NCIS: Origins will dive much deeper into the lives of its team members throughout the rest of season 1. Thus far, the series has devoted much time to the young Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs, played in the show by Austin Stowell and in the original NCIS by Mark Harmon. Recent episodes, however, have shifted the focus to Mike Franks (played by Kyle Schmid), and other characters will soon get their due.
This is thanks to the work of showrunners Gina Lucita Monreal and David J. North, who have worked with the writers’ room to craft a story that they believe is more of a character study than a procedural. They aren’t saving all of those developments for a potential NCIS: Origins season 2, either, instead choosing to make the most of the real estate given to them by CBS during their first season. It seems as though they are taking the Origins name very seriously, and will work to recontextualize many different aspects of the beloved 20+ season flagship show.
ScreenRant interviews NCIS: Origins showrunners Gina Lucita Monreal and David J. North about their work shaping the direction of the prequel series. The pair spoke about spending more time developing other cast members and shifting the focus from Gibbs, and what might be in store for the rest of the season. Plus, they elaborate on the challenges of telling a new story within a pre-established world.
Gina Lucita Monreal Reveals The Challenge Of Writing A New Show To Fit Established NCIS Canon
“We Really Tried To Strike A Balance”
ScreenRant: What’s been the most challenging part of creating a show that you can watch without prior information, while still including aspects that connect back to NCIS?
Gina Lucita Monreal: I think it is partially just what you said. We really made a point to create a show for both our fans, which we adore and are so grateful for, but also for new viewers. So, we really tried to strike a balance between those two groups of people so that you don’t have to have seen any episodes of the mothership NCIS to understand and invest in Origins. But at the same time, we remain true to canon and try to give those Easter eggs to our existing fans as well.
Shows sometimes end up going to unexpected places when the characters get cast and the story takes on life. Have you run into any moments that had you saying, “I wish we could do this plot, but it doesn’t fit into these pre-established events”?
Gina Lucita Monreal: Yes, we run into that in the room all the time. We wish we could do certain things that we can’t, but those challenges, a lot of times, force us to create an even more creative story because we have those hurdles that we have to find a way around or over. So, it does create interesting challenges in the room, but there are things, for sure, that we wish we could do and we can’t because our hands are tied with canon. But we always try to remain true to what was established in the original show.
And that, too, sometimes creates difficulty for us because a lot of times there were two things established that don’t go together in the mothership, and we have to choose a route because there’s conflicting information in canon. So, we always talk through those things and try to come up with the best results that adhere to canon, but also remain true to these characters that we’re creating now.
David J. North Talks The Show’s Renewed Focus On Mike Franks
Audiences Will “See What Makes Franks Become The Guy That The NCIS Fans Love”
We shifted focus to Franks during the winter premiere. Are we going to see more Franks-related flashbacks in the latter half of season 1?
David J. North: We are. We’re going to dive into a little bit more of Mike Franks now and see what makes Franks become the guy that the NCIS fans love. Kyle Schmid, who does a fantastic job of portraying Franks, is really excited about diving into this.
Could we ever see Muse Watson as Franks in the future?
David J. North: Well, we don’t rule out anything. Of course, we know how Mike Franks’ life ended up and Muse’s version met his demise, but certainly we don’t rule out anything on Origins.
The Next NCIS: Origins Episodes Will Move The Focus Away From Gibbs
“This Show Is Much More Of A Character Study”
Since the first half of season 1 covered so much of Gibbs’ story, what plot line would you say is the focus of this next batch of episodes?
Gina Lucita Monreal: We’re definitely going to dive further into Franks’ backstory, and we’re excited to explore his character on a deeper level, but we also have a group of actors who are extraordinary. We’re so lucky to be able to write for this kind of talent, and we want to showcase that, so we have other episodes that feature our other cast members as well.
We have a Mary Jo episode, we have a Kowalski episode, an episode that focuses on Vera, and one with Wheeler. Now that we’ve sort of laid the groundwork with our Gibbs backstory in this back half of the season, we have the freedom to delve into those other characters on a
deeper level. We’re super excited about that.
Is the plan to give each character an episode dedicated to them and their backstory?
David J. North: We just kind of take it case-by-case. Gina and I are just in love with these characters, and this show is much more of a character study than it’s a procedural. So, when it feels like it’s the right time to tell a story of that character, that’s what we’ve been doing. We don’t really set out to say, “Okay, this episode has to be about Mary Jo,” [it’s] just if it feels right. But Gina mentioned that episode–that’ll be episode 14, and we just couldn’t be more proud of it.
Fans Will Learn Why Lala is The Focus Of NCIS: Origins & More About Her Relationship With Gibbs
North & Monreal Teased Revelations & Developments To Come
Fans were shocked when the premiere revealed that NCIS: Origins is Lala’s story. Is the explanation to that something you’re saving until the end of the series, or could it come earlier?
David J. North: We don’t want to say much, but I will say this: you will learn much more of that this season.
What’s next for Gibbs and Lala? They have such an interesting relationship and fans are obviously very invested in it.
Gina Lucita Monreal: We’re definitely going to see that relationship evolving and growing, and you can see that these two people care about each other. You can see there’s sparks between them, but they both have their guards up for a very good reason.
And we also know Gibbs’ history with marriage and dating in canon, so we also need to remain true to that. So again, that was an interesting challenge for us and continues to be. But the relationship between Gibbs and Lala is a unique and impactful one, and it’s one that we definitely want to highlight and see through to the end.
“Never Say Never”: Monreal & North Touch On Honoring The Original NCIS And Potentially Bringing In More Fan-Favorite Characters
“If The Right Idea Comes Up, Maybe There’s Something There”
You covered the flashbacks from NCIS season 3’s two-part “Hiatus” episode. What made you decide to portray those as flashbacks in Origins instead of chronologically?
Gina Lucita Monreal: That was something we talked about a lot when we first started our room and had the idea for the show. Because we had seen those flashbacks before, and it was such a huge part of who Gibbs was and is in the mothership, we wanted to approach it in a different kind of way–and hopefully a surprising kind of way–where you could see those moments but also understand what led up to it and what came after, [to] create more meaning around those iconic moments we’ve seen in the mothership.
Origins hasn’t touched too much on Shannon and Kelly’s story. Is that something we may learn more about in season 1, or maybe in season 2?
Gina Lucita Monreal: We never say never when it comes to the backstory of the characters, but as far as season 1, we will come back to that Gibbs story but the back half of the season is really going to showcase our other characters with Gibbs learning how to become a functioning member of that team. “Who is his identity within that team?” is more the focus of the second half of the season.
I was a major Caitlin Todd fan on NCIS. Obviously, it’s complicated because she and Gibbs didn’t work together until later in life, but has incorporating Kate into Origins ever come up in the writers’ room?
David J. North: To my knowledge, I believe, when I’ve been in there, it’s not come up, but I worked with Sasha [Alexander], who played Kate Todd in the early years of NCIS. I actually worked with her on Rizzoli & Isles too. I’m a huge fan of her and a huge fan of that character. So again, we never say never on anything. If the right idea comes up, maybe there’s something there.
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About NCIS: Origins Season 1
Created By Gina Lucita Monreal And David J. North
A young Gibbs embarks on his journey as a Naval Investigative Service agent in the early 1990s. Set against the backdrop of Camp Pendleton, the series explores Gibbs’ formative years, the cases that shaped him, and the mentors who guided his path, including Mike Franks.
NCIS: Origins airs Monday nights at 10/9c on CBS.