Show summary Hide summary
Mark Harmon will return as Leroy Jethro Gibbs in NCIS: Origins Season 3, CBS confirmed — and his comeback spans the entire season. The series resumes Tuesday, October 6 at 10 p.m. ET/PT, and the network has released first-look images of Harmon back in the role.
How Gibbs comes back
Decapitated heads and a necklace of teeth found with Stone Age man in Poland
Morgan Riddle shares how to nail tenniscore in 2026
The season opener, titled “Don’t You Forget About Me,” places Gibbs in the present day, living in retirement in Alaska, before events from his past upend his quiet life. According to showrunner David J. North, those past events are enough to threaten Gibbs’ newfound peace and could pull him out of retirement.
North said he and Harmon had discussed a return for some time. He described the Alaska setup — Gibbs content and accompanied by a rescue dog — and added that Harmon was eager to give longtime viewers what they wanted. “Mark and I had been talking for a while about how exciting it would be for the fans for Gibbs to return,” North said.
Two timelines, one mystery
Season 3 will juggle present-day investigation with scenes set in the 1990s. North says the central mystery in the current timeline connects directly to Gibbs’ days at Camp Pendleton in the early ’90s.
The premiere also includes a 1992 sequence in which the team races to free a kidnapped Randy, played by Caleb Foote. Simultaneously, the younger Gibbs (Austin Stowell) and Lala (Mariel Molino) wrestle with the fallout from their recent kiss.
Harmon’s involvement behind the scenes
Harmon, who serves as the show’s narrator and an executive producer, agreed to return for a season-long arc. When asked whether he needed convincing to stay for the full run, North was blunt: “Honestly, no. Mark is such a huge supporter of the show and was happy to do it.”
Character drama and returning faces
The writers are leaning into interpersonal storylines as much as procedural ones. North singled out the evolving relationship between the series’ Gibbs (Austin Stowell) and Lala as a major thread this season. Their dynamic, he said, is complicated and will offer plenty to unpack.
When asked about the possibility of other familiar NCIS figures appearing, North described it as “a definite possibility,” leaving the door open for cameos or crossovers without confirming specific returnees.
’90s nostalgia and tone
Producers are consciously mining the decade for atmosphere. The season includes a recreated Blockbuster Video set, intended to evoke that era for viewers and cast alike. North promised a mix of character-driven moments, action sequences, and “great clue trails” to follow.
Stakes for Gibbs
Showrunner North declined to say whether Gibbs’ fate will be resolved by season’s end. “You’ll just have to wait and see. NCIS does have a history of doing that sort of thing,” he said, adding that the character means a great deal to the creative team and that he’s personally “rooting for him.”
