My mission is to show the public who the FBI is and what the FBI does through my books, blog, and podcast case reviews. However, what most people know about the FBI comes from books, TV, and movies.
The entertainment industry loves featuring FBI agents as its favorite characters and action heroes. Most people have never met a real FBI agent. So, these scripted TV shows are their reference points. One of the first FBI shows on TV was The F.B.I., which premiered in 1965, running for nine seasons with 234 episodes. FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover was a consultant for the series and had script approval power. Nowadays, when portraying the Bureau in a TV show or movie, consultation with the FBI Director and his staff is no longer a requirement for producers and filmmakers. Although, for the most part, modern-day shows continue to illuminate the FBI brand by reflecting a flattering image of the FBI and the work FBI employees do.
Here’s a chart of the top scripted FBI TV shows and limited series (updated quarterly). As a retired FBI agent myself, I consider my chart to be the ultimate list of the best FBI TV shows. My criteria for what makes a show an FBI TV show are if at least one of the main characters is a clearly defined FBI agent or employee and if there are scenes solely focused on what the FBI character does.
What are your favorites? Mine are Mindhunter, The Americans, and Duster. *You can find an alphabetized list at the end of this post.
Is there a show you believe I should have included on this FBI TV show list?
To date, I’ve published over 75 reviews of TV shows and movies where the FBI is involved, debunking clichés by highlighting teachable moments about FBI policies, procedures, and programs. Read all of my reviews here. Reviews for those shows in the above Top FBI TV show chart, specifically focused on the FBI, are also listed alphabetically below.
My reviews are not critiques of the plots, characters, or productions. They are instead opportunities to learn more about the FBI by highlighting specific topics showcasing who the FBI is and what the FBI does. I understand it is impossible to create an accurate portrayal of an FBI investigation if the investigation needs to be solved within less than an hour. Corners must be cut, and creative license used to move the story forward. I get it. I really do. I write my reviews to show you what would happen in real life.
Each month, I wonder if I’ll eventually deplete my supply of material, only to learn of more shows under production with a focus on FBI characters and plots. Blog security. Love it.
Let me know if you’re aware of other new FBI-related shows in development. Keep ’em coming! I’m wondering if I need to start thinking about FBI Myths and Misconceptions – Volume 2. Haha!
You can also check out my chart of the top movies featuring FBI characters and plots.
*The following is a list of the TV shows in the chart, the series’ premise, and, if I reviewed it for teachable moments, the topic and a link to the webpage. a link to the webpage. Most show descriptions are from IMDb.
(The) Americans (2013–2018) – At the height of the Cold War, married KGB spies pose as Americans in Washington, D.C. while their neighbor, an FBI agent working in counterintelligence, begins to suspect their true identity. (Review coming soon)
(The) Beast in Me (2025) – Author Aggie Wiggs, grieving the loss of her son, finds new purpose unraveling the mystery behind neighbor Nile Jarvis’ vanished wife and his suspicious dealings when she learns the FBI is investigating him for money laundering. Review topic – FBI Employee Assistance Program (EAP).
(The) Blacklist (2013–2023) – A new FBI profiler, Elizabeth Keen, has her entire life uprooted when a mysterious criminal, Raymond Reddington, who has eluded capture for decades, turns himself in and insists on speaking only to her.
Blindspot (2015–2020) – A mysterious tattooed woman is found naked in Times Square. She has no recollection of her past or identity, but the FBI discovers her tattoos contain clues to crimes they must solve.
Bones (2005-2017) – FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth teams up with the Jeffersonian’s top anthropologist, Dr. Temperance “Bones” Brennan, to investigate cases where all that’s left of the victims are their bones. Review topic – FBI Laboratory Division and its Forensic Anthropology Program.
The Beauty (2026) – When international supermodels begin dying in gruesome and mysterious ways, two FBI agents are sent to Paris, Venice, Rome, and New York to uncover the truth behind these deaths and end up discovering a conspiracy that threatens the future of humanity. Review topic – FBI’s work overseas.
C-16: FBI (1997-1998) – The series revolves around Criminal Division Squad 16, part of the Los Angeles field office of the FBI. Review topic – Major Crimes Squad.
Clarice (2021) – A deep dive into the untold personal story of FBI Agent Clarice Starling as she returns to the field in 1993, one year after the events of The Silence of the Lambs. Review topic – BAU profilers and ViCAP.
Class of ’09 (2023) – A class of FBI agents grapple with immense changes as artificial intelligence alters the U.S. criminal justice system. Review topic – FBI Academy.
(The) Comey Rule (2020) – The story of two powerful men whose strikingly different ethics and loyalties put them on a collision course. Review topic – FBI integrity.
Criminal Minds (2005 – ) – The FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit in Quantico helps police solve violent serial crimes using profiling. Team members analyze evidence and psychology to catch unknown subjects, but their demanding work affects personal lives.
Duster (2025) – Set in Phoenix in the 1970s, the first black female FBI agent takes on a crime syndicate by teaming up with a gutsy getaway driver. Review topic – Source development or human intelligence (HUMINT).
The Endgame (2022) – In this heist drama, criminal mastermind Elena Federova squares off against principled FBI agent Val Turner. Review topic – FBI senior executives in the field.
(The) Enemy Within (2019) – FBI agent Will Keaton enlists the most notorious traitor in American history to help catch a spy.
(The) F.B.I. (1965–1974) – Crime drama following the fictional agents and cases of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (aka the FBI). Most episodes are based on actual FBI investigations with all names changed to protect the innocent.
FBI (CBS) (2018 -) – Follows the inner workings of the New York Field Office of the FBI as they fight to keep New York City and the country safe. Review topic – Fugitive Task Force and multiple FBI programs.
Fringe (2008 -2013) – FBI Special Agent Olivia Dunham is assigned to the bureau’s Fringe Division, in which she investigates unexplained phenomena. As the team investigates cases of science gone awry, they discover connections to their own past and to a parallel universe. Review topic – Creative compromises.
Furious (2026) – FBI agent Alice Black is on the hunt for a mysterious and calculating female serial killer. Both walk their own paths toward justice, and as their lives intertwine, the line between right and wrong begins to blur. (Review coming soon)
(The) Hunting Party (2025 – ) – A small team of investigators is assembled to track down and capture the most dangerous killers ever seen, all of whom have just escaped from The Pit, a top-secret underground prison silo in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Review topic – Federal prisoner escape procedures.
I Will Find You (2026) – Wrongfully imprisoned for murdering his own son, a father escapes on a desperate rescue mission after learning the boy may still be alive. The FBI joins the hunt to capture and return him to prison. Review topic – Does the FBI help hunt for escaped prisoners?
The Looming Tower (2018) – A look at how the rivalry between the CIA and FBI inadvertently set the stage for the tragedy of 9/11 and the war in Afghanistan.
Mancuso, FBI (1989–1990) – An FBI agent fights for justice while having to deal with elements in his own government who sometimes oppose him.
Manhunt: Unabomber (2017) – A fictionalized account of how an FBI profiler helped track down the terrorist Ted Kaczynski, the Unabomber.
Mindhunter (2017-2019) – In the late 1970s, two FBI agents broaden the realm of criminal science by investigating the psychology behind murder and end up getting too close to real-life monsters. Review topic – FBI profiler John Douglas.
(The) Night Agent (2023) – While monitoring an emergency line, an FBI agent answers a call that plunges him into a deadly conspiracy involving a mole at the White House. Review topic – Witness protection and witness retaliation.
Numb3rs (2005-2010) – An FBI agent recruits his brother, a mathematics genius, to help solve crimes. Review topic – SOG surveillance teams, shooting reviews, and OPR.
Quantico (2015–2018) – A look at the lives of young FBI recruits training at the Quantico base in Virginia when one of them is suspected of being a sleeper terrorist. Review topic – FBI Academy.
(The) Rookie: Feds (2022-2023) – Special Agent Simone Clark, the oldest rookie in the FBI Academy, is assigned to support the LA field office. Review topic – FBI requirements and creative compromises.
Sleeper Cell (2005–2006) – An American undercover FBI agent is assigned to infiltrate a terrorist sleeper cell that is planning an attack in Los Angeles.
Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye (2002–2005) – A deaf woman who works for the FBI uses her ability to read lips to solve tough crimes that her hearing colleagues and listening devices can’t crack.
Task (2025) – In the working-class suburbs of Philadelphia, an FBI agent heads a task force to put an end to a string of violent robberies led by an unsuspected family man. Review topic – FBI Safe Streets Task Force initiative.
Twin Peaks (1990) – Homecoming Queen Laura Palmer is found dead, washed up on a riverbank, and wrapped in plastic sheeting. FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper is called in to investigate the murder of this young woman in the small, northwestern town of Twin Peaks. Review topic – When does the FBI investigate murder?
Waco (2018) – The FBI and ATF seize religious leader David Koresh’s Branch Davidian compound near Waco, Texas, in the spring of 1993.
White Collar (2009-2014) – A white-collar criminal agrees to help the FBI catch other white-collar criminals using his expertise as an art and securities thief, counterfeiter, and con artist. Review topic – When does the FBI investigate fraud?
Without a Trace (2002–2009) – Follows the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Missing Persons Unit (MPU), a team of specially trained agents in New York City tasked with finding missing people.
(The) X-Files (1993 -2018) – FBI Special Agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully investigate unsolved unexplained cases known as X-Files.
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