Gary Sinise to lead the team in new 'Criminal Minds' spin-off

CBS has tapped the former "CSI: NY" star for its new spin-off, which will be introduced in an episode of "Criminal Minds" to be shot in mid-February.

After a first attempt in 2011 with Forrest Whitaker in the title role, CBS is planning another spin-off on its hit detective series, this time with Gary Sinise toplining. Propelled to fame in the early 1990s in "Of Mice and Men" and "Forrest Gump," the actor starred in nine seasons of "CSI: NY" as MacTaylor, the head of a forensic science team in Manhattan.

In the proposed "Criminal Minds" spin-off, Sinise will play the 20-year FBI veteran Jack Garrett, who leads a team of FBI agents tasked with helping US citizens in trouble abroad. So far, he is the only actor cast in the proposed spin-off.

"Criminal Minds" writer and producer Erica Messer will head up the project, which will be introduced in the 19th episode of the original show's current season, its tenth.

CBS has a reputation for expanding its hit series with multiple spin-offs, some of which have been more successful than others. "NCIS: New Orleans," the second spin-off on the naval crime investigation series, was launched last fall and quickly became the second most watched show in the US. On March 4, the "CSI" family will welcome its newest member, "CSI: Cyber," headlined by Patricia Arquette.

In 2011, CBS tried to leverage the success of "Criminal Minds" to launch a spin-off subtitled "Suspect Behavior." Despite the presence on the cast of Forest Whitaker and Janeane Garofalo, the show was canceled after the first season of 13 episodes.