We’ve finally been given our first glimpse of Austin Stowell in costume as Leroy Jethro Gibbs for “NCIS: Origins,” and fans are bubbling with excitement over his transformation. While no one will ever truly replace Mark Harmon in the role, Instagram users have flown to Stowell’s account to share their thoughts about his new look, and the reactions are resoundingly positive across the board.
Many friends and members of Stowell’s family show up in the comments for the post, but as more and more fans of the drama have begun to follow him, their excitement to see what he brings to the table as Gibbs continues to grow. “Wow. Big fan. I am soooo there,” said martinigirl6979. “Already in love with Gibbs’s but young Gibbs’s (fire emoji),” said itzellie.lucy, adding two more fire emojis to boot. “Wow this is awesome! I’m a huge NCIS fan! Cannot wait to check this out!!” said amyrotchford. “So excited for ncis orgins,” agreed comfortedbyfiction.
While some audience members might be thrilled to see how “Origins” plays with Gibbs’ past and what types of secrets and untold truths about the “NCIS” universe might be lying in wait for them, there’s one fly in the ointment that’s preventing Stowell’s look as Gibbs from perfectly matching the one fans see the character sport in an episode of the original series.
NCIS: Origins’ take on Gibb’s look might be slightly off
There was one critic of Austin Stowell’s new look for Leroy Jethro Gibbs in the comments of his Instagram post, and they might just be on to something. “[T]his actor in this pic has too much hair, he needs to get a haircut to portray Gibbs correctly in 1991,” said hcoll20000. And they aren’t wrong, because this is an important detail that’s revealed when Gibbs (Mark Harmon) cuts his hair the way he would wear it during the period of time when “NCIS: Origins” takes place.
In the Season 3 finale, “Hiatus,” Gibbs has completely lost every memory he’s made since 1991. Shocked by his appearance, he cuts his hair into a military-style jarhead hairstyle with buzzed sides. This is apparently the haircut he was wearing during the time period the new show is set in, and it’s definitely not a match to what we see from Gibbs on “Origins.”
To be fair to the hair and makeup team on “NCIS: Origins” – who have already shared videos of Stowell’s makeover on the franchise’s Instagram – it’s possible that Gibbs switches to the haircut we see in the photo later in the 1990s. It’s certainly already shorter than the ‘do Stowell was sporting before, and it’s reasonable to believe that the series will fix this little continuity error. Until then, though, it looks like Gibbs will be keeping it a little long on top.