Actress Jennifer Esposito will star on CBS's continually high-rated 'NCIS'
Esposito will appear on the season premiere of the hit CBS show, which will return this September. 'NCIS' has also been the inspiration for such spin-offs as 'NCIS: New Orleans' and 'NCIS: Los Angeles.'
Jennifer Esposito appears on 'Blue Bloods.'
John P. Filo/CBS
Actress Jennifer Esposito will be starring on the massively successful CBS show 鈥淣CIS鈥� and will appear in the season premiere this September.
Ms. Esposito, who has previously starred on the CBS program 鈥淏lue Bloods鈥� as well as appearing on the Showtime program, 鈥淭he Affair,鈥� will portray an agent named Alex Quinn who has become a teacher at the Law Enforcement Training Center.
The season premiere, which will debut Esposito鈥檚 character and will air on Sept. 20, will kick off the program鈥檚 fourteenth season.
It was also previously announced that Wilmer Valderrama of 鈥淭hat 鈥�70s Show鈥� will be joining 鈥淣CIS鈥� as a new character.
鈥淣CIS鈥� continues to be a ratings powerhouse for network CBS, finishing the 2015-2016 TV season as the third-most-watched TV program in total viewers, after NBC鈥檚 鈥淪unday Night Football鈥� and fellow CBS program 鈥淭he Big Bang Theory.鈥� 鈥淣CIS鈥� has also been the inspiration for multiple spin-offs, 鈥淣CIS: Los Angeles鈥� and 鈥淣CIS: New Orleans,鈥� the latter of which also does particularly well in the ratings (鈥淥rleans鈥� came in sixth for total viewers for the 2015-2016 TV season).
鈥淣CIS鈥� did not receive good reviews from critics when it debuted in 2003. Yet clearly the appeal is there for many, many viewers, who keep the show near the top of the broadcast TV rankings year after year.聽
writes of the program, 鈥淭o dismiss 鈥楴CIS鈥� 鈥� as critics and the Hollywood establishment have done for years 鈥� is to also dismiss its preoccupations, and those have been the preoccupations of much of the country over the same time span: Intractable, brutal foreign wars, national security, the war on terror and the grinding emotional and financial cost of these wars on soldiers and families.鈥�
And writes, 鈥淐BS launched 鈥楴CIS鈥� in September 2003 with a simple formula: By the end of each episode, an investigation would be solved, and its diverse cast would provide light-hearted humor along the way 鈥� A fan of AMC鈥檚 鈥楤reaking Bad鈥� has to watch dozens of episodes to finally figure out what happens to Walter White, but an 鈥楴CIS鈥� fan can dip in and out of the show at will. It鈥檚 a convenience that appeals to many fans 鈥� perfect to watch while on the treadmill or while folding laundry.鈥�