CBS is bringing the FBI block back to primetime in the 2024 TV schedule, and FBI: Most Wanted isn't holding back on getting off to a harrowing start with the Season 6 premiere on October 15. Showrunner David Hudgins spoke with CinemaBlend not only about the fugitive that the team will be chasing this week, but also to give some relationship status updates that fans have undoubtedly been waiting for since Season 5 ended on a wedding.
The sixth season premiere is called "Aquarium Drinker," the action will begin with the brutal murder of a detective, and the episode isn't exactly going to get less gruesome as the hour continues. When I spoke with David Hudgins about Most Wanted's return to CBS, he teased what to expect from the very bad guy of the premiere:
Here's the thing. Season 6 starts with a terrifying fugitive, which we did on purpose. We wanted to have a really formidable guy and have it escalate to really big stakes.
As anybody who tuned in to any or all of the first five seasons of FBI: Most Wanted (available streaming with a Peacock subscription now) knows, this show is never short on formidable bad guys. The stakes will be especially high for this premiere, though, and not just because of the fugitive who Hudgins described as "terrifying."
With the return of Susan Misner as Abby, Most Wanted will also be able to uncover some new layers of her relationship with Remy. The showrunner shared what their romance looks like after the time jump of about three months:
The reality is Remy and Abby are still together, and they're doing the long distance thing, and it's working. But the story for them this year is, will Remy be able to get past the long distance thing? I think he wants to. I think he loves her. I think she loves him. For Remy, it's a question of, 'Can I put somebody else above my work, or at least on the same pedestal as my work?' So they've got a nice arc this season where they're going to try and figure it out together.
Remy has been prioritizing work over his personal life for much of his time on the show ever since Dylan McDermott joined FBI: Most Wanted to replace Julian McMahon. Whether Abby will be the woman to realign his priorities remains to be seen. As for Hana, David Hudgins confirmed that "Hana's still with Ethan," and debunked my suspicion from late Season 5 that Michael Raymond-James' character was too good to be true.
"Too good" is hardly how I would have described any of Barnes' personal stories from Season 5 due to the split with her wife and conflict over whether the kids would go with Charlotte or stay with Barnes. The showrunner previewed the new status quo for Barnes as well as where there's room for growth:
Barnes is the one who's now divorced. Her kids are in D.C. We've got a story with Barnes this year, kind of trying to figure out what her identity is. 'Who am I?' She's not a wife anymore. She's still a mom, but she's single, and instead of just wallowing in her pity, she's going to do something about it and get out there. So she's going to meet some people, and we're going to have some fun stories where we really take Barnes places where she hasn't been before.
Washington, D.C. and New York City aren't exactly on opposite sides of the country, but that's certainly a distance in the context of Barnes' job! Fortunately for Ray and Cora, their marriage will be going a lot stronger than Barnes and Charlotte last season. After the Season 5 finale delivered their wedding, David Hudgins teased what to expect from Season 6:
And then Ray and Cora, newly married, are together. Their story this year is really a parenting Caleb story. Ray's not his real dad. He's his stepdad. We are going to meet Caleb's real dad, and it causes some friction in the relationship.
Actor Edwin Hodge spoke highly of Ray stepping up for Caleb as well as FBI: Most Wanted introducing Steven Williams as Ray's dad, so this sounds like a meaty storyline for the actor. As for Nina, her relationship with Scola was going strong after some conflict last season, and there will be some new complications this time around. Hudgins shared:
And then Nina and Scola, they're doing their thing. They're not married. We've done stories with Nina in the past about her relationship with Scola. Her story this year is about her own family. We're going to meet her father early on, he comes up to visit from Houston with Nina's sister, and he doesn't get along with Scola. Scola is kind of a blue blood. This guy is a fairly simple man from Texas. It's just a big fun story, and it leads to learning a lot about Nina's past and a very emotional story with her sister.
It should be interesting to see if any of Scola's issues over on FBI will affect Nina on Most Wanted at all; John Boyd's comments about FBI Season 7 suggest a struggle on the way for Scola after losing Tiff as his partner. All in all, it sounds like David Hudgins and Co. have their bases covered for telling character-heavy stories along with the usual cases of the week with scary bad guys.
Tune in to CBS at 10 p.m. ET on Tuesday, October 15 for the Season 6 premiere of FBI: Most Wanted, following FBI: International with new leading man Jesse Lee Soffer at 9 p.m. ET and FBI at 8 p.m. ET.
