NCIS is CBS’ drama series following the personal and professional lives of a team of special agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (also known as the NCIS), a federal law enforcement part of the United States Department of the Navy that investigates criminal activities involving the Navy and the United States Marine Corps, as well as their families. The series, which premiered in 2003, is part of a multi-show franchise that includes NCIS: Los Angeles, NCIS: New Orleans, NCIS: Hawai’i, NCIS: Sydney, and the upcoming NCIS: Origins.
The long-running drama is set to air its Season 21 finale on Monday, May 6, 2024. However, fans are concerned that two characters might not make it through the episode. The teaser for “Reef Madness” shows Gary Cole’s character, Alton Parker, suffering an injury when a heavy metal pipe falls on him during a mission with Special Agent Jessica Knight, played by Katrina Law. As Parker lies on the ground in pain, Knight shouts, “Parker!”
To make matters worse, the trailer’s final moments depict Dr. Jimmy Palmer (Brian Dietzen) and NCIS Special Agent Nicholas Torres (Wilmer Valderrama) searching a ship, calling out the names of Parker and Knight. The scene ends with Knight underwater, casting doubt on the safety of both her and Parker.
However, a recent interview with Deadline might shed light on who dies and is leaving the show after all. While speaking at CBS’ Fall Schedule Celebration in Hollywood last night, Gary Cole revealed whether he exiting the drama.
“Nobody told me if I am,” he told Deadline when asked if he was leaving the show. “You’ll have to watch to find out but, no.”
Now that we know Cole isn’t leaving NCIS, could this confirm the fate of Law’s Jessica Knight? The actress warned that fans will also feel the devastation during these “life and death situations.”
“I have to say, this is one of my favorite NCIS scripts. It is so well written,” she added. “I’m hoping that in the execution, we brought it justice and that the audience is going to love it. I got to do a lot of scene work with Gary Cole, who is an amazing human being and an even more amazing actor. He knocked it out of the park. There were times in these scenes when I was watching him act and I was devastated watching him because he was that brilliant.”
However, longtime NCIS cast member Brian Dietzen said fans should be worried about more characters beyond Parker and Knight.
“They shouldn’t just be worried about Gary Cole, they should worry about a lot of characters. No character is safe, that’s what NCIS stands for, I think,” he joked. “I’ll tell you this, Gary Cole and Katrina Law knock it out of the park in this episode. There are a lot of things that are going to be happening, not just the danger that our characters are put through, but also dynamics that are going to be shifting. Potentially even between Jimmy and Jess, this couple that has been fantastic for the last two years. I have to say, it’s my favorite finale script that we’ve had in years. It’s so good.”
