NCIS’ Michael Weatherly Shares When He Felt CBS Finally ‘Knew What They Had’ With The Show, And I’m Amazed It Took So Long

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NCIS’ Michael Weatherly Shares When He Felt CBS Finally ‘Knew What They Had’ With The Show, And I’m Amazed It Took So Long

As an ardent fan of NCIS, I can’t help but marvel at its enduring legacy that spans over two decades. The show has been a staple in my television diet for years, and it’s fascinating to delve into the behind-the-scenes stories that bring our favorite characters to life.

In the coming month, TV viewers can look forward to the debut of the 22nd season of NCIS on the 2024 television calendar, which positions it as one of the longest-running prime-time procedurals. Throughout its many decades on air, the beloved CBS series has seen a multitude of actors join and depart, such as Michael Weatherly, who played Anthony DiNozzo for the first 13 seasons before reappearing briefly in this year’s tribute episode dedicated to David McCallum. Reflecting on his time with NCIS, Weatherly recalls that it took CBS an unusually long period to fully appreciate the show and effectively market it.

During a chat on the show Off Duty: An NCIS Rewatch, Cote de Pablo (who played Ziva David) and her co-star, Michael Weatherly (who played Tony DiNozzo), reminisced about the Season 7 premiere episode “Truth or Consequences”. In this episode, Tony, Gibbs, and McGee infiltrated a prison camp in Somalia to save Ziva. During this mission, Tony was captured by the bad guys and given truth serum during interrogation. An improvised line from Weatherly’s performance caught CBS’s attention and ended up being used in one of their advertisements. The actor shared that he was the one who came up with the line.

I was under the truth serum. I knew that I was scared to death… but I also knew that Gibbs was somewhere, that I knew I had the angel somewhere. So I had the confidence of somebody who’s like, ‘Do whatever you want to me. It’s not going to end well for you, but you do whatever you want.’ So at one point, he hit me and I said, ‘Can I get a glass of chardonnay? Because that would go so well with the taste of blood I have in my mouth’ or whatever. And they actually cut that into the commercial, the ad lib about asking for a glass of chardonnay.

It’s clear that NCIS has been thriving in its run so far, or else it would have been taken off the air long ago. However, according to Michael Weatherly, this “Truth or Consequences” ad was the first time he felt that CBS was accurately promoting the show, a sentiment he believes took over five years to reach. In his view, the ads from the initial six seasons didn’t capture the essence of NCIS beyond being just another typical procedural. To quote him:

It seemed to me that at that point, the network had a clear understanding of what they were working with, and they began creating previews for the upcoming episode. This excited me too, as I enjoyed dissecting these sneak peeks since I was an avid viewer. Initially, I thought, ‘These people don’t watch this show.’ They’re putting together these trailers for next week’s episode, and it features something like, ‘On NCIS: Navy, the team faces a… the crime scene is their battleground.’ I found myself thinking, ‘This isn’t the show I know.’

Previously in the “Off Duty” episode, Michael Weatherly expressed that he believes NCIS stands apart from other procedurals such as FBI and Law & Order, because at certain moments it takes on the tone of a workplace comedy, while at others it resembles a romantic thriller. However, due to earlier advertisements, Weatherly felt that CBS didn’t effectively promote NCIS until Season 7. Consequently, people who had merely heard about the show but hadn’t watched it formed an inaccurate impression of his work experience on the series.

On occasion, people would comment, “It must be tough for you. Your energy and humor seem perfect for crime procedurals, but don’t you ever get tired of it?” To which I’d reply, “No, you haven’t watched the show.” In truth, I never grew bored on that set, which allowed me to work there for 13 years without feeling weary.

13 years is quite a significant tenure for any actor in a show like NCIS, and following his exit from the main cast, Michael Weatherly continued to shine as the lead in CBS’s Bull for six seasons. Now, he’s returning to his beloved role of Tony DiNozzo, this time sharing the screen with Cote de Pablo, in the upcoming spinoff series, NCIS: Tony and Ziva. Unlike other NCIS shows, this production will be a Paramount+ exclusive, bypassing its initial airing on CBS.

We’ll make sure to inform you as soon as the release date for the series “NCIS: Tony & Ziva” is revealed. Until then, you can enjoy this TV franchise by following “NCIS” Season 22 and the prequel “NCIS: Origins“, both premiering on Monday, October 14.

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2024-09-10 17:07