CBS Orders New Drama 'NCIS: Origins' Featuring a Younger Gibbs

Mark Harmon

The newest chapter in the NCIS franchise will be an origin story following the early years of Leroy Jethro Gibbs, who was played on NCIS for 19 years by Mark Harmon.

The series begins in 1991 when Gibbs starts his career as a newly minted special agent at the fledgling NCIS Camp Pendleton office where he forges his place on a gritty, ragtag team led by NCIS legend Mike Franks (Muse Watson).

CBS ordered NCIS: Origins straight to series, which will be executive produced by Harmon, Sean Harmon, Gina Lucita Monreal and David J. North.

“The character of Gibbs has been an important part of my life for 20 years, both in watching my father craft the role and previously having the honor to play young Gibbs myself,” added Sean Harmon. “I always felt there was a tale worth telling about his earlier years, so I am thrilled to be stepping into a producing role alongside Gina, David and my dad as we tell this story and reveal a new side of this beloved character.”

Monreal and North are co-writing the premiere episode and will serve as co-showrunners even as casting gets underway for the series, which has to find actors that can successfully convince an audience they are a young Gibbs and a young Franks. The two have been a part of the NCIS writing staff for 10 years, with North currently serving as showrunner on the mothership.

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“We’re thrilled to be bringing this new chapter to life along with Mark and Sean Harmon,” said Monreal and North. “This really is the making of Leroy Jethro Gibbs. And even the most dedicated NCIS fans will discover that they don’t know the whole story.”

NCIS and it’s many franchises —NCIS: New Orleans, NCIS: Los Angles, NCIS: Hawai’i and NCIS: Sydney—have been a key part of the CBS schedule for two decades.

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“We are elated and honored to continue the expansion of the NCIS universe in such a unique and unexpected way,” said Amy Reisenbach, president of CBS Entertainment. “Viewers can look forward to Mark Harmon returning to CBS to narrate the complex and mysterious backstory of Leroy Jethro Gibbs’ early years in NCIS: Origins, which will build on the rich legacy of this character while reintroducing fan-favorite characters and meeting new ones.”

“There’s no denying the cultural and global phenomenon of the NCIS franchise for the last 20 years,” said David Stapf, president of CBS Studios. “When Sean and Mark approached us all with this exciting expansion of the universe – exploring a young Gibbs – we knew it was the next story that needed to be told. We also couldn’t be luckier to have Gina and David at the helm as co-showrunners who are not only brilliant and adept writers, but know this character and universe so well.”

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