NCIS wasn’t always its own thing. It was originally conceptualized as a spin-off of the show JAG. That show had 10 seasons and was focused on the law aspect of the Navy, which seemed partially inspired by the film A Few Good Men. NCIS would be another Navy-based show focused on criminal investigation.
JAG ended its run in 2005, meanwhile, NCIS began its run in 2003. It wasn’t an instant success, however, as the show continues to this day. It has also spawned several other spin-offs that have been running concurrently, including NCIS: Los Angeles, NCIS: New Orleans, NCIS: Hawaii and NCIS: Sydney.
The show has actually undergone quite a few name changes before it was simplified to NCIS. Just before the show’s first season aired, it was given the lengthy title of NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service. But they did ultimately decide it was too long of a title and they went with something shorter.
That shorter title was still not the one we recognize today, however. It was Navy NCIS which ultimately proved to be redundant to anyone who knew that Naval was part of the acronym NCIS. From there is as reduced even further to become NCIS – the title we know now and also short and to the point.
The creator of NCIS, Donald P. Bellisario, didn’t just develop an interest in Naval dramas out of thin air or just from watching A Few Good Men. Bellisario was a military man himself, having served in the Marine corps. In the creation of JAG and NCIS, he drew inspiration from his own life experiences.
Bellisario had served from 1955 to 1959 and had obtained the rank of Sergeant. He did not have any experience in the Navy but his high-ranking position in the Marine corps still made him well-suited to take on the series. It’s not like you can say that about every show because most law shows and medical shows don’t have experts in the field running them.
Jennifer Aniston from Friends nearly had a starring role on the show. As she was wrapping up Friends, she heard about the new series and was deeply interested in landing a role on it - more specifically, the role of Caitlin Todd. Interestingly, it wasn’t Aniston who changed her mind.
Even despite her popularity at the time, executives for the show denied her the role. Why? Scheduling. They wanted to film the show soon but Aniston needed them to wait until she wrapped up the final season of Friends. They could not wait for her though and the show would go on without her.
Another case of art imitating life is with actress Pauley Perrette who plays Abby on the show. She’s not just an actress playing a forensics specialist, she actually is a qualified one as she has a degree in the subject. Perrette studied criminal science as a graduate and was actually looking to pursue it professionally.
Luckily, she didn’t, for our sake, because she gave us one of the most memorable characters on the show. Acting as it turned out though, was originally just a means to pay the bills. But she would continue pursuing roles until she landed on NCIS where suddenly acting became her full-time job.
On the show, Abby and Gibbs have a close relationship with a dynamic that’s almost like father and daughter but the reality is much different. You may be surprised to learn, in fact, that Perrette and Harmon really didn’t get along well at all, which is a stark contrast to the way things are on the show.
All was revealed in a Twitter post that read: “NO I AM NOT COMING BACK! EVER! (Please stop asking?) I am terrified of Harmon and him attacking me. I have nightmares about it. I have a new show that is SAFE AND HAPPY! You’ll love it!” So, apparently off-camera things weren’t so sugary sweet.
Mark Harmon apparently has trouble getting along with other people too, including the show’s creator Don Bellisario. Allegedly, they did not have a healthy working relationship and they constantly argued on the set. The disagreements were consistent enough that Mark Harmon had enough and allegedly sought to get Bellisario removed from the show.
Due to the excessive arguing, Mark Harmon gave the network, CBS, an ultimatum: either Bellisario had to quit the show or he would. The network obviously chose Harmon, because the show could easily go on with another person running it. So, in essence, Harmon kicked Bellisario off of his own show.
One prop in the show, Bert the Farting Hippo, was a stuffed animal owned by one of the show’s central characters, Abby. This toy would become beloved by fans of the show. So much so, in fact, that CBS tried to capitalize on that by selling their own version of the Hippo.
CBS got sued over this, however, by Folkmanis Inc. who created the original version of the toy, as it had already been introduced to the public before the show even began. And it wasn’t just the fans that loved it. Allegedly cast members would also try to steal the toy, consistently enough that they had to lock it away at night.
The show already has had numerous spin-offs but there was almost even more with one featuring actor John Corbett. An NCIS spinoff called NCIS: Red was being developed after NCIS: Los Angeles but before NCIS: New Orleans. It was set to star John Corbett and Kim Raver but it never got picked up past the pilot episode.
John Corbett was already a notable actor from other famous series like Northern Exposure and Parenthood. He was also in the film My Big fat Greek Wedding. In addition to acting, he has pursued a country music career and has actually released two studio albums: John Corbett and Leaving Nothin’ Behind.
Mark Harmon’s importance to NCIS cannot be underestimated and that was well-reflected when it came to his salary. Mark Harmon was one of the highest-paid actors on television and had earned plenty of mullah over the 18 seasons he appeared in, earning over $500K per episode which amounts to about $19 million per season.
By comparison, the only other actors making more than Harmon within the network were the cast members of The Big Bang Theory. And he could have continued to be the highest-paid actor on television after that show ended but he decided in the show’s 18 seasons that enough was enough. He will appear in season 19 but in a limited capacity.
Donald P. Bellisario, the show’s creator, had a role of his own, although only keen-eyed viewers could possibly notice. In the show, there is a wall of the most wanted criminals and terrorist, which usually features real-life persons of interest such as Osama Bin Laden. However, sometimes some easter eggs are thrown in.
One of the framed photos on the wall was not actually a terrorist and that was Bellisario himself. But to be clear, this was all done in jest and not any act of malice. Harmon, who didn’t get along with the man was not involved. The photo was eventually taken off the wall sometime after Bellisario was fired.
Sasha Alexander was integral to the early seasons of NCIS but she didn’t stay on the show very long before her character was replaced with a new female lead. Luckily, this time Mark Harmon was not to blame. This time it all had to do with scheduling as the actress could not handle the intense filming schedule.
She appeared for only two season before calling it quits. Her character was killed off by a terrorist in the line of duty. Tragic for the fans of her character but the show went on and now most don’t even remember her character. She has reappeared in a guest capacity in a few seasons but with a very limited role of course, considering she died.
Cote de Pablo played Ziva David who was an Israeli Mossad special agent that spoke both Hebrew and English. This meant that Cate de Pablo would have to at least learn some English to successfully play the part, or at least it would help to ensure she was playing the part believably.
Cote de Pablo was a regular character in the show from 2005 to 2013. However, she would have several guest appearances in 2017 and would make her final appearance on the show in 2020. Ziva was easily one of the most beloved characters on the show with fans happy for her return.
Michael Weatherly, who played Anthony DiNozzo on the show from 2003 to 2016, is one of the show’s most critical characters but acting isn’t the only contribution he has made to the show. He’s also lent his talent as a musician to the show by contributing to at least part of the soundtrack.
The actor, since age 12, is also a musician and has contributed to two tracks on the show. The tracks are called “Bitter and Blue” and “Under the Sun.” You can undoubtedly find them on YouTube and check them out. Currently, you can catch Weatherly on the show Bull which is now in its final season.
A prop department usually contributes most of the props for a movie or television series but sometimes actors bring their own props to work with. In the case of NCIS, Mark Harmon brings his own hand tools as props. He uses them to film his workshop scenes but also uses them while at home.
Mark Harmon allegedly shares a hobby with his character Gibbs. Like his character, they are both into woodworking. Mark Harmon told Sunset, “I used to hang out in my dad's workshop on weekends. ...Later, when I was starting out as an actor, I became a roofer and a framer to make money… But what I really enjoyed was [finishing] work. I like the longevity of it. If you do it right, it will be around a lot longer than you are.”
Zac Efron had a role on NCIS before he was even famous. Before appearing in Disney’s High School Musical, Zac Efron was virtually unknown. His cameo role in NCIS was in the show’s third season. He played Danny, a young teenager who had possession of Lieutenant Commander Amanda Wilkerson’s missing phone.
Surely, nobody at the time could have known that Zac Efron would become such a huge star, otherwise, they might have given him a bigger role! Efron would go on to do three High School Musical movies, as well as feature films like 17 Again and The Greatest Showman. He also has his own Netflix web documentary series called Down to Earth with Zac Efron.
A joke at Weatherly’s expense was made at one point during the show with a line commenting how a particular woman was attractive but that she was “no Jessica Alba.” Not a particularly funny line though unless you know a bit about Michael Weatherly’s life as he was in fact engaged to Jessica Alba at one point.
Weatherly had starred with her in the television series Dark Angel, which is how they met. The series, which lasted only two seasons, was created by James Cameron. It was about a super soldier in a dystopian near-future setting who escapes a military facility to try to live a normal life. Weatherly was the second most prominent character on the show but only for Alba was it a breakthrough role.
(Images via IMDB; Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic/Getty Images
Often, young actors hired to play younger versions of characters in a series or movie end up looking nothing alike. But the showrunners on NCIS have a great preventative measure for that – they hire the actor’s family members to play their younger selves. Younger versions of characters on the show are often played by the corresponding actor’s child.
For instance, young Gibbs is played by Mark Harmon’s son Sean. There are other family member connections as well. Creator Bellisario’s son had a role on the show as Chip Sterling, and his daughter played McGee’s step-sister who is also his step-sister in real life. And yes, that means Sean Murray (who plays McGee) is Bellisario’s step-son!
Mark Harmon and David McCallum were talking to the press about their show when they were asked questions about their first acting jobs. Mark Harmon revealed his, which was one that had him in a gorilla suit. He even had to make gorilla noises on the street. But he’s certainly not monkeying around now.
McCallum’s first acting gig was in 1948 when he was only 12 years old. It was then that he performed on the BBC radio play Princes in the Tower. While certainly nobody is remembering their roles now, you got to start somewhere as an actor and every experience is a learning experience.
Another notable Abby-related prob featured on the show are Abby’s Caf-Pow energy drinks. She can frequently be found consuming these drinks, and in fact, she’s rarely in a scene without them. Her character even has a hat that holds two of the energy drinks that she can consume on the go.
However, if you’ve been looking to get your hands on this energy drink, we have some rather disappointing news for you: it’s not a real product. It seems there is no such thing as a Caf-Pow energy drink, but you can buy merchandise on the CBS website. Probably because they could never get Monster energy drinks as a sponsor.
The show takes place in Washington DC, where the real-life NCIS headquarters are located but that doesn’t mean that is where the show is actually filmed. In fact, the show isn’t really filmed anywhere near Washington DC despite the many references to DC and the surrounding area.
So where is it filmed? It’s actually filmed in Santa Clarita, California, which is a rather popular location for filming many television shows. This is obviously on the other side of the country and the geography is not very similar to DC at all - but hey, with TV magic, anything is possible and most people aren’t going to know anyway. It should be noted that they do sometimes film exterior shots on location in DC.
David McCallum was well-known for one role long before he was ever on NCIS and that was his lead role as Illya Kuryakin in The Man from U.N.C.L.E. – a spy television series about a multi-national law-enforcement agency called U.N.C.L.E. that basically initiated James-bond kind of missions.
Because of McCallum’s prominent role on the show, Mark Harmon would call him Illya on the set of NCIS which McCallum did not like in the least. After all, he’s an actor - not just one character! While Harmon only meant it as a joke, McCallum didn’t want to be recognized for one role long ago, allegedly replying to Harmon, “Good God, that was 40 years ago!”
Harmon didn’t just have any trailer on the set of NCIS, he had to have a special trailer made from the shell of a 1972 Airstream. The reconstructed Airstream was restored on the inside in the style of the era and it's easily one of the most unique trailers in Hollywood.
What better way to change into your costume than with a supped-up trailer! Harmon has said that it was renovated with the help of crew members who made it look brand-spanking-new. They obviously did a great job since it seems Harmon can be quite the diva, but we doubt anyone else got the same attention when it came to their trailer.
Of course, most of the people on NCIS are just actors but there have been some real-life agents featured on the show! For instance, in season 3, real-life Special Agent David Brant can be seen speaking to Mark Harmon’s character on the show. Additionally, former director Thomas Betro would appear in two episodes.
This all lends to the realism that the showrunners strive for. As mentioned, real-life criminals are featured on the most-wanted wall and the show also uses real archived news footage to make what’s happening on screen feel as real as possible. Of course, it isn’t perfect – it’s just a show after all.
Rocky Carroll was a groundbreaking character on the show for a number of reasons. The first major feat is that the actor played the show’s first black director Leon Vance. On top of this, he’s also the show’s longest-running director for the team. Carroll played the role for a total of six years.
He played that role in NCIS as well as the spin-off shows NCIS: Los Angeles and NCIS: New Orleans. Most recently he has been seen in the television film The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks and the direct-to-video animated film Reign of the Supermen. Other roles have included Crimson Tide and the NBC medical drama Chicago Hope.
NCIS has become such a popular show over the years that even it has the attention of NASA astronomers. Apparently, NASA is such a fan of the series and its central character that they named a comet Gibbs to honor that character. The official name is P/2007 T4 (Gibbs).
P/2007 T4 (Gibbs) has an orbital period of 12 years and it looks just like Mark Harmon. Okay no it doesn’t and you’ll probably never see it close enough yourself to even see it but it’s still pretty cool to know that NASA scientists are real people like us that watch the same shows we do too!
You may know a lot about your favorite characters, but you may not know everything! Abby’s middle name, if you were not aware was Beethoven but it is not made well-known in the mythology of the show. It is never referenced in dialog, but you may have caught a glimpse of the name in season 12, in the episode “The Lost Boys.”
Abby can be seen in the episode filling out some paperwork that features the middle name with the full name reading, “Abigail Beethoven Sciuto.” Abby was originally a character in the series JAG for its eighth season when NCIS was introduced and remained on NCIS from the pilot episode all the way up until the show’s 15th season.
Although it’s hard to imagine anyone else playing him now, Mark Harmon wasn’t always the first choice to play Jethro Gibbs. Creator Donald Bellisario wasn’t sure that he would really be right for the role. However, Bellisario saw one thing on another show that ended up changing his mind.
Bellisario check out Harmon’s work on The West Wing where he played Agent Simon Donovan. After seeing him in that role, Bellisario knew Harmon was indeed perfect for the part. It’s hard to even say if the show would have been nearly as successful without him! And now that he’s exited the show, there’s no saying how much longer it can go on.
If you pay really close attention to the show’s props, particularly the computers and other technology on the show, you may have noticed that everything is made by Dell. And it’s not because the government loves Dell stuff and that’s all the Navy uses. No, it’s just good old-fashioned product replacement.
It seems the show has a deal with Dell computers that has been going on from the get-go. CBS has a deal with Dell computers for product placement and as per the deal, no other brand of computer can be seen on NCIS or used by any character. That’s one thing that’s not too realistic so it’s probably better just not to pay too much attention to it.
If you’ve seen the show, you’ll know exactly what we mean. The bookending sound at the end of each act is very prominent and the show freeze-frames and turns black and white. There is a foof sound that should be recognizable to you as it is featured in every episode.
But what is that sound and where does it come from? It turns out, that’s just the sound of Donald P. Bellisario making a random noise into the microphone. He was searching for a unique sound to bookend each act and that was what he came up with. It is reminiscent of the sound featured on Law and Order, becoming a character of its own.
