There’s a hostage crisis coming to Elsbeth in Season 3. TV Insider is sharing an exclusive first look at Elsbeth Season 3 Episode 2, featuring guest star David Cross, who plays an ex-con involved in the hostage scenario.
The exclusive photos also feature Carrie Preston and Wendell Pierce as Elsbeth Tascioni and Captain Wagner, as well as co-creator Robert King and showrunner Jonathan Tolins behind the scenes of the episode, directed by King.
Elsbeth Season 3 Episode 2 is titled “Doll Day Afternoon,” a fitting reference to the film Dog Day Afternoon, which also features a hostage situation in New York City. Here’s the official episode description: “When a murder investigation at a famous New York toy store spirals into a hostage crisis, Elsbeth must negotiate with the hapless ex-con (David Cross) inside. Outside, Captain Wagner clashes with a rival whose reckless tactics could turn the standoff deadly.”
Mike Parmalee / CBS
Preston is in the toy store with Cross in the first photo above.
In the second, Elsbeth and Captain Wagner look onto a scene while guarded by ballistic police shields from NYPD officers. How high-stakes is this crisis in the toy store?
King and Tolins are watching their screen intently as they watch a scene being filmed on an NYC street in the photo below. Elsbeth crew members surround them in the black-and-white image. Pierce can also be seen in the background.
CBS is staging a special two-part premiere event for Elsbeth and Matlock this season. Both shows return on a special night and at a special time. For Elsbeth, the season premiere debuts on Sunday, October 12, at 9:30/8:30c on CBS. (See CBS’s fall 2025 schedule here.)
Season 3 Episode 2, “Doll Day Afternoon,” debuts later that week at the show’s regular time, Thursday, October 16, at 10/9c.
Mike Parmalee / CBS
King and Anju Andre-Bergmann wrote the Cross episode. Elsbeth is executive produced by King, Michelle King, Tolins, Liz Glotzer, Erica Shelton Kodish, Bryan Goluboff, and Gail Barringer.
TV Insider previously announced Cross’s casting. Additional guest stars in Season 3 are Stephen Colbert, Amy Sedaris, Andy Richter, and Lindsay Mendez in Episode 1, with Julia Fox, William Jackson Harper, and Annaleigh Ashford appearing later this season. Ashford’s episode will be Halloween-themed.
Elsbeth, Season 3 Premiere, Sunday, October 12, 9:30/8:30c, Regular Time Period Premiere, Thursday, October 16, 10/9c, CBS