For nearly two decades, Mark Harmon was the steady heartbeat of NCIS as Leroy Jethro Gibbs. But despite becoming a household name, the actor admits it took years before he fully grasped just how massive the show had become.
In a resurfaced 2014 interview on The Queen Latifah Show, Harmon recalled the surreal moment his fame truly hit him—while quietly vacationing in Salzburg, Austria. “I was walking down the street… lederhosen, horse carts, cobblestones,” he said. “That’s the first time I knew the show was pretty popular.”
The peaceful European stroll turned into a dramatic realization when crowds suddenly stopped traffic just to stare at him. “That was a little bit different kind of fear,” he joked.
Harmon portrayed Gibbs for 18 seasons after debuting in 2003, later returning in 2025 for a cameo in the prequel NCIS: Origins. His surprise appearance sparked immediate fan speculation about a longer comeback.
Speaking to TV Insider, Harmon didn’t rule out more Gibbs in the future. “I try really hard to think about what’s best for the show,” he said. With Origins following a similar creative path to early NCIS, he added, “We’ll see.”
Interestingly, Harmon wasn’t always the guaranteed pick for Gibbs. Casting director Susan Bluestein revealed that nearly eleven major actors were considered first—including Chris Cooper, Patrick Swayze, Kevin Bacon, Clive Owen, and Alec Baldwin. Ultimately, Harmon became the face of the franchise.
With NCIS still dominating ratings and NCIS: Origins thriving, fans might just see Gibbs again. And if the enthusiastic response to his cameo is any clue, the door is wide open.
