This fall, Leroy Jethro Gibbs will have his backstory explored with the all-new television series NCIS: Origins. The prequel show will star Austin Stowell as the younger Gibbs, though Mark Harmon will be voicing the older version of the character as the series narrator.
Per TV Insider, Stowell opened up on taking over the role of Gibbs after Harmon had spent years establishing the character in NCIS. With this in mind, Stowell knows that it will be a challenge to make the character his own, so he's been doing his very best to prepare. This includes watching numerous episodes of NCIS to try and better get into the mind of the Gibbs character. Stowell also noted how working with Harmon on the series has helped the process, going on to share the advice that was given with playing Gibbs moving forward.
“Mark Harmon has done a job that actors dream to do. He’s captured the world and so that is just slightly daunting,” says Stowell who watched numerous episodes to prepare. “But getting to know Mark has really been paramount to me stepping into these shoes and trying to fill them.”
Harmon also told Stowell to "trust yourself
NCIS Spinoff Set Photo Reunites Tony & Ziva
Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo are spotted on the set of their upcoming NCIS spinoff series – NCIS:Tony & Ziva.
There will be no less than three actors who've played Gibbs that will be working on NCIS: Origins. Of course, that includes Stowell and Harmon, who are sharing the role in the prequel series, though the latter will be in voice only. Harmon's real-life son, Sean Harmon, is also on board for the prequel series as an executive producer alongside his father. Notably, Sean previously played a younger version of Gibbs in flashback scenes in the main NCIS series. It was also the younger Harmon's idea to push for a prequel series focusing on Gibbs' rise in the agency.
“I believe that very few people are actually ‘born leaders’ and are instead forged into them, and Gibbs is no exception,” Sean Harmon said about his motivation for doing the series. “Digging into the backstory of ‘the boss’ seemed like a good opportunity to find out why Gibbs turned out the way he did and who was around to influence him on that journey.”
Gibbs' History Is Explored in NCIS: Origins
The series will pick up after Gibbs loses his family and joins the NIS team. There will be other characters featured in NCIS to be included in the prqeul series, as Kyle Schmid is playing a younger Mike Franks in the new show. Muse Watson played the older Franks in NCIS.
NCIS: Origins will premiere on Oct. 14, 2024.
