Is Mark Harmon Returning to NCIS?
By Movieguide® Contributor
It’s been nearly three years since Gibbs left NCIS, and actor Mark Harmon is discussing his return to the franchise through NCIS: ORIGINS and the possibility of his beloved character returning to the screen.
Harmon explained that while he has always wanted to reprise his role as Gibbs, he will only do so if the opportunity seems right. He also never wants to force his way back onto the show after leaving by his own accord.
“I have been asked [about returning] a lot, but I’ve always let the writers do what they want to do,” Harmon told Parade. “I was ok with the storyline. I didn’t know where it was going when they started it but that’s about trust and working with people you’ve worked with a long time.”
While he has yet to return to the mainline NCIS show, Harmon is thankful to be returning to the franchise as the narrator on NCIS: ORIGINS, which takes a look at the younger years of Gibbs. The idea for the show came from Harmon’s son Sean, who had previously played young Gibbs on NCIS.
“When they pitched this, that’s a really cool idea but no one defined how,” Harmon said. “We are going to figure it out and it sounded like a good idea to me. What they wrote is interesting to me. It’s going to be a different show. Mike Franks is going to have a lot do with it and there’s a reason for him.”
“Right now, we’re just hoping to get an order for the back nine so that’s the real perspective of this business,” he continued. “I am only thankful. To be a part of this is really fun and to work with these people again is fun. I’m doing a lot of different things. This is one of them and working with Sean is a treat.”
“I’m just pleased to be part of it,” Harmon added of his work on ORIGINS. “And I’m a distant part of it really because I’m not there to make any big moves or anything. I’m just there to support. And how can I help? And if you need my help, great. And if not, that’s okay too. And so far, they’re all doing just fine.”
NCIS: ORIGINS has filled out its cast and begun filming. It is set to debut this October on CBS.
Movieguide® previously reported:
As the first season of NCIS: ORIGINS begins production, Kyle Schmid explained how it has felt to step into the role of Mike Franks, Leroy Gibbs’ mentor, and explore NCIS in the ’90s.
“I think it’s a great opportunity to be a part of something that’s been grandfathered into the industry as a standard for procedural television. [NCIS] has been running for what’s going to be seasons,” Schmid told TV Insider. “Mark Harmon did it and put his stamp on it and kind of led the way for everybody. It has been a really neat experience because he has lent his expertise and advice and help to us through emails and calls. Just time spent piquing his brain has been really important.”
NCIS: ORIGINS follows the budding NCIS unit at Camp Pendleton which is being headed by Franks who was allowed to hand-pick his team of promising young agents.
“[Franks] had been part of NCIS for a while in 2001 [on the original show], when you met him, he [was] a little older, a little more jaded,” Schmid explained. “He has seen a lot that I think he wishes he could have had more control over. So, we’re seeing him at a point in his life where he has paved his own way and earned the respect of the agency.”
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