The latest update on NCIS season 23 reveals that a veteran TV star has been cast as the sibling of a major character. Heading into a new round of episodes, the long-running CBS franchise is experiencing a bit of a change. It’ll move to Tuesdays, joined by NCIS: Origins and NCIS: Sydney, with NCIS season 23 debuting on October 13 at 8 PM.
It’ll also feature some shifts in terms of story, as well, with Alden Parker (Gary Cole) potentially facing his most personal foe yet. However, in some good news, Parker will not have to go through the difficult time alone.
TVLine reveals that The Kominsky Method and Last Man Standing star Nancy Travis has joined NCIS season as Navy Vice Admiral Harriet Parker, the sister of Alden Parker, in a guest role. Travis will make her debut as Harriet in the upcoming season’s two-part premiere, and it comes at a crucial time for Alden.
What This Means For NCIS Season 23
In the NCIS season 22 finale, Carla Marino (Rebecca De Mornay) double-crosses Alden and kills his father. It’s a shocking turn, especially since the rest of the finale treats the dynamic between Carla and Alden as a romantic comedy waiting to happen. In reality, Carla is rageful at Alden because of the death of her son. She dispenses with Alden’s father as an act of revenge.
It makes sense that Harriet would make her debut appearance against this tragic backdrop. According to the reporting on her casting, Travis’ character will have a bit of a competitive dynamic with Alden that goes back to their childhood. It will serve to further complicate their jobs. Showrunner and executive producer Steven D. Binder mentions, in particular, that the two siblings are very different.
Travis is the first new NCIS cast member that’s been announced for the upcoming season, but she’s a very familiar face to audiences. She’s best known for her roles as Sylvia Bennington in Three Men and a Baby, Vanessa Baxter in Last Man Standing, opposite Tim Allen, and Lisa in Netflix’s The Kominsky Method.
She also starred in the movie Greedy alongside Michael J. Fox, co-led the romcom So I Married an Axe Murderer, with Mike Myers, and recurred in Becker alongside Ted Danson. She was most recently seen in the short-lived NBC series Grosse Pointe Garden Society.
Our Take On The New NCIS Casting
After the death of his father, something big had to happen with Alden. Bringing in his sister may just be the right move. Perhaps, while she’s there, Harriet could even illuminate the long-standing Lily mystery that NCIS has going.
