Scripted series · CBS
Without a Trace
Who's in it
Cast
The principal ensemble across the run of the series.
Anthony LaPaglia
Jack Malone
160 eps
Poppy Montgomery
Samantha Spade
160 eps
Marianne Jean-Baptiste
Vivian Johnson
160 eps
Enrique Murciano
Danny Taylor
160 eps
Roselyn Sánchez
Elena Delgado
90 eps
Eric Close
Martin Fitzgerald
160 eps
Anna Belknap
Paige Hobson
2 eps
Charles S. Dutton
Chet Collins
2 eps
Lynn Whitfield
Paula Van Doren
6 eps
Molly Price
Emily Reynolds
2 eps
Charles Mesure
Emil Dornvald
2 eps
Jsu Garcia
Carlos Aguilar
4 eps
Haley Ramm
Jennifer Long
6 eps
Rosemary Forsyth
Martha Scoggins
2 eps
Jason George
Adisa Teno
2 eps
Geoff Meed
John Burns
2 eps
Tom Irwin
Barry Mashburn
2 eps
Leyna Nguyen
Reporter
2 eps
Steven Weber
Clark Medina
4 eps
Alexandra Krosney
Becca Howard
2 eps
James Marsters
Grant Mars
3 eps
Michelle Krusiec
Ariel
2 eps
Henry Thomas
Franklin Romar
2 eps
Mark Pellegrino
Sadik Marku
2 eps
Danielle Bisutti
Terri Long
3 eps
Sarah Joy Brown
Katherine Michaels
2 eps
Linda Hunt
Clare Bryson
3 eps
Joseph C. Phillips
Marcus Johnson
4 eps
Nick Wechsler
Joe Giusti
3 eps
Susan Misner
Helen
2 eps
Amy Sloan
Jill Haber
2 eps
Josh Hopkins
Eric Keller
2 eps
Michael Cudlitz
Freddy Katan
2 eps
Jared Hillman
Andy Deaver
2 eps
Harris Laskawy
Judge Adderley
2 eps
Barbara Tarbuck
Georgia
2 eps
Marsha Dietlein
Sydney Harrison
2 eps
Michelle Anne Johnson
Fran
2 eps
Stephanie Venditto
Lisa Harris
7 eps
Conor O'Farrell
Graham Spaulding
3 eps
The Nutevio profile
TV DNA
How Without a Trace actually feels to watch, measured on the traits our editors track across every series.
Signature profile
Without a Trace reads strongest on Tension, Bingeability and Character Depth.
The sustained pressure the series keeps you under.
How hard it is to stop after one episode.
How fully written and psychologically layered the ensemble is.
How often an episode ends on a hook you can't ignore.
How much the series is designed to affect you.
Visual ambition — scale, craft and set-piece filmmaking.
How much each hour depends on the one before it.
The scale, internal logic and texture of the world.
How often the series is genuinely funny, by design.
The story
What it's about
The series follows the ventures of a Missing Persons Unit of the FBI in New York City.
The run
Seasons
7 seasons · 160 episodes.
- Poster unavailableSpecials
Season 0 · Unannounced
Specials
2 episodes
Season 1 · Complete
Season 1
200223 episodes
7.9IMDbBest episode · S01E13 Hang On to Me
Season 2 · Complete
Season 2
200324 episodes
7.1IMDbBest episode · S02E13 Life Rules
Season 3 · Complete
Season 3
200423 episodes
7.9IMDbBest episode · S03E20 The Bogie Man
Season 4 · Complete
Season 4
200524 episodes
7.3IMDbBest episode · S04E02 Safe
Season 5 · Complete
Season 5
200624 episodes
7.8IMDbBest episode · S05E05 The Damage Done
Season 6 · Complete
Season 6
200718 episodes
8.4IMDbBest episode · S06E07 Absalom
Season 7 · Complete
Season 7
200824 episodes
7.9IMDbBest episode · S07E02 22 x 42
Where the series peaks
Best Episodes
The hours that define the show, ranked by audience response and editorial signal.
S01E01
Pilot
Maggie Cartwright appears to have simply walked away from every thing in her life, having left everything of hers behind. Later a ransom note appears on her mother's email list demanding a million dollars for her safe return.
- Directed by David Nutter
- Written by Hank Steinberg
S01E05
Suspect
After telling his mother, he wanted to leave school for good, seventeen year old Andy Deaver vanishes from his private boarding school, last seen by it's headmaster, Graham Spaulding.
- Directed by Peter Markle
- Written by Allison Abner
S02E01
The Bus
A school bus is abducted by kidnappers who demand more and more for ransom.
- Directed by Paul Holahan
- Written by Hank Steinberg
S01E16
Clare de Lune
A girl vanishes from a psychiatric hospital, and it appears she may have escaped with a staff member. Then the team learns of a troubling incident from her past that may hold the key to her disappearance.
- Directed by Mel Damski
- Written by Allison Abner
S02E19
Doppelgänger
The team investigates a missing woman's boyfriend, with whom she lived. However, they determine that he has a twin brother and quickly turn their attention to him.
- Directed by Andy Wolk
S01E03
He Saw, She Saw
Four different witnesses claim that a woman was abducted from a mall parking lot while her husband was standing just yards away with his back turned to her.
- Directed by Rachel Talalay
- Written by Jan Nash
Recently aired
Latest Episodes
S07E21
Labyrinths
- Directed by Jonathan Kaplan
- Written by Diego Gutierrez, Gwendolyn M. Parker
S07E20
Hard Landing
Behind the series
Created by
Showrunners, creators, executive producers and the writers who set the voice of the series.
Hank Steinberg
Showrunner
- Photo unavailable
Steven Kane
Writer
Bruce Rasmussen
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Diego Gutierrez
Writer
Anthony LaPaglia
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Jennifer Levin
Writer
Maria Maggenti
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Simon Mirren
Writer
- Photo unavailable
David H. Goodman
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Allison Abner
Writer
John Bellucci
Writer
David Amann
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Jan Nash
Writer
Stacy Rukeyser
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Jacob Epstein
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Erika Johnson
Writer
Ed Redlich
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Francisco Castro
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Gwendolyn M. Parker
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Greg Walker
Writer
Scott Williams
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Harry Litman
Writer
The craft
Key Crew
Directing, writing, production, camera, music and editing.
Executive production
- Timothy BusfieldProducer
- Ethan SmithProducer
- David NutterProducer
- Jerry BruckheimerProducer
Writing
- Steven KaneWriter
- Bruce RasmussenWriter
- Hank SteinbergWriter
- Diego GutierrezWriter
- Anthony LaPagliaWriter
- Jennifer LevinWriter
Direction
- Paul HolahanDirector
- Rosemary RodriguezDirector
- Timothy BusfieldDirector
- Martha MitchellDirector
- Kevin HooksDirector
- Kate WoodsDirector
Cinematography
- John PetersDirector of Photography
Music
- Peter Manning RobinsonOriginal Music Composer
Where to watch
Streaming
Availability verified against regional listings.
- Amazon VideoBuy
- Amazon VideoRent
- Apple TV StoreBuy
- Google Play MoviesBuy
- Fandango At HomeBuy
If you liked this
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Where to go from here
Watch Next
Our editors' suggestion for the show you should start tonight — and why.
FBI
2018
Another morally complex epic for anyone who wanted more grey.
Blue Bloods
2010
Watch this next if you like protagonists you can't quite defend.
NCIS
2003
A crime story told with the patience of a novel.
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
1999
Another morally complex epic for anyone who wanted more grey.
9-1-1
2018
Watch this next if you like protagonists you can't quite defend.
Law & Order
1990
A crime story told with the patience of a novel.
Never stop watching
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