2025 is proving to be one of the most exciting years ever for fans of NCIS, and a new announcement from CBS is giving viewers another reason to celebrate.
Even after more than two decades on television, the NCIS franchise continues to break new ground. One of the biggest highlights of the year has been the launch of the first streaming spinoff, NCIS: Tony & Ziva. The series reunited fan-favorite characters Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David, played by Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo, marking their first time sharing the screen since season 11 of NCIS back in 2013. The show’s first season was a huge success, and fans are already hoping for a second season.
CBS also made history this year by creating the first-ever three-hour NCIS primetime block. The network moved all three shows — NCIS, NCIS: Origins, and NCIS: Sydney — to Tuesday nights, giving fans an entire evening dedicated to the franchise.
Now, CBS has confirmed another exciting moment: a special crossover between NCIS and NCIS: Origins. And even better, original star Mark Harmon will return as Leroy Jethro Gibbs.
Harmon’s appearance will take place in the first part of the crossover episode on NCIS: Origins. Although he narrates the prequel series and made a brief cameo in its premiere, this will mark his first on-screen return to the franchise since leaving NCIS in season 19.
Fans are now wondering whether Gibbs might reunite with any of his former team members during the event. While CBS has not confirmed those details yet, the news of Harmon’s return alone has already generated major excitement.
The crossover will also feature the return of special agent Vera Strickland, played by Roma Maffia. The storyline begins with a mysterious naval officer’s death in the 1990s that draws the young Gibbs and his team into a complex investigation in the town of Serenity, California.
The story will then continue in NCIS, where a prison break forces the modern-day team to reopen the same case decades later.
Because the two shows take place in completely different timelines, this crossover will be one of the most unique moments in NCIS history — connecting the past and present of the beloved franchise in a way fans have never seen before.