There are plenty of reasons why an actor might want to leave a show, even one that's as highly
rated as NCIS. From personal decisions to behind-the-scenes drama, here are the real
reasons why these actors left the world of NCIS.
Michael Weatherly was one of the original cast members of the flagship NCIS. But working
in one place for over a dozen years can be a drag, even for an actor on a hit television
show. According to Weatherly, his decision to leave the show back in 2016 was one of
boredom. He was, quote, "burnt out by NCIS" and was tired of playing his character, Tony
DiNozzo, for 13 seasons. He told the Television Critics Association:
"It really felt like a circle that had gone all the way around, and I really felt happy
with the resolution of character and my time on the show."
It seems Weatherly wasn't too tired of the TV series grind in general, because a mere
two months after his departure from NCIS was made public, it was announced that the actor
would be the star of CBS' Bull, a series inspired by the early career of Dr. Phil McGraw. But
Weatherly's tenure on that show hasn't been without controversy. In December 2018, CBS
paid former Bull co-star, Eliza Dushku, $9.5 million to settle a sexual harassment claim
against Weatherly. Dushku said she was written out of the show after confronting the actor
about his behavior. Despite the big payout, Bull is still currently in production at CBS.
Pauley Perrette's decision to leave NCIS is one wrapped up in a bit of mystery.
"Okay, we have a lot to get through, so let's get started. Number one, am I okay? Yes."
When she announced her departure in 2017, she tweeted:
"It was a decision made last year. I hope everyone will love and enjoy EVERYTHING ABBY
not only for the rest of this season but for everything she has given all of us for 16
years."
Since then, Perrette has been clear about why she'll never return to NCIS. In June 2019,
she tweeted that she wasn't ever coming back to the show. Her reason? Well, according to
Perrette:
"I am terrified of Harmon and him attacking me. I have nightmares about it."
The whole thing apparently stems from Mark Harmon's dog biting an NCIS crew member, and
according to Perrette, quote, "a very powerful publicity 'machine'" was trying to keep her
silent about what went down between her and her co-star. As for CBS, the studio responded
to Perrette's allegations saying:
"Over a year ago, Pauley came to us with a workplace concern. We took the matter seriously
and worked with her to find a resolution. We are committed to a safe work environment
on all our shows."
Although not on the show from the start, Cote de Pablo's character, Ziva David, was a favorite
among the NCIS fanbase. She joined the show in 2005 for season three but left abruptly
in 2013 in the beginning of season 11. She was the first of the major characters to exit
the hit series, and after her departure, she told TV Guide:
"As far as my decision to leave, that's a personal thing...It was an overwhelmingly
hard thing, at times terrifying."
A few years later, though, the actress said her departure was because she felt the show
wasn't treating her character right. As she explained in a 2016 Q&A session:
"I worked eight years crafting this character and loving her. And so when I felt or I perceived
that the character was not being treated with the respect that she deserved, no money in
the world [would make me stay]."
De Pablo's Ziva did eventually return, however, appearing in both seasons 16 and 17.
When Sasha Alexander told producers she was ready to leave NCIS after two seasons, they
sent off her character with a bang.
Special Agent Kate Todd was shot in the head, shocking fans of the show. But why did she
leave in such a grisly way? As it turns out, she was just ready to move on.
Executive producer Donald P. Bellisario decided to give the character a dramatic send-off
when Alexander expressed a desire to depart. He told the Chicago Tribune:
"I had already started writing the last episode of the season and was getting ready to go
to Australia to take a little break. Sasha came in two days before I was to leave, and
with tears in her eyes, she said, 'I just can't work this hard.'"
After all, as the actress said to TV Guide in 2012:
"People don't realize that on a network show, you make 24 episodes a year, that's 10½ months
a year, 17 hours a day. It's hard core."
After leaving the show in 2005, Alexander went on to star in Rizzoli & Isles which ran
on TNT for seven seasons. She was also a recurring character on Shameless and has appeared on
several other shows, including Law & Order: SVU and Curb Your Enthusiasm.
Lauren Holly was a part of NCIS from seasons three to five, where she played Jenny Shepard,
the director in charge of the NCIS team. It was just supposed to be a six-episode guest-starring
arc, but Holly wound up playing the mysteriously ill director about 48 episodes. She eventually
left because she was tired of playing the character.
The actress had been taking a break prior to signing on with NCIS, so after three seasons,
she explained:
"To be honest, now that the work bug had bitten me again, I got bored with my part of the
Director."
However, it wasn't illness that killed off her character. Nope, Jenny Shepard was killed
by the fiance of a Russian crime lord that she'd been sent to take out years earlier.
Fortunately, Holly herself is alive and well, and she's appeared in movies like The Blackcoat's
Daughter and Crank: High Voltage, as well as a number of TV shows, including Designated
Survivor.
English-born Duane Henry joined NCIS in season 13, playing Clayton Reeves, a former British
MI-6 officer who joins the NCIS International Desk. Sadly, Henry was only on the show for
two seasons before being killed off in the same episode where Pauley Perrette makes her
final appearance as Abby.
Henry says his exit was partly due to the fact that the show didn't know what to do
with his character after the death of former NCIS showrunner Gary Glasberg. As Henry explained
to TV Line:
"Gary was obviously 'my guy.'...Clayton was Gary's brainchild, he created this character.
So when Gary passed, I was feeling a bit of panic in people's faces. I could tell that
they were not really sure [what the future held]."
As a result, Henry knew the end could be near for his character, and he prepared himself
for his departure. When asked if he was upset about the way Clayton actually went out, the
actor said:
"This is TV history at its finest. You can't ask for a better exit. Like, come on, man."
Although Henry's exit from the show was completely amicable, the fact that his character was
killed means we've definitely seen the last of Clayton Reeves on NCIS.
Jennifer Esposito might have only been on a single season of NCIS, but she definitely
made an impact with fans as Special Agent Alexandra Quinn. Prior to joining NCIS, Quinn
had spent 15 years training agents, including Bishop, Torres, and McGee. So fans were surprised
when it was revealed Esposito wouldn't be returning to the hit show. There was some
speculation that the actress might've been ill. At least that's what Esposito had been
hearing when she addressed the rumors on Twitter herself saying:
"No, I am not ill, but I so appreciate your concern. Was not meant to be there long but
happy I was. Met some great new friends! Love 2u all."
According to Esposito, Quinn wasn't going to be a long-term character, and her departure
from NCIS wasn't as surprising as it seemed. However, there's always a chance that Quinn
could return at some point, as she'd merely left the team to care for her mother, who'd
been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.
One of the show's most mysterious departures was Zoe McLellan's exit from NCIS: New Orleans.
At the time, producers called it a "creative decision," but a 2019 article by Vulture reveals
an entirely different reason for McLellan's character, Special Agent Meredith Brody, being
written out of the show: She was fired.
According to the publication, NCIS: New Orleans' original showrunner, Jeffrey Lieber, said
he was under tremendous pressure to, quote, "get on board" with firing McLellan. Lieber
wasn't told why his higher-ups wanted her gone, and said he fought back, explaining:
"I thought she was doing a good job and that the audience was connected to her, especially
because testing bore that out."
So what was the real reason the CBS brass wanted her gone? As Lieber explained:
"Finally, one powerful man putting pressure on me just admitted to me that the problem
was that Les didn't find her 'f--able' enough, and that he had felt that way from day one."
Les is, of course, Les Moonves, the former CBS chairman who resigned in 2018 after multiple
sexual harassment allegations were brought against him. After Lieber's departure from
the show, Brad Kern took over as showrunner and proceeded to talk poorly about McLellan.
Kern apparently told his staff he didn't, quote, "find her sexually attractive."
McLellan has refused to comment on any of these revelations. In 2018, Kern stepped down
as showrunner but remained as a consulting producer. After an outside party was brought
in to investigate a third charge of sexual harassment, Kern was finally fired from the
show, and his deal with CBS was terminated.
Shalita Grant's departure from NCIS: New Orleans seemed to come as a shock to fans of the show.
She was originally hired as a recurring character, ATF Agent Sonja Percy, and she became a full-time
cast member as an NCIS special agent in season two. Grant was with the show through most
of season four, but there isn't much info about the specific reasons why she left the
series.
According to Deadline, the actress said her decision to leave the show was, quote, "mutually
agreed upon." Variety reported that the split from the show was "amicable," and in the same
article, Grant's manager said:
"It's just time for a change."
Fans of NCIS: New Orleans were absolutely stunned when Special Agent Christopher LaSalle
was shot and killed in the middle of season six. After being shot in the chest, it looked
as though the beloved character would pull through, but instead, he died in the hospital
in front of his shocked team.
"That's enough."
"No, no, no, please, there's gotta be something you can do."
"Time."
"7:02."
It was a tragic moment for the characters on the show, and it was also pretty heartbreaking
for fans at home. After all, actor Lucas Black had been with the series from day one, and
his Southern drawl and down-home charm endeared him to viewers. Black posted a video on Instagram
for fans of NCIS: New Orleans to watch after his last episode aired, where he told fans:
"Well, that's all she wrote for Agent LaSalle."
And he went on to say:
"I wanted to take this time personally to thank all of you fans out there for your love
and support."
So, why exactly did Black leave the show after six seasons? According to the actor, he felt
he needed to put his focus on his family. In a video posted on Deadline, Black said
that working on the show wasn't easy for him:
"There's a lot of priorities in my life that get sacrificed for me to be here, but it's
time for me to focus on those priorities in my life."
Miguel Ferrer played NCIS Assistant Director Owen Granger on NCIS: Los Angeles from its
beginning in 2009 until his untimely death in 2017. Sadly, Ferrer died from throat cancer
at the age of 61, and his condition was written into the show by having Granger suffer from
an unnamed disease.
Although frail towards the end of his life, Ferrer appeared on the show for as long as
he could. Chris O'Donnell, Ferrer's long time co-star, thinks that he hung on longer than
he might have because Ferrer looked forward to coming to work. As he told CBS:
"I think the show was kind of keeping him alive for a while there because it gave him
something to look forward to."
After Ferrer passed away, the show paid tribute to the actor with an "In Memoriam" in the
closing credits, as well as playing a version of "Knocking on Heaven's Door" recorded by
Ferrer and his band, the Jenerators.
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