UK TV fans have been waiting months for NCIS season 23 to make its presence felt on Disney Plus. It’s been so long, in fact, that the US broadcast classic is preparing to return for its 24th season on CBS Stateside, so it goes without saying that viewers in the UK and Ireland are ready for new adventures from Sean Murray’s Timothy McGee, Gary Cole’s Alden Parker, and Katrina Law’s Jessica Knight. And yet, the waiting game continues.
NCIS is one of the most recognizable TV franchises. The fact that it has run for 23+ seasons is both a sign of that and a testament to its longevity – especially considering that we’re living in an era where shows don’t run for that many seasons anymore. But this procedural series – which debuted on CBS back in 2003 – has stood the test of time, kicking off a franchise that consists of multiple spinoffs and building a devoted fanbase worldwide.
And that, again, brings us back to the UK release date issue: After all this time, there is still none.
NCIS season 23 still doesn’t have a UK release date ahead of season 24’s US launch
It’s hard to be an NCIS fan hearing all about the show’s upcoming 24th season on CBS when you haven’t even seen the 23rd season. That’s how fans in the UK are feeling after months have gone by without a single update as to when the show will be available in England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland.
The legendary series streams on Disney Plus in the UK, which inherited the show after it had been moved around broadcasters (as many US TV shows have done over the years). Like fellow big time American series The Walking Dead, it became a fixture of the FOX TV channel before it found a new permanent home on the Disney Plus streaming service. The question is how permanent a home is it?
Unfortunately, the streamer has confirmed that it currently doesn’t have the streaming rights to NCIS season 23. Responding to a fan’s query on social media, the Disney Plus Help account made this announcement and wasn’t able to offer any update as to when – or if – they would get them in the future, simply saying:
“Thank you for reaching out! We currently don’t have the streaming rights to season 23 of NCIS on Disney+ in the UK. Although streaming rights vary from content to content and by region/country, we’ll be sure to share your interest. Let us know if you have any other questions.”
Ever since Disney Plus UK acquired NCIS in the 2021 – 2022 TV season, it has released new episodes in either January or spring time. Needless to say, both of those release windows have come and gone (along with summer), with the streamer showing absolutely no signs of getting the most recent season anytime soon. Again, this is a season of TV that started airing on CBS in October 2025; it’s new 24th season is set to air on CBS in October this year – and we still don’t have any updates about its status on Disney Plus. And, with that, you can probably rule out season 24 having a UK release date anytime soon as well.
This, of course, begs the question of whether it will get the season at some point? As NCIS is not an ABC show, Disney don’t own the exclusive rights to it automatically (instead, they inherited it from the aforementioned FOX channel that closed down shortly after the streamer’s UK launch), Since it’s a CBS show, it’s technically owned by Paramount, meaning that Paramount Plus should essentially be its streaming home.
In the UK,Paramount Plus houses seasons 1 – 20 of NCIS. It’s likely that Disney still holds the exclusivity window for seasons 21 and 22 for a bit longer. However, if Disney Plus’ deal to stream new seasons has expired, one would think that it won’t be long until those two seasons end up on Paramount Plus instead. And if that proves to be the case, it’s quite possible that seasons 23 and 24 could end up there, too.
So, all in all, NCIS‘ UK release date – along with its UK fate in general – remains a little unclear. What isn’t unclear, however, is that the franchise remains extremely popular with worldwide audiences, so it probably won’t be too long before your favorite characters are back on our UK TV screens.
