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Move over, Young Sheldon. It’s time for… Young Gibbs! CBS has given a straight-to-series order to NCIS: Origins, a new series that will turn back the clock on Mark Harmon‘s iconic character, revealing how Leroy Jethro Gibbs came to be the man he is today (and presumably how he amassed all those rules).
Set in 1991, NCIS: Origins 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 executive-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.
Mark Harmon’s son Sean Harmon, who came up with the idea for NCIS: Origins, will also executive-produce, along with co-showrunners Gina Lucita Monreal and David J. North. Though Sean Harmon played a younger version of his dad’s character on NCIS, a new actor is being tapped to portray him in NCIS: Origins. Sean Harmon will in turn focus on his first exec-producing gig..
“We’re thrilled to be bringing this new chapter to life along with Mark and Sean Harmon,” Monreal and North said in a statement. “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.”
“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,” adds 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.”
Your thoughts on this look back at Gibbs’ early days? Drop ’em in a comment below.
YES! What a great concept! So excited!
Love the idea.
it sounds great to me
i really like this idea, seeing how Gibbs became the Gibbs we all know and love is gonna be an interesting story to follow!
Looking forward to this new series.
Fantastic idea and Mark will be perfect as a narrator
Like the idea. Figured they would not be doing it with Mark leaving the mothership. But sounds like Sean came up with the idea. Never did like Mike Franks. He was too brusque for me most of the time. But maybe a take on the young days might get me to like him more…
And given Gibbs will have just lost his wife and daughter, it will be interesting to see this new version of Young Gibbs.
NCIS Universe keeps growing. Amazing given how NBC gave JAG the shaft, and it moved over to CBS. And the growth coming from the universe, that goes now back into the past.
Which makes it the problem on cable or streaming this can work as a mini series. But the 90s was a murky time, the beginnings of the middle east conflicts, Columbine, Oklahoma City, Wako, the Clinton scandal all subjects for a military cop show like NCIS. Can a network show really get away with those sorts things today?
Can’t wait
ZERO original ideas anymore
After several decades and thousands upon thousands of shows and movies, can we realistically expect for originality to be as easy to come by as many want?
Fortunately some original things do get made, and end up successful.
As for this…I’m all for it!
It’s fitting. Congratulations!!! I’ve always wondered, if they’d do a prequel. I hope we’ll be seeing the younger version of Ducky as well. It be a great way to honor his memory.
I said the same thing. Already have the actor to play him.
You can only raid the cemetary so many times before they cancel your entry pass.
My husband and I are so thrilled to hear the Prequel Series is really gonna happen!! Can’t wait to see the series 🤩 thank you for doing this 👋
Oh, I’d love that. Really liked the actor they had playing young Ducky, he looked so much like McCallum in Man from UNCLE from the pictures I’ve seen.
Hope there’s a place for young Ducky as well.
Anything about Gibbs and Mark Harmon, even if it’s just his voice, sounds fantastic to me.
I am so excited!! This is fantastic news!!! The only thing I wish is that Sean would play the young Gibbs!!! I am sooo excited!!!
Can’t wait for it to begin!!!
I love the idea, I think people will like it.
Will be interesting to see who will play Gibbs, Shannon, Mike Franks, Gibbs Dad, and the Director. Will there be a JAG Referrence since NCIS was a spinnoff from that?
With Shannon and Kelly’s death. Gibbs begins a prolonged estrangement from his father. That continues well into NCIS. But we know he marries three times within the twelve years before the events of the show we all know. So, we will likely see a more romantic Gibbs as he runs and out of marriage. It will be interesting to see the casting.
Awesome cannot wait
Love NCIS and love Gibbs, but I don’t think we need another prequel series. they’re are rarely good and just mess up canon of the original show. Not excited for this, but might check it out . We’ll see who they cast as young Gibbs. Sean Harmon would be the best, but probably he’s too old for the role now
Mike Franks& The rule origins& Ducky all reasons to watch but casting Gibbs and Ducky will be a big part of the show being a hit or a miss
I think its worth the effort to show how Gibbs became the Gibbs we saw. Ducky would have to be played by the wonderful actor in the episodes of their younger years
While I would hope for a young Ducky cameo (as played by Adam Campbell in the series), he could not be a regular in this. Ducky became the ME at the Navy Yard; this series will be set at Camp Pendleton which is on the opposite side of the country in California.
Can’t wait to check it out! I love NCIS even more so when Mark Harmon was on it. So I’m definitly going to check this out.
Love the idea. It’s a shame Sean is not playing the part
Can’t wait
Great idea! Burt would love to see his son Sean play Gibbs and the actor who played young Ducky back again! Looking forward to it!
Happy about young Gibbs, but we SERIOUSLY need to include Adam Campbell as young Ducky as well.
Sorry, but unless they make a huge change in the show’s canon, Ducky can’t be in this unless it is just an occasional guest appearance at best. According to the show’s canon, Ducky became the ME at the Navy Yard, outside of Washington DC. This series will be about Gibbs early years when he was with Mike Franks at Camp Pendleton which is in California. Although it does make it possible that we could have a young Agent Pride pop up in an episode or three.
Franks retires while Clinton is still in office. Sometime between 93 and 2000. So at some point, Gibbs transfers to Washington but deals with overseas assignments with Jenny Shephard before he permanently takes over a team. Tony had been on his team as of 2 years when met them. So that is at least 2001. Stan was on the team before that, so it sounds like he was in Washington for while. But yeah, the early years will likely not have many players from NCIS lore. Unless it goes long… Since there is twelve years before the events we know. And he’s just divorcing his third ex-wife (fourth wife total).
Yes, but the article specifically says that the spin-off is about Gibbs and Mike Franks at Camp Pendleton. Let’s wait and see if it goes past five seasons before talking about the years after Mike Franks retires
He retired in 96 after the khobar towers incident was mishandled. Gibbs became head honcho after
IIRC, after having Fornell in Yankee White, the character suddenly became married to one of Gibb’s ex-wives, Gibbs and Fornell developed a friendship, and Fornell became a popular recurring character. So, canon is always somewhat flexible if the audience buys into the retcon.
Adam Campbell’s so good as young Ducky, I think fans would buy in, and the audience would fondly remember David in the role.
This series strikes me as the drama version of Young Sheldon. Mark is narrating like Jim Parsons has done, and it’s Gibbs’s origins , just like Sheldon.
and a bit like ‘endeavour’ – the ‘inspector morse’ prequel
This NCIS “spin back” is a good idea. I wish you luck in trying to cast a young Gibbs.
Does anyone see anything strange about the names of some of the commenters on this article? 🙄