NBC has greenlit a pilot for 'Protection,' a new drama series written by Joshua Safran. The project, executive produced by Jenna Bush Hager and Ben Spector, centers on a family of law enforcement agents targeted by an assassin. This marks the network's return to traditional pilot development.
NBC is bolstering its drama lineup with a pilot order for 'Protection,' an upcoming series from writer and executive producer Joshua Safran. The announcement, made on January 13, 2026, highlights the network's shift back to the conventional pilot season model after years of straight-to-series commitments.
The logline for 'Protection' describes a tense thriller: “When a U.S. Marshal falls in the line of duty, a seemingly cut-and-dry case turns into a deadly conspiracy as a family of law enforcement agents become the target of a mysterious assassin. Bridging personal differences and crossing professional boundaries, the Thornhill family must use the expertise from a lifetime of protecting civilians and politicians to protect one another and bring the killer to justice … even if it means betraying their sworn code.” The series is produced by Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group, for NBC.
Safran, known for his work on 'Gossip Girl'—where he served as showrunner for the final two seasons of the original CW series and created the HBO Max revival that ran from 2021 to 2023—is also the creator and showrunner of ABC's 'Quantico,' which aired for three seasons from 2015 to 2018. His other credits include writing for NBC's 'Smash,' Netflix's 'Soundtrack,' and the 2014 film 'Endless Love.'
Non-writing executive producers Jenna Bush Hager and Ben Spector join Safran on the project. Bush Hager, daughter of former President George W. Bush, is a co-host on NBC's 'Today' show since 2009 and has authored books under her Thousand Voices Books imprint at Penguin Random House. Spector, her producing partner, previously led TV and film at Eva Longoria's production company and entered a first-look deal with Bush Hager at Universal Television in 2022.
This pilot is the second drama ordered by NBC this season, following a reboot of the 1970s classic 'The Rockford Files,' written and executive produced by Mike Daniels of 'Sons of Anarchy' fame. NBC plans to commission three to four drama pilots and two to three comedy pilots, including a private investigator comedy from 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine' co-creator Dan Goor and executive producer Luke Del Tredici.
