CBS Officially Breaks Up NCIS Franchise's Best Couple

Oct 11, 2026 - 01:05

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CBS Officially Breaks Up NCIS Franchise's Best Couple

Published Oct 10, 2026, 5:15 PM EDT

Cher Thompson is a Senior Staff Writer at Screen Rant, where she covers everything from explosive reality TV moments to cast interviews about the twists and turns of scripted dramas. With a background in creative writing, marketing, and teaching, Cher knows how to spot both the storytelling genius and the guilty pleasures in pop culture. Her work blends wit with insight, making readers feel like they’re chatting with a friend who just happens to know way too much about TV.

NCIS has long been able to explore relationships, both personal and professional, based on longevity and mutual respect, but with its most recent return, the franchise is officially breaking up one of their best couples. Over the course of the last two decades, NCIS and its various spinoffs have been building relationships between its characters, with agents working together and finding solace within each other throughout the most difficult moments of their lives. While some characters venture forth into deep personal relationships, even the most professional of connections have been moving as the NCIS franchise has continued through the years.

With some of the most notable romances in NCIS being revisited in recent years, there's been more of a focus on the interpersonal connections with characters like the flagship series' Tony DiNozzo (Michael Weatherly) and Ziva David (Cote de Pablo). Working relationships, however, are sometimes more important than interpersonal ones, especially considering how heavily they're featured throughout the franchise's shows. Few partnerships have been more integral to a series than the one between NCIS: Los Angeles' Sam Hanna (LL Cool J) and G. Callen (Chris O'Donnell), which was a defining element of both characters throughout the series' iconic 14-season run.

With Sam taking on a new locale with a new team in NCIS: New York, CBS is shaking things up for the long-time Los Angeles agent in more ways than one. Despite the pair having disbanded when NCIS: Los Angeles came to a close in 2022, Sam and Callen's split is one of the most divisive in franchise history.

NCIS: New York Officially Replaces G Callen As Sam's Partner

The premiere episode of NCIS: New York establishes some major changes to Sam's life, one of which changes his working relationship with Callen forever. After years of taking special assignments and running covert operations, Sam returns to his hometown of New York City, getting involved in the investigation surrounding the death of his friend in the Navy reserves. When Sam is paired with Nick Schaffer (Scott Caan) and introduced to the larger team in the New York NCIS office, things click into place quickly, unlocking the fact that this is Sam's next chapter. Throughout the episode, the pair's chemistry blossoms.

While Sam's working relationship with Nick is already fairly different from the connection he shared with Callen, the fact that Sam is working in a partnership at all is intriguing. With a different set of circumstances, a completely different dynamic, and a premise that allows Sam to show personal stake in what's happening with the investigation he's working through with Nick, NCIS: New York creates a compelling case for allowing their strong personalities to blend. Without a shared history to fall back on, Sam and Nick's working relationship immediately feels different from his with Callen, but those differences are positive.

What Happened To Callen After NCIS: LA Ended

While NCIS: New York may be a new beginning for Sam, NCIS: Los Angeles' end didn't leave him on bad terms with Callen in the slightest. The show's finale deliberately infused their relationship with a sense of adventure, pushing Callen into a new chapter of his life as he finally married Anna Kolcheck (Bar Paly) in an impromptu ceremony. With the wedding segueing into some international travel that reconnected many of the NCIS: Los Angeles characters, the finale was meant to feel like an ending and a beginning all at once. After the finale, however, the details about Callen's life get a little fuzzier.

After NCIS: Los Angeles ended in 2022, LL Cool J went on to make a few appearances across the NCIS franchise as Sam, including on the flagship series and NCIS: Hawai'i during its run. While he didn't mention Callen during his appearances, it seems likely that it would've come up if anything catastrophic had happened to the character, which means NCIS fans can rest assured that Callen is alive and well. While there aren't any plans out in the open about O'Donnell returning to the franchise yet, it's possible that he could reprise his role as Callen on NCIS: New York in the future.