Back in September 2021, Mark Harmon exited NCIS early into Season 19, bringing his run as Leroy Jethro Gibbs that stretched all the way back to JAG’s backdoor pilot episodes for the show to a close after nearly 20 years. While it still remains to be seen if Harmon will ever reprise Gibbs on this procedural franchise’s flagship show, word’s come in that we’re not done spending time with this character. It’s been officially announced that a Gibbs prequel show is on the way, and Harmon is involved with it.
CBS has given a straight-to-series order for NCIS: Origins for the 2024-2025 broadcast TV season. Beginning in 1991, the prequel will chronicle Leroy Jethro Gibbs beginning his career as a “newly-minted” field agent at the NCIS Camp Pendleton office. It’s there that he’ll forge his place on “a gritty, ragtag team” that’s led by Mike Franks, who was played by Muse Watson on the original NCIS. In addition to narrating NCIS: Origins, Mark Harmon is executive producing alongside his son Sean, who previously played a younger Gibbs for flashbacks in various NCIS episodes, as well as Gina Lucita Monreal and David J. North.
It’s important to mention that Sean Harmon clarified that he will focus on executive producing NCIS: Origins rather than also lead it as the younger Gibbs. That’s a shame, because age-wise, he still could have easily filled the role, Gibbs was born in 1954, making him 37 when NCIS: Origins kicked off, and Mark Harmon’s son was born in 1988, meaning he’ll be 37 too if the prequel makes it to air by fall 2025. Alas, that’s not in the cards, so now we wait to learn who will inherit the role.
NCIS fans will also take note that NCIS: Origins begins the same year that Leroy Jethro Gibbs’ first wife, Shannon, and their daughter Kelly were killed by the drug dealer Pedro Hernandez. However, their murders took place in February 1991, and Gibbs didn’t join NCIS (or, as it was known then, the Naval Investigative Service) until the following August, so we won’t be seeing Shannon and Kelly as main characters on the show, though that’s not to say they still couldn’t appear in flashbacks. I also wouldn’t rule out flashbacks being used to paint a more complete picture of how Gibbs hunted down and killed Hernandez.
Of course, including Mike Franks as a main character in NCIS: Origins is a no-brainer given how he was revealed to be the one who recruited Gibbs into the law enforcement agency in NCIS. The alive Franks recurred on the flagship show between Seasons 3 and 8, and following his murder at the hands of Jonas Cobb, his ghost would occasionally offer Gibbs words of wisdom up to Season 15. I’m eager to learn who will be cast to play the younger Franks and learn more about this man who was so integral in our main protagonist’s life.
As for who the new characters will be that join Gibbs and Frank as main characters on NCIS: Origins, they’ll undoubtedly be revealed once the prequel moves closer to beginning production. Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for those casting news and other updates on the project’s development. Remember that NCIS and its spinoffs can be streamed with a Paramount+ subscription, and you can visit our 2024 TV schedule to plan what shows you’ll watch in the coming months.
