With a series as long-running as NCIS, the cast members have become synonymous with their characters. Mark Harmon’s Leroy Jethro Gibbs is the face of the NCIS franchise, even after he left the show in Season 19. While fans thought he fully walked away from his iconic character, Harmon would return as Gibbs in NCIS: Origins, the prequel series focused on his character. Not only does he appear and narrate the series, but he’s also an executive producer. He’s not the only NCIS star who has been creatively involved with their character. Michael Weatherly, who plays Tony DiNozzo, directed a couple of episodes for NCIS, and is executive producing the spin-off series, NCIS: Tony & Ziva, along with Cote de Pablo, who plays the titular Ziva David.
The latest NCIS episode, Season 22, Episode 16, “Ladies Night,” is directed by Rocky Carroll, who plays Director Leon Vance in the series. The episode sees the return of Lilan Bowden’s Robin Knight, sister of Katrina Law’s Jessica Knight, who was first introduced in Season 20 in an episode co-written by NCIS star Diona Reasonover, who plays Kasie Hines in the series. In an interview with Collider’s Ryan Cortero, Reasonover was asked if she’d be open to writing more episodes after working on Season 20, Episode 8, “Turkey Trot.” Along with saying she “would love to write more episodes,” she revealed that she would rather do an episode focused on other characters rather than Kasie:
“I would love to write a [Nick] Torres and [Tim] McGee episode. Those are the two I think would really be fun to crack…I love the two of them together because, first of all, if something popped off, you know that they’re both going to be involved, but they’re going to take two different approaches.”
McGee and Torres Are an Underrated ‘NCIS’ Duo
When Wilmer Valderrama’s Torres joined NCIS, it was to help fill in the hole left behind by Weatherly’s DiNozzo. Throughout the series, McGee was the punching bag for DiNozzo’s jokes, but their friendship grew over time, and they respected each other as equals. Since then, McGee has grown as a Senior Field Agent and essentially become a bit of a mentor to Torres, who can be standoffish and disconnected at times. In a unique turn for the series, Torres’ strongest bond currently is with Brian Dietzen’s Jimmy Palmer, and more specifically, his daughter, Victoria Palmer (Elle Graper). Despite not having his own child, Torres seems to have a soft spot for them. NCIS has yet to show McGee’s kids all grown up, so a future Torres/McGee episode could be their introduction and further showcase Torres’ love for kids.
Since Reasonover’s first NCIS episode as a writer introduced Jessica Knight’s sister, Robin, there is a precedent of her writing family-centric episodes that introduce a potentially recurring guest star. When speaking of the McGee/Torres relationship, Reasonover added, “I love their dynamic together. I think they’re so fun.” With Season 22 coming to an end in the coming weeks, fans may not see Reasonover’s writing pitch come to life just yet, but there’s still hope in NCIS Season 23 to see Torres and McGee strengthen their friendship.
