Who is replacing jesse on fbi most wanted

(Image credit: NBC)

FBI: Most Wanted delivered a massive twist in Season 3 when Jess LaCroix was killed off to accommodate actor Julian McMahon’s desire to move on, and the CBS show is bringing in Law & Order: Organized Crime’s Dylan McDermott to fill the void. Although the FBIs and Law & Order series technically share the same TV universe with all the other Dick Wolf TV shows, McDermott’s new Most Wanted character definitely isn’t the villainous Richard Wheatley from Organized Crime, and the first look photos and footage make that quite clear.

Dylan McDermott was announced as Julian McMahon’s replacement shortly after news broke about Jess’ upcoming departure, even before Richard Wheatley’s time on Organized Crime had ended. Few details were available about the FBI agent he’d play on FBI: Most Wanted, but the first looks at him on the show included some information on the character as well. The actor will play Supervisory Special Agent Remy Scott! Check out the first batch of official photos:

Meet @DylanMcDermott as the new head of the FBI’s Fugitive Task Force — Supervisory Special Agent Remy Scott on April 12. #FBIMostWanted pic.twitter.com/YYut7ZizC9March 28, 2022

The first photo seems like a pretty standard stoic shot of a TV FBI agent on the job, while the second appears to be a behind-the-scenes pic of Dylan McDermott with other members of the cast playing the Task Force agents (although with Roxy Sternberg missing as Barnes). Remy Scott is clearly on a case in the next picture, with what looks like a bloody door and some kind of evidence bagged up. He’s cracking a smile in the last photo on the bottom right, so at least fans can say that he’s not going to be brooding for his first full episode on April 12!

Dylan McDermott posted a photo of his own on Twitter, and it could suggest a darker side to Remy’s story if fans are meant to read anything into the gun on the table. Take a look at what the actor shared:

In two weeks…@MostWantedCBS pic.twitter.com/NVuECywGEQMarch 29, 2022

The photos are enough to prove that Agent Remy Scott will be a very different character from Richard Wheatley despite Dylan McDermott playing both. The FBIs and L&O shows are connected thanks to a crossover between Chicago P.D. and FBI back in 2020, although McDermott won’t be the first or only star to play multiple characters in the franchise. He won’t even be the only series regular, as FBI’s Jeremy Sisto appeared on Law & Order back in its original run!

Still, photos can only show so much, so it’s lucky that a promo has already released to preview what’s on the way in Dylan McDermott’s debut episode as Remy Scott:

It’s not quite clear what the case will be that brings Remy and the team onto the scene in this episode, as dead bodies and violent crimes aren’t exactly new to FBI: Most Wanted. Still, it looks like the show isn’t turning Remy Scott into Jess LaCroix 2.0, for better or worse. Showrunner David Hudgins revealed how Dylan McDermott will “reinvigorate” the Task Force, and his arrival will come after two episodes of the team operating without a leader.

FBI: Most Wanted will introduce Dylan McDermott as SSA Remy Scott in the April 12 episode on CBS, airing at 10 p.m. ET following FBI: International at 9 p.m. and FBI at 8 p.m. If you want to relive Jess’ days on Most Wanted, you can find the full series so far streaming with a Paramount+ subscription.

FBI: Most Wanted delivered the biggest twist in show history when Jess LaCroix was killed off for actor Julian McMahon’s departure, and the Task Force is facing a whole new era with a new team leader on the way. Although details are few and far between about the newcomer, he’ll be played by Law & Order: Organized Crime actor Dylan McDermott in a very different role from his villainous Richard Wheatley on OC. Most Wanted showrunner David Hudgins spoke with CinemaBlend about the arrival of McDermott’s character and what it means for the Task Force as a whole on the hit CBS series.

Dylan McDermott had already started work on FBI: Most Wanted before Julian McMahon’s final installment aired, but his first episode won’t debut until April 12, with two episodes airing without an official team leader. When I spoke with showrunner David Hudgins about the show moving on from Jess’ death (and he explained why they decided to kill the character off), he previewed what the new character will bring to the team dynamic:

In thinking about bringing in the new character to the team, one of the exciting things for the writers was, 'Well, this is an opportunity to reinvigorate, rejigger, and bring in someone different from Jess with a different style, a different personality, a different way of managing and running the team.' And so we took that as an opportunity in constructing Dylan's character. I don't want to give too much away about that character now, but he'll be coming in. There's a couple episodes where the team is dealing with everything, but in the ether of those episodes is, ‘Who's it going to be? Who's it going to be?’ And the Fugitive Task Force is a very elite squad within the FBI, so it's a search that they take very seriously. They vet everybody and they want to make sure they get the right person. And we end up with Dylan.

The new character isn’t going to just be Jess LaCroix 2.0, and he’ll come in a couple of episodes after the Task Force has had to process the death of the former leader. Characters like Jen Landon’s Sarah and Terry O’Quinn’s Byron won’t be gone right away, and fans will presumably see the rest of the team finding ways to move forward in their jobs.

They proved earlier in the season that they have leadership qualities of their own, but never had to test their mettle in that way when Jess was definitely not coming back. Dylan McDermott’s character will evidently be vetted as the “right person,” but how will the other characters receive this newcomer in their midst?

Fans will have to wait until April to find out for sure, but Dylan McDermott is already hyping his switch from Law & Order: Organized Crime to FBI: Most Wanted. Richard Wheatley over on NBC’s OC was a murderer and criminal, and presumed dead after the end of the latest full arc. In contrast, the Most Wanted character will be an agent introduced into an elite FBI squad. David Hudgins weighed in on the process of casting McDermott:

We certainly had an idea of who we wanted the character to be in very broad strokes. And as we started in the casting process, and Dylan's name came up, we thought, 'Wow, that would be perfect. That would be great for exactly what we have in mind for this character.' And then, you know, inevitably, once you cast an actor in a part, you start tailoring it a little bit towards them. Or sometimes away from them, it depends. But we had an idea for the character. And when I heard Dylan, I was like, 'Wow, that would be amazing. Let's do that. Let's get Dylan.'

Even though Richard Wheatley was about as far from a character worthy of joining a Fugitive Task Force for the FBI as could be, Dylan McDermott has plenty of experience playing a variety of roles. Fans won’t get to see him in action as part of the FBI corner of the nine-show Dick Wolf TV universe until April 12, but it’s clear that there’s a lot to look forward to despite the tragedy of Jess’ death.

New episodes of FBI: Most Wanted (opens in new tab) air on Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET on CBS, to close out the night of FBI action following FBI: International at 9 p.m. ET. Showrunner David Hudgins has already revealed that Jess’ death will affect the other shows as well, with Alana De La Garza’s Isobel – who is usually to be found on the original FBI – making an appearance. You can also revisit Jess’ days as the team leader with the full series of Most Wanted so far streaming with a Paramount+ subscription.

Change is coming again for the Fugitive Task Force. After bidding farewell to an injured but healing Special Agent Kenny Crosby (Kellan Lutz) at the start of Season 3, they say goodbye to unflappable team leader Jess LaCroix (Julian McMahon) in the Tuesday, March 8 episode.

McMahon, who’s fronted the first FBI spinoff since its 2020 premiere, has said he spent months talking with producers to craft “a seamless and productive way” for the character to exit the story. (The veteran Australian actor himself hopes to explore “additional creative pursuits” after wrapping his longest TV stint since Nip/Tuck’s six-season run ended in 2010.)

Mark Schäfer/CBS

In the emotional hour, Jess’ final target is a domestic abuser turned killer who won’t let go of the woman who’s left him. “Our fugitive goes on a murderous spree to find her,” teases FBI: Most Wanted exec producer David Hudgins. The case, he adds, resonates personally with Jess, who had to save his girlfriend Sarah (Jen Landon) and his teen daughter Tali (YaYa Gosselin) from Sarah’s armed ex-husband in last season’s finale.

The producer won’t spoil what prompts Jess’ departure, but he does hint that the agent has been adjusting to Tali being away at a Canadian boarding school. “He misses her presence around the house, but he and Sarah are taking advantage of the situation by connecting more with each other, even taking time for date nights and romance,” Hudgins says. “They are in a good place and decide to take a vacation together—the first one Jess has taken since Sarah met him.”