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Post by llyan on Jun 21, 2021 20:50:15 GMT
NCIS Shocker: Mark Harmon Eyes Very Limited Presence in Season 19By Michael Ausiello / June 21 2021, 1:31 PM PDT Courtesy of CBS
CBS’ decision to keep the specifics of NCIS star Mark Harmon‘s alleged “limited” Season 19 commitment under wraps is beginning to make sense.
Multiple sources confirm to TVLine exclusively that Harmon is slated to appear in a relatively small number of episodes next season. One insider close to the CBS procedural reveals of Harmon’s Season 19 episode count: “It’s going to be in the low single digits.” Another source says the actor will make only “a few” appearances throughout the season.
A CBS rep declined to comment for this story.
To fill the Harmon-sized hole, CBS is in talks with TV vet Gary Cole to join the cast in a major Season 19 role. (Our sister pub Variety first reported Cole’s possible casting.)
NCIS teed up Harmon’s drastically reduced Season 19 workload by “killing” off Gibbs in the Season 18 finale. (In the episode’s final moments, Gibbs was taking his latest handcrafted boat out for a spin when it suddenly was blown to smithereens. His “lifeless” body, however, could be seen discreetly and purposely swimming away right before the screen cut to black.)
Weeks prior to his (staged?) “death,” Gibbs had been suspended indefinitely from his role at NCIS, after assaulting an abuser of dogs. He eventually helped a local reporter (played by Gibbs’ real-life wife, Pam Dawber) investigate a possible serial killer.
“We take it year by year with Mark,” CBS entertainment chief Kelly Kahl told Deadline last month. “We’d love to have him as long as he’d like to be here…. [W]e’re happy to work around his schedule.”
News of Harmon’s status change comes as NCIS prepares to exit its longtime Tuesday-at-8 pm time slot. As we previously reported, the venerable series will relocate to Mondays-at-9 pm this fall.
tvline.com/2021/06/21/mark-harmon-leaving-ncis-season-19-gibbs-dies/
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Post by kaschu3 on Jun 21, 2021 21:13:35 GMT
Wow.... low single digits.... and a move to Monday.....
This may not be good.
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Post by ballerina on Jun 21, 2021 21:19:01 GMT
Wow.... low single digits.... and a move to Monday.....
This may not be good.
I concur, to be honest, I would be surprised if season 19 wasn’t the final season.
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Post by nas on Jun 21, 2021 22:08:50 GMT
why don’t they just pull the plug on NCIS, ffs! 😡
is draaaaaging it out until it doesn’t even resemble the original show really a good idea? tbh, it hasn’t resembled the original show in a very long time... 😕
and it’s obvious, to me at least, that Mark Harmon is done with it, but for whatever reason he just keeps hangin’ in there... (my opinion on that is - and has been - as I’ve said before: it’s probably “about the Benjamins”)...
it’s like a love affair that is over, but neither party is willing to walk away... pathetic! 😢
eta: some of you will say, as you have in the past, MH is such a good guy that he doesn’t want to put all the people involved with NCIS out of work... well, welcome to the real world, folks! it happens all the time to lots of people - not just those in show biz... you join the ranks of the unemployed, you get out there and you find another job! it ain’t always easy, but that’s life!
nas
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Post by ballerina on Jun 21, 2021 22:28:53 GMT
why don’t they just pull the plug on NCIS, ffs! 😡
is draaaaaging it out until it doesn’t even resemble the original show really a good idea? tbh, it hasn’t resembled the original show in a very long time... 😕
and it’s obvious, to me at least, that Mark Harmon is done with it, but for whatever reason he just keeps hangin’ in there... (my opinion on that is - and has been - as I’ve said before: it’s probably “about the Benjamins”)...
it’s like a love affair that is over, but neither party is willing to walk away... pathetic! 😢
nas
Well said nas, NCIS hasn’t resembled the original show in a long time. It probably is about the Benjamins for why MH has stayed.
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Post by luckysmom on Jun 22, 2021 11:50:59 GMT
I agree this does seem like the last season. I believe a show can loose a character or two and survive, but not the main characters as NCIS has done.
It will be interesting to see what role Gary Cole plays.
For whatever reason, I am glad for everyone who works "behind the scenes." They took a hit during the pandemic and shutdown so at least they get a little time to work and plan.
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Post by gibbsgirl8 on Jun 22, 2021 11:57:44 GMT
I agree this does seem like the last season. I believe a show can loose a character or two and survive, but not the main characters as NCIS has done. It will be interesting to see what role Gary Cole plays. For whatever reason, I am glad for everyone who works "behind the scenes." They took a hit during the pandemic and shutdown so at least they get a little time to work and plan. Everyone seems to assume that Gary Cole is coming in as a team member or a "good guy". Is it possible he could be the serial killer that Gibbs & Marcie are hunting?
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Post by verdun on Jun 22, 2021 12:34:01 GMT
Terrific. The show has, from its beginning, centered around Gibbs. I doubt it can keep up its ratings without him. I expect a spike in viewing when he appears in an episode, but then doldrums otherwise (Hope I'm wrong.).
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Post by luckysmom on Jun 22, 2021 12:39:57 GMT
Interesting thought. My thoughts went to him being with the agency, not necessarily friendly maybe competitive or adversarial but I did not think of him as a real bad guy.
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Post by jessielee on Jun 22, 2021 14:08:07 GMT
Cole is probably the replacement for MH. Because if he's the serial killer, Gibbs needs to be there as well as he's the only one from the team who knows there's a serial killer out there.
Frankly, if Cole is the new team lead, CBS is making a mistake. Gibbs is the show and without him they won't make it. CBS should have canceled the show as low single digits stints by MH won't be enough or should have opted for a short season of maybe 10 episodes and MH is in all of them. That would have given them the option to wrap up each characters storyline.
Cole and the move to Mondays is too much. And just for the sake of giving Hawaii a good lead in (and turning Tuesday's into FBI day)... Either Hawaii is strong enough to stand on its own or not. With MH fully on board it may survived the move and be a good lead in, but with more Cole and less Harmon this will be a very different show and none of the other cast (Murray, Valderrama) can carry the show alone (though I doubt that Cole can carry the show because of MHs footprints being way too big). Not to mention the loss of Bello and Wickersham. Katrina Law may join or another female, this is not yet clear. All in all too much change in between seasons that won't be easy to swallow.
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Post by jessielee on Jun 22, 2021 14:10:55 GMT
Terrific. The show has, from its beginning, centered around Gibbs. I doubt it can keep up its ratings without him. I expect a spike in viewing when he appears in an episode, but then doldrums otherwise (Hope I'm wrong.). I completely agree! And you're probably not wrong either
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Post by llyan on Jun 22, 2021 15:51:13 GMT
Well I'm not burying the show yet. I think that there's enough drama still left in the show and I like the remaining characters. As far as I'm concerned, the show is still more enjoyable than most that are on the air and I'm looking forward to what they come up with next.
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Post by jessielee on Jun 22, 2021 17:22:18 GMT
Just read over at TV Line that Katrina Law is upped to series regular while Gary Cole will join as FBI Agent. So he's probably in charge of investigating Gibbs' fake death and will probably later hunt for the serial killer.
I'm on my cell, so someone else please post the article.
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Post by llyan on Jun 22, 2021 18:23:30 GMT
NCIS: Gary Cole Officially Joins Cast, But Not as Gibbs 'Replacement' — Katrina Law Upped to Series Regular By Matt Webb Mitovich / June 22 2021, 9:15 AM PDT
Gary Cole has officially signed on for NCIS Season 19, though not necessarily in the capacity one might assume.
CBS confirmed on Tuesday that Cole — whose previous TV credits include (but are by no means limited to!) The Good Fight, Veep, The West Wing and Midnight Caller — will fill the series regular role of FBI Special Agent Alden Park. And though longtime series front man Mark Harmon is expected to appear in a very limited capacity moving forward, sources stress that Cole’s character is not “replacing” Gibbs. (Harmon’s team leader for the last six episodes of Season 18 had been suspended from NCIS, and last we saw seemingly had faked his death while in pursuit of a possible serial killer.)
Additionally, CBS has confirmed that Katrina Law, as indicated with her initial casting, will return for Season 19 as a series regular, as Special Agent Jessica Knight. Introduced in the last two episodes of Season 18, Knight is a REACT (Regional Enforcement Action Capabilities Training Team) agent who specializes in hostage negotiations and handles daily high-risk operations with skill and precision. Sharp, athletic and tough, she is fiercely tenacious and with a wry sense of humor.
Law’s promotion comes on the heels of cast member Emily Wickersham’s eight-season run abruptly coming to an end in the Season 18 finale, where Ellie Bishop set in motion a series of events that allowed her to leave NCIS as a “disgraced” agent and go undercover on some sort of covert op.
“We haven’t shot a single frame quite yet, but with the addition of Gary Cole and Katrina Law to the cast, this is already shaping up to be one of the best seasons yet,” NCIS showrunner Steven D. Binder said in a statement. “Going into Season 19, we are excited to have new characters and stories to tell that adds to and re-energizes the world we’ve come to love over the 400-plus episodes.”
In addition to Harmon and Law, Sean Murray, Wilmer Valderrama, Brian Dietzen, Diona Reasonover, Rocky Carroll and David McCallum all will return for Season 19, which will air Monday nights — NCIS‘ first time slot change, ever — at 9/8c, leading into NCIS: Hawai’i.
Want scoop on NCIS, or for any other show? Email InsideLine@tvline.com and your question may be answered via Matt’s Inside Line.
tvline.com/2021/06/22/ncis-gary-cole-cast-season-19-katrina-law/
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Post by nas on Jun 22, 2021 21:43:39 GMT
so, I guess with the day change and cast “makeover”, we can assume Joe Spano’s Tobias Fornell is all but gone now...
in view of the fact that he was basically tied in with LJG, now that Gibbs isn’t going to be around much there won’t be a reason for him to be either...
just a thought...
nas
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