Could New CBS Series ‘Cupertino’ Connect With ‘Elsbeth’? Mike Colter and Carrie Preston Talk Crossover Potential
CBS is dropping a new legal drama into its fall lineup, and the cast is already hinting Cupertino could share the universe with hit spinoff Elsbeth.
Will There Be a Cupertino and Elsbeth Crossover?
A crossover between Cupertino and Elsbeth is possible, according to the stars of both shows. Nothing is confirmed, but Cupertino’s Mike Colter and Rachel Keller and Elsbeth’s Carrie Preston have all left the door open.
“Sure, there could be,” Colter told Us at CBS Fest 2026, noting that executive producers Robert and Michelle King also helmed Elsbeth, The Good Wife and The Good Fight, the latter two of which featured Colter as Chicago drug dealer Lemond Bishop. “I played Lemond Bishop, and he’s still alive the last time I checked,” Colter added. Keller agreed, telling Us, “I think it’s possible.” Preston, who plays the title character on Elsbeth, said, “Cupertino is a legal show. Elsbeth is a lawyer. I mean, she’s a detective on our show, but first and foremost, she’s a lawyer. So I could definitely see how she might wanna slide on over to the West Coast and save the day over there somehow.”
What You Need to Know About ‘Cupertino’ Before the Premiere
Cupertino is a new CBS legal drama starring Colter and Keller as lawyers who launch their own firm after being wrongfully terminated from a tech start-up. It premieres October 8 on CBS.
In the premiere episode, “Michael & Olivia,” Colter’s Michael Price and Keller’s Olivia Siffre “join forces to form their own law firm to represent those taken advantage of by the tech elite and fight back in a high-stakes battle against the Goliaths of Silicon Valley,” per the official logline. Michael’s former assistant, Christy Palladino (played by Ella Stiller), taps her close-knit family connections to help the firm get off the ground.
Who Stars in the ‘Cupertino’ Cast?
Colter and Keller lead the cast as lawyers Michael Price and Olivia Siffre, respectively. Stiller plays Christy Palladino, Michael’s former assistant, whose family connections help the new firm launch.
How Is ‘Elsbeth’ Connected to ‘Cupertino’?
Both shows share the same creative team. Robert and Michelle King created Elsbeth, Cupertino, The Good Wife and The Good Fight, and Elsbeth is a spinoff of those earlier CBS legal dramas.
Elsbeth landed in the top 25 in Nielsen’s 35-day multiplatform viewing data for the full 2025-2026 broadcast season, and it has already pulled The Good Wife alums back into the fold, including Christian Borle as Carter Schmidt in season 2 and Sarah Steele as Marissa Gold in season 3. Preston even floated Colter appearing in a fresh role. “Well, I don’t know what Mike Colter’s character is [on Cupertino], but I do know that our show has broken the mold, and we’re bringing actors back from The Good Wife and The Good Fight in different roles,” Preston told Us. “So maybe Mike could come on as a totally different role.”
When does Cupertino premiere on CBS?
Cupertino premieres Thursday, October 8, on CBS at 10 p.m. ET, with streaming on Paramount+. The series joins a fall slate that also includes Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage, Fire Country, and Boston Blue.
