While CBS’ line of procedural spinoffs isn’t as vast as it once was, NCIS: Los Angeles will head into its eighth season later this year not as popular as it once was, but still more popular than a lot of other primetime series. But a major change is happening before then, as showrunner Shane Brennan is stepping down from his position, with fellow TV vet R. Scott Gemmill being ushered in to fill the role.
Shane Brennan has been the showrunner for all seven seasons of NCIS: Los Angeles, which he created during a stint as the showrunner for NCIS proper. (He created the G. Allen character for a different project and then looped him in when the spinoff concept was formed.) Thankfully, he’s isn’t leaving on bad terms, and will indeed remain an executive producer on the show moving forward. The reasoning behind his job change is due to him signing a new two-year overall deal with CBS for his Shane Brennan Productions, and his focus will be developing new projects.
No one should worry about NCIS: L.A. being in bad hands, either, and not just because it’s in no one’s best interests to tank this drama. R. Scott Gemmill has been an executive producer on the show since its series premiere in 2009, and the second episode was the first of many that he wrote. His small screen career started to blow up in the late 1990s when he was a writer/producer on Jag, and he went on to do similar duties on popular shows such as ER, The Unit, Hawaii Five-0 and more. It’s not like procedurals face the potential changes in format that serialized shows do on occasion, so we’d probably be getting the same kind of NCIS: L.A. no matter who stepped in. Still, better to have a pro than a novice.
Last year was a pretty notable one for NCIS: Los Angeles, as the Monday night schedule switched to focus completely on dramas for the first time in over 60 years. As well, the show finally revealed what the G. in G. Callen’s name is. (It’s Grisha.) Will Gemmill bring a situation as equally memorable to Season 8? We’re hoping.
For those wondering what Shane Brennan will be up to, he’s still in development on the small screen version of The Expendables franchise. And according to Deadline, he’s also working with CBS TV Studios on an adaptation of the upcoming sci-fi series from Ian McDonald that starts with Luna: New Moon, which centers on a group of colonists on the moon.
NCIS: Los Angeles will likely debut on CBS this September. But before that, check out everything coming this summer with our TV premiere schedule.
