Mark Harmon’s Legacy Lives On: How NCIS: Origins Is Shaping the Future of the Franchise

If you love NCIS for its characters more than for the drama, you’re in luck.

Although in typical procedural fashion, the show has always put the action at the front, and the characters’ personal lives in the background, after a whopping 23 seasons, fans naturally want more from the beloved characters.

The franchise has already given viewers more personal storylines through the years — and its latest spin-off NCIS: Origins makes it the priority — and now, its showrunners are focused on amping that up, more than ever.

Speaking to TVLine about what viewers can expect from season 23, which will premiere on CBS in the fall, showrunner Steven D. Binder said: “We really want to get to everyone in a big way.”

“I know people always say, ‘I watch the show for the characters’ — that was always our thing — and I really want to make this a character-forward show in a way we haven’t seen before,” he went on, and emphasized: “So, if you’re invested in these people, this is going to be the season for you.”

The NCIS franchise gets more personal than ever with its new prequel NCIS: Origins, which premiered last year, and which focuses on a young Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs, the character Mark Harmon starred as on the franchise’s original show for close to two decades.

Although certainly packed with action and drama, the show mainly focuses on giving fans an intimate glimpse into Gibbs’ early days as a special agent, and the personal events that shaped his role on NCIS.

Last month, Austin spoke with Deadline about the CBS series, which is weeks away from starting production on season two, and confessed it’s still nerve-wracking playing a younger version of Mark’s character, but he’s okay with that.

“I was scared for so many reasons,” he said, explaining: “There were just so many first times. For me, it was the first time doing a network TV show, first time playing a character that had already been portrayed before me, first time to be number one on a call sheet.”

“I’m someone who likes pressure; I like to be put in that situation. I want the ball in my hands at the bottom of the ninth. I feel like I do thrive in that situation,” he added.

However, he noted: “I don’t think I’ll ever quite get comfortable because, at the end of the day, Gibbs will always be Mark Harmon’s character, and I’m playing the younger version of that.”

Although Mark doesn’t have a role in the show per se, he does serve as both a narrator and an executive producer.