NCIS season 18 saw Maria Bello’s Jack Sloane leave the series, while rumors swirled that Leroy Jethro Gibbs (Mark Harmon) would also be leaving.
While Gibbs is confirmed to return for season 19, CBS’s long-running hit NCIS has seen several key cast members depart over time. Here’s why actors like Pauley Perrette (Abby), Cote de Pablo (Ziva), and Michael Weatherly (Tony DiNozzo) decided to leave the show.
Why NCIS Cast Members Left the Series
Sasha Alexander – Caitlin Todd
One of the biggest shocks of the early days of NCIS was the assassination of Caitlin Todd while confronting a terrorist organization. Behind the scenes, Sasha Alexander asked to end her six-year contract earlier than expected. The official reason at the time was that she wanted to move on to new projects.
In an interview with the Chicago Tribune, then-showrunner Donald P. Bellisario revealed, “Sasha came to me with tears in her eyes, and she said, ‘I can’t work this hard anymore. We work so many hours, and Sasha just doesn’t feel like she can handle that amount of work and commitment.’”
Alexander also shared in a 2012 interview that working on a national television series can be brutal: “People don’t understand that doing a major network show is shooting 24 episodes a year. That’s almost 11 months straight, 17 hours a day. It’s a lot of work.”
Cote de Pablo – Ziva David
Cote de Pablo was brought in to replace Alexander in season 3, but she left NCIS in season 10 when Ziva returned to Israel. Ziva was later presumed dead when her compound was bombed, but she made a surprise return for seasons 16 and 17.
In a 2013 interview with TV Guide, de Pablo revealed her reasons for leaving the show: “The decision to leave was a personal one, something I wanted to keep private. It wasn’t something I considered for a long time, it was very difficult, even scary.”
In 2016, she shared at a Q&A that: “I felt like the character wasn’t being treated well. They wanted to send her back to Israel, to make her a miserable, broken woman. I thought, ‘What am I going to leave behind for the women who have watched this character for so many years?’ I didn’t think that was fair. I said if there wasn’t a great script, I wouldn’t come back.”
Michael Weatherly – Tony DiNozzo
A season one original, Weatherly left NCIS season 13 and quickly landed a starring role on the CBS series Bull.
In a 2016 interview with The Hollywood Reporter, he shared: “It was the right time. I was tired of NCIS and needed a new challenge. Sometimes a change is like a vacation.”
He added: “It felt like a full circle and I was very happy with the end of the character and my time on the show.”
Pauley Perrette – Abby Sciuto
One of the most controversial departures, Pauley Perrette left NCIS in 2018 after 15 seasons.
She went public with several allegations regarding the work environment, mostly on Twitter. In May 2018, Perrette mentioned “multiple physical assaults” on set. When a fan asked if she would return to NCIS in 2019, she replied: “NO, I WILL NOT BE BACK! (Please don’t ask.) I was scared of Mark Harmon and worried about being attacked by him. I have nightmares about it.”
She also suggested that the reason for her departure was related to Harmon’s dog on set, even posting photos showing that someone on the crew had been injured by a dog.
CBS released a statement: “Pauley Perrette had an amazing time at NCIS and we all miss her. Over a year ago, Pauley raised a workplace issue. We took it seriously and have found a solution. We are committed to a safe work environment for all of our shows.”
CBS Entertainment chief Kelly Kahl also shared: “I can’t comment on what she tweeted. She came to us with a concern, we investigated and resolved it. Pauley also did a show called Broke on CBS this year and I think if she had concerns, she wouldn’t have come back.”
Maria Bello – Jack Sloane
The most recent departure from NCIS is Maria Bello, who decided not to renew her contract for the next three seasons after season 18.
Unlike Perrette, Bello shared on Instagram that she had a great time on the show: “I learned a lot over the past three and a half years. I learned about commitment and teamwork. I learned that I enjoy the process more than the outcome. I have never worked with such a kind and generous group of people.”
