NCIS: Hawai'i Season 3: Cast, Latest News, Release Date, and Everything to Know

Aloha NCIS: Hawai'i! The fourth series in the NCIS franchise — led by Vanessa Lachey — is entering Season 3 on CBS, and we're more than ready to be transported back to the sun-kissed beaches of Hawai'i. 

Created by Christopher Silber, Jan Nash, and Matt Bosack, NCIS: Hawai'i is the first series in the franchise to feature a female lead in Jane Tennant (Lachey), who is the first woman to serve as Special Agent-in-Charge at the NCIS: Hawai'i Field Office. The police procedural, which welcomes NCIS: Los Angeles alum LL Cool J's Sam Hanna into the fray on a more permanent basis (more on that later), follows Tennant as she leads a team of special agents through investigations of high-stakes military crimes in the Aloha State.

In normal times, network mainstays like NCIS: Hawai'i would have already kicked off their seasons. This year has proven to be anything but ordinary, thanks to the writers and actors strikes seeking fair compensation. We're keeping you up to date on all the news as it relates to NCIS: Hawai'i, from the Season 3 release date to how the addition of LL Cool J came to be, and much more.

NCIS: Hawai'i Season 3 latest news

Season 3 will start production on Monday, Dec. 4 with a traditional Hawaiian blessing on Oahu, CBS announced. LL Cool J will also be in attendance, and will guest star in Season 3 as Sam Hanna, his character from NCIS: Los Angeles.  

NCIS: Hawai'i Season 3 release date

NCIS: Hawai'i will return for Season 3 on Monday, Feb. 12 at 10/9c. It will follow the Season 21 premiere of NCIS. 

Is LL Cool J joining NCIS: Hawai'i Season 3?

Yes! The actor made a surprise cameo as Sam Hanna in the Season 2 finale, resurfacing just one day after wrapping up a 14-season run on NCIS: Los Angeles. The rapper joins NCIS: Hawai'i as a recurring guest star for Season 3.

In the NCIS: Hawai'i sophomore finale, Jane and Kate Whistler (Tori Anderson) were in an intense gunfight in Caracas, Venezuela after discovering adversary Adrian Creel (Jay Ali), long thought to be dead following a car bomb set off by Tennant and her CIA mentor Maggie Shaw (Julie White), was actually alive and looking for revenge. Things weren't looking good for Tennant and Whistler until a sniper shot struck one of Adrian's minions. The person behind the shot was none other than Sam Hanna, who made his way over from Morocco where he was last seen on NCIS: Los Angeles. Sam promised Tennant she always has "people looking out for her," telling her, "If you need anything else, you got my number."

"All of us at NCIS: Hawai'i have been huge fans of LL Cool J for years and couldn't be more thrilled or honored to be adding his spectacular talent to our ohana for Season 3," said executive producers Bosack, Nash, and Silber in a joint statement in May 2023. Lachey referenced the three-show NCIS crossover in January 2023 — the first time she and LL Cool J shared the screen — as a precursor to him coming aboard for Season 3. "We have had so much fun spreading the aloha to NCIS and NCIS: LA with the triple crossover. Now, we have the amazing opportunity to bring Sam Hanna to Hawai'i to help the island solve some cases and maybe have a few laughs in the process," the actress and executive producer said. "Welcome to the ohana, Todd [Smith, LL Cool J's real name]! It's going to be a fun ride!"

What will NCIS: Hawai'i Season 3 be about?

Nothing has been revealed about what the next season of NCIS: Hawai'i will entail, but we're guessing there will be major consequences for Tennant after what transpired in the Season 2 finale. Though she and her mentor Maggie were successful in taking Adrian Creel off the board, it came with a lot of strings. Tennant's original plan was to arrest him, but that soon went out the window when Maggie shot and killed Adrian, explaining that she could not leave him alive since she had a lot to lose if she did. With Maggie on the lam and uncertainty surrounding how this will affect Tennant professionally, Season 3 is shaping up to be a very interesting one.

Lachey's co-star Noah Mills, who plays her right-hand man Jesse Boone, hinted as much. He teased "major changes coming" for the team in Season 3, perhaps a nod to the added presence of Sam Hanna. "It will be a different dynamic, I'll put it that way, in the beginning of Season 3," the actor told Entertainment Tonight in May 2023, noting "[Tennant's] past and some of her emotional decisions do put other people in jeopardy and do pull us out of our job description. It'll be interesting to see, legally, what comes down on her from the higher-ups of the NCIS."

Who will be in NCIS: Hawai'i Season 3?

No announcements have been made about cast departures or additions, aside from LL Cool J joining the party. So for now, we expect the main ensemble to remain intact. There is always a chance we could see the returns of supporting characters like Enver Gjokaj's Captain Joe Milius, whose chemistry with Tennant left a lot of us wanting more, and Henry Ian Cusick's Supervisory Agent John Swift. But we'll have to wait until there's official word.

Here are the expected Season 3 cast members:

• Vanessa Lachey as Jane Tennant
• Alex Tarrant as Kai Holman
• Noah Mills as Jesse Boone 
• Yasmine Al-Bustami as Lucy Tara
• Jason Antoon as Ernie Malik
• Tori Anderson as Kathrine Marie "Kate" Whistler
• Kian Talan as Alex Tennant
• LL Cool J as Sam Hanna

Shows like NCIS: Hawai'i

Looking for more shows like NCIS: Hawai'i? Check out our list of military crime dramas to binge-watch.   

Where can I watch NCIS: Hawai'i?

The first two seasons of NCIS: Hawai'i are available to stream on Paramount+.