The nostalgia is running thick this season in the “NCIS” universe.
Not only is Mark Harmon reprising his beloved role as Leroy Jethro Gibbs for the current season of “NCIS: Origins,” Michael Weatherly has likewise returned to his role of Tony DiNozzo in the original “NCIS,” 10 years after he exited the show.
Ever since news of the respective actors’ return to the franchise was announced, fans have been demanding that the two cross paths — and now it’s actually happening.
A Long-Awaited Reunion
CBS made it official on Monday, October 13, revealing Gibbs and DiNozzo will appear together in the Tuesday, October 20 episode of “NCIS: Origins.”
“The highly anticipated reunion finds Leroy Jethro Gibbs returning to NCIS’ D.C. headquarters to enlist the help of new director Tony DiNozzo after Gibbs was shot by unknown assailants in the ‘Origins’ season premiere on October 6,” declares the CBS announcement.
That announcement was accompanied by a brief clip from the episode, shared via Instagram, in which Gibbs returns to his old NCIS headquarters and walks up to the door of DiNozzo’s office.
“Harmon, who serves as executive producer on the series, appears in all episodes of ‘Origins’ Season 3 as part of a present-day mystery tied to his ‘90s Camp Pendleton days,” CBS notes, adding that “Weatherly returned as DiNozzo on ‘NCIS’ beginning with the show’s season 24 premiere on October 6.”
‘Surprises In Store’
Harmon’s exit from the show in 2021 resulted in a casting shakeup, with producers bringing in TV veteran Gary Cole as team leader Alden Parker.
For longtime fans, seeing Gibbs back in action is an added bonus, something that “NCIS: Origins” showrunner David J. North spoke with during a recent interview with Parade.
“He’s an enormous supporter of this show,” North said of Harmon, who is also an executive producer on “NCIS: Origins.” “The fact was, it was he and Sean [Harmon] and Gina [Lucita Monreal] in the beginning, the four of us, really created this thing and figured it all out. It didn’t happen overnight. There were a lot of conversations between him and I, and Eric Christian Olsen, who’s the [new] executive producer with me. It was ongoing, sort of massaging storylines, things like that. Mark was game. He’s the biggest believer in this cast and what we’re doing. I told him that I really thought this would put our show to the next level. He said, ‘All right, let’s do it.’”
As North teases, fans would be advised to expect the unexpected.
“I will tell you that he has left Alaska for the first time in six years, I believe,” North added. “We are going to see Gibbs back in the lower 48. We have so many surprises in store for you. He’s going to be crossing with people from his past, which we’re very excited about.”
Viewers can see the long-awaited reunion of Gibbs and DiNozzo on next week’s episode of “NCIS: Origins,” airing Tuesday, October 20 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.
Comments
Mark Harmon & Michael Weatherly Together Again in ‘NCIS’ Reunion That Fans Have Been Clamoring For