NCIS: Origins: Everything We Know About CBS’ Young Gibbs Prequel Series

Claire Franken

May 3, 2024 at 4:40 AM·4 min read

Who’s excited for NCIS: Origins? In anticipation of the CBS prequel — and Mark Harmon‘s return to the well-watched franchise — TVLine is breaking down everything you need to know about the newest NCIS series.

In January 2024, CBS announced a straight-to-series order for the spinoff, which will be set in the early ’90s and follow a young version of Harmon’s longtime NCIS protagonist Leroy Jethro Gibbs as a new agent at the NCIS Camp Pendleton office. The show will chronicle Gibbs’ early career as he forges his own path on a team led by NCIS legend Mike Franks.

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Mark Harmon will not appear in the series, but he will serve as its narrator as well as executive producer. His son, Sean Harmon, who has played Young Gibbs in NCIS flashbacks and came up with the idea for the prequel, will also serve as an EP alongside co-showrunners Gina Lucita Monreal and David J. North.

“We’re thrilled to be bringing this new chapter to life along with Mark and Sean Harmon,” Monreal and North said in a statement when the series was announced. “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.”

So read on to get all of your burning questions about NCIS: Origins answered, including the latest updates on characters, casting, the release date and where to watch new episodes.

When Will NCIS: Origins Take Place?

NCIS: Origins is winding back the clock to 1991, where we will visit the early life of Harmon’s longtime NCIS protagonist Gibbs. CBS announced that the series will follow Young Gibbs as a “newly minted special agent at the fledgling NIS Camp Pendleton office where he forges his place on a gritty, ragtag team led by NIS legend Mike Franks.”

Which NCIS Characters Will Appear in the Prequel?

So far, young versions of Harmon’s Gibbs, Muse Watson’s Mike Franks and Roma Maffia’s Vera Strickland have been confirmed to appear in the spinoff.

While Harmon’s real-life son Sean Harmon (pictured above) has portrayed his dad’s character in the past, Sean is focusing on producing the spinoff, and as such a new actor was cast in the key role in NCIS: Origins.

Which Actors Have Been Cast in NCIS: Origins?

Austin Stowell, whose TV credits include Secret Life of the American Teenager and Peacock’s A Friend of the Family, was tapped to play Gibbs, beating out several TV vets (including a few named here). (Sean Harmon, who previously played Young Gibbs in a handful of NCIS episodes over the years, made the choice to focus on producing the spinoff.)

Kyle Schmid (SIX) will portray a young version of Mike Franks, the special agent originated on NCIS by Muse Watson. The character is described as “a proud Texan who all but showers in his cowboy boots and sports a perfectly coiffed mustache that’s as thick as his skin.”

Kyle Schmid NCIS Origins — Kyle SchmidIrvin Rivera @graphicsmetropolis

Other series regulars include Mariel Molino (Promised Land) as Special Agent Lala Dominguez, a former Marine with a dark sense of humor (and whose dynamic with Gibbs is “filled with sparks”); Diany Rodriguez (The Blacklist) as Special Agent Vera Strickland, “a no-nonsense, sharp-witted Brooklynite who’s tough as nails and never minces words” (a character originated by Nip/Tuck‘s Roma Maffia in the Season 11 NCIS installment “Under the Radar”); Caleb Martin Foote (Made for Love) as Special Agent Benjamin “Randy” Randolf, the agency’s all-too-lovable “golden boy” who is tasked with showing the newly minted Agent Gibbs the ropes; and Tyla Abercrumbie (The Chi) as Field Operation Support Officer Mary Jo Hayes, a “mama bear” who has wryly dubbed herself “HSIC” — Head Secretary in Charge.

NCIS Origins Cast Prequel Spinoff — Diany Rodriguez and Tyla AbercrumbieGetty Images (2)

Among recurring guest stars, Australian Longmire vet Robert Taylor will play Jackson Gibbs, the hard-nosed father of one-day NCIS team leader Jethro; Daniel Bellomy (Power Book II: Ghost) will play Special Agent Granville “Granny” Dawson, a “probie” who’s cutting his teeth as the Evidence Custodian’s assistant; Patrick Fischler (Mad Men) will play Special Agent in Charge Cliff Walker, who oversees the agency’s fledgling Pendleton office; Julian Black Antelope (Tribal) has been cast as Chief Medical Examiner Kai Blackrock; and Lori Petty (Orange Is the New Black) and Bobby Moynihan (SNL) will fill the recurring roles of an assistant medical examiner and a lead forensics analyst.

When Will NCIS: Origins Be Released and Where Can I Watch It?

The NCIS prequel series is slated to debut this fall on CBS, airing Mondays at 10/9c (leading out of NCIS, and replacing the cancelled NCIS: Hawai’i) — though the double-episode series premiere will air Monday, Oct. 14 at 9 pm, leading out of the NCIS Season 22 opener.

NCIS: Origins episodes will also be available to be live-streamed on Paramount+ for those who subscribe to the premium subscription with Showtime. For all other Paramount+ subscribers, NCIS: Origins episodes will be streamed the day after they air (as is the case with NCIS.)