NCIS: Origins Prequel Series Will Feature a Third Franchise Vet, Joining Young Gibbs and Mike Franks (Exclusive)
Mark Harmon’s Leroy Jethro Gibbs and Muse Watson’s late Mike Franks won’t be the only veteran NCIS characters getting the backstory treatment when NCIS: Origins debuts on CBS next season.
TVLine has learned exclusively that producers will also be introducing the young version of Special Agent Vera Strickland, the character originated by Roma Maffia a decade ago in the Season 11 NCIS installment “Under the Radar.” In the episode, it was established that Strickland was Franks’ onetime partner.
An NCIS rep declined to comment for this story.
As we reported last week, NCIS: Origins will turn back the clock on Harmon’s iconic character, revealing how Gibbs came to be the man he is today (and presumably how he amassed all those rules). Set in 1991, the franchise’s latest offshoot picks up with Gibbs 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.”
In addition to exec-producing the series, Harmon will also return to narrate NCIS: Origins. He starred on the original NCIS for its first 19 seasons, eventually making a dramatic exit in 2021.
Meanwhile, Harmon’s son Sean Harmon, who came up with the idea for NCIS: Origins, will also serve as an EP. Though Sean played a younger version of his dad’s character on NCIS, a new actor is being tapped to portray him in NCIS: Origins. And the same goes for both Franks and (now) Strickland.
NCIS: Origins: Everything We Know
“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,” noted Sean in a statement that accompanied last week’s series-order announcement. “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.”
