS: New Orleans but doesn't serve in that capacity on NCIS: Los Angeles. It should also be noted that while NCIS: New Orleans was an admirable performer, the show was never able to match the ratings strength and lucrative off-network deals of the other two NCIS series because of the fundamental changes in the TV business over the past decade. Syndication deals for shows like these have simply changed, especially as streaming has become more of a presence. Showrunner Chirs Silber and executive producer Jan Nash also gave two cents about seeing NCIS: New Orleans end:
"It has been our sincere pleasure and honor to work on this show and with this incredible cast and crew for over 150 episodes. As disappointed as we are to see NOLA end, we couldn’t be prouder of the work we’ve done and are grateful to the spectacular and resilient Crescent City that embraced us for seven wonderful years."
NCIS: Orleans has been quite the utility player for CBS. The series has had various timeslots but it currently aired during the competitive time period against Sunday Night Football. Despite those challenges, the show is currently in the top 20 broadcast dramas in terms of viewership, averaging 7.06 million viewers and it has 23 million unique viewers across various platforms. In addition to Bakula, the series also stars Vanessa Ferlito, Necar Zadegan, Charles Michael Davis, Rob Kerkovich, Daryl “Chill” Mitchell, Chelsea Field, and CCH Pounder.
Are YOU sad to see NCIS: New Orleans go?