The latest streaming stats are in, and it looks like Paramount+ subscribers are pressing pause on their latest NCIS rewatch. The long-running military police procedural has shockingly dropped out of the No. 2 spot in the streamer’s Top 10 TV Shows list for the second time this week.
Per FlixPatrol, NCIS has just dropped to No. 3 on Paramount+’s Top 10 TV Shows list in the United States. The last time this happened was on June 30, when SpongeBob SquarePants briefly overtook the No. 2 spot from NCIS. While not as major of a drop as some might have expected, NCIS doesn’t often waver from the No. 2 spot, having consistently held it for a while now, with the same going for SpongeBob at No. 3. However, both shows have lost a spot due to the renewed interest in the Showtime drama series The Chi, which has jumped up a massive five spots to No. 2. All eyes will now be on whether The Chi has what it takes to also knock the longtime No. 1 spot holder, Criminal Minds, down a spot.
Created by Donald P. Bellisario, the NCIS franchise follows special agents tasked with investigating military-related crimes. The main cast of the mothership was introduced in April 2003 via a two-part backdoor pilot on the legal drama series JAG before appearing in NCIS, which launched on CBS the following September. Mark Harmon was the lead star of NCIS for its first 18 seasons, portraying the fan-favorite character NCIS Supervisory Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs, who led the NCIS unit based at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, D.C.
Harmon left NCIS at the start of Season 19, with Gary Cole coming in as his replacement, NCIS Supervisory Special Agent Alden Parker. As is common practice for a long-running procedural drama series, NCIS has had several cast member changes over its 22 seasons. Its current cast, as of Season 22, includes Cole, Wilmer Valderrama as Nick Torres, Katrina Law as Jessica Knight, Brian Dietzen as Dr. Jimmy Palmer, Diona Reasonover as Kasie Hines, Sean Murray as Timothy McGee, and Rocky Carroll as Leon Vance.
The NCISverse Remains Alive and Well
The success of NCIS has so far led to the development of six spinoff series — Los Angeles in 2009, New Orleans in 2014, Hawai’i in 2021, Sydney in 2023, Origins in 2024, and Tony & Ziva in 2025. NCIS: New Orleans was the first spinoff to go off the air, concluding in May 2021 after seven seasons. NCIS: L.A. followed two years later, wrapping up a 14-season run in May 2023. Hawai’i was not afforded the longevity of its sister shows, with its run being cut short after three seasons in 2024.
NCIS, NCIS: Sydney, and NCIS: Origins have all been renewed for the 2025-26 television season. CBS has confirmed a fall premiere for the new seasons of NCIS and Origins, which will air back-to-back on Thursdays. Sydney, which is based and filmed in Australia, does not yet have a return window. Then there is Tony & Ziva, the highly anticipated NCIS spinoff that reunites Michael Weatherly’s Anthony DiNozzo and Cote de Pablo’s Ziva David for the first time in over a decade. The series is scheduled to premiere on Paramount+ on Sept. 4.
