You can't make an omelette without breakin a few eggs. And you can't become the number
one drama on television without generating at least a little bit of offscreen drama.
That's certainly the case with NCIS. The hit procedural might be popular now, but it wasn't
an easy path. What went on behind the scenes to make this one of the highest rated shows
on television? That's a question worthy of its own investigation.
Title troubles
Few people remember it now, but when NCIS first spun off from its parent show JAG in
2003, it was far from a guaranteed success. In fact, CBS was worried that the show would
be overshadowed by the network's runaway smash, CSI. So, CBS called the show Navy NCIS for the
first season in order to minimize confusion over the similar acronyms. Showrunner and
creator Donald Bellisario eventually convinced the network to drop the "Navy" part because
it's totally redundant. The "N" in NCIS already stands for "Naval." It’s a lot to keep track
of:
"Federal agents don't move!"
"LAPD!"
"NSA!"
"NCIS!"
"MOUSE!"
Mark Harmon’s rage
Bellisario abruptly left NCIS in 2007 for a very unexpected reason: Star Mark Harmon
forced him out. Reportedly, the two tangled behind the scenes for months over Harmon's
dissatisfaction with Bellisario's "chaotic management style." It led to a showdown, and
the network decided they could live without Bellisario, who was forced to resign. The
show continued with a presumably happy Harmon, sitting pretty. Bellisario still got the last
word, however...
NCIS: Lawsuit Angeles
Given the huge success of NCIS, it seems like a no-brainer that it would eventually spawn
a spinoff. But the creation of NCIS: Los Angeles in 2009 actually led to a major lawsuit. That's
because NCIS creator Donald Bellisario had a clause in his contract giving him the right
to create the first spinoff. After he was forced off the show, CBS hired Shane Brennan
to create the offshoot show instead. After years of legal wrestling, they settled out
of court for an undisclosed amount. At an estimated net worth of $250 million, Bellisario
certainly isn’t suffering either way.
NCIS: Red
In 2013, NCIS was poised to add yet another series to its franchise in the form of NCIS:
Red. Introduced in a two-episode arc on NCIS: Los Angeles, NCIS: Red was going to star John
Corbett as the leader of Red Team, an anti-terrorist unit within NCIS.
"One NCIS team isn't enough"
The network decided they didn't really dig what they saw in the backdoor pilot and the
series was canceled before it ever began. Instead, the network launched NCIS: New Orleans.
Don Johnson… almost
Mark Harmon has been the face of NCIS for well over a decade now. But viewers could
have actually seen a very different face in the role of Agent Leroy Gibbs. That's because
the role was actually offered to Don Johnson first—and he turned it down. He wasn't the
only candidate, though. Rumor has it that NCIS: New Orleans star Scott Bakula was also
on the original shortlist for Agent Gibbs way back in the day, since Bellisario and
Bakula had previously worked together on Quantum Leap. By the time NCIS: New Orleans came along,
the showrunners knew the right man for the job was Bakula. Cause he's spectaculah.
Pauley Perrette’s Twitter blunder
In 2013, actress Cote de Pablo, who played fan favorite NCIS agent Ziva David, abruptly
announced her departure from the show. It was a surprise not only to fans, but to her
co-stars. Around the same time, Perrette posted a tweet of herself wearing a shirt she’d
received in 2007, which said "I love my job." It seemed innocent enough, but it set off
a minor Twitter war with de Pablo’s fans, who saw it as an attack. Allegedly, de Pablo
called Perrette to ask that she stop tweeting about the situation. Perrette shut down her
feed for less than a day. She should have just worn this shirt instead.
Perrette's personal life
While Perrette has clearly been the subject of real-world drama, she's done her best to
turn lemons into lemonade by using her position as a platform for advocacy. In 2006, she revealed
that her former husband Francis “Coyote” Shivers had subjected her to years of physical
and emotional abuse. And just in 2015, after she was randomly attacked by a mentally ill
homeless man, she began championing the rights of the homeless.
"Just to be really super grateful to be alive, but the other part is that, like, my heart
breaks for that guy, and it breaks for every single person that's out there on the street."
She’s also stood up for marriage equality, and even recorded music with a positive message
for victims of abuse.
Diane Neal’s Twitter meltdown
In 2015, guest star Diane Neal launched an angry Twitter attack on NCIS: New Orleans.
Upset over safety issues she encountered on set while filming, Neal called the show’s
production "dangerous and stupid." Saying stuff like "they just use me like a rented
mule" and "these folks don't give a damn," didn’t go over well behind the scenes. Neal
apologized and deleted the tweets. Some sharp-eyed folks on Reddit captured the drama and preserved
it for posterity, however. Moral of the story: never tweet angry.
A very important cameo
With three different shows and more than 20 combined seasons, the NCIS franchise has had
a lot of high-profile guest stars. But none of them can quite match the star power of
First Lady Michelle Obama, who appeared as herself on the series in early 2016. Her appearance
was made in support of Joining Forces, a "nationwide initiative supporting service members, veterans,
and their families."
Kinda makes that time Taylor Swift showed up on CSI seem pretty lame by comparison.
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