NCIS: Tony & Ziva was canceled at the end of 2025, but could we still see the franchise's favorite showmance on the 2026 TV schedule? I'm not ruling it out completely, especially after spotting an interview with Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo in which it was hinted that there are still more stories to tell between them.

Weatherly signaled there was more to cover with Tony and Ziva in a Reels shared by EW, as they spoke about the dynamic between the two that NCIS fans have loved for so long. While readers can revisit the one-off season with a Paramount+ subscription, Weatherly hinted there were stories beyond that adventure worth getting into beyond that:

The good news is that even if NCIS: Tony & Ziva is over, the couple always has the ability to appear in a storyline on the flagship series or even the new spinoff NCIS: New York. I know there are some people hating on the latest series on the way, so maybe bringing back Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo's characters for a guest appearance could smooth the waters.

There weren't enough Tiva fans to support a series on streaming, but surely enough to help give a boost to a new network television spinoff. At the end of the day, the show ending wasn't a result of lost chemistry between its two stars. As Cote de Pablo mentioned how their first day of shooting the spinoff went:

Having seen the two interact at San Diego Comic-Con before NCIS: Tony & Ziva premiered, I can confirm that there's something special about Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo's dynamic. I would love to see them return in future adventures, and maybe there's even room for that on Season 24 of NCIS.

The CBS procedural appears to be hinting at a romance between Nick Torres and Jessica Knight. I think Tony and Ziva would be the perfect couple to mentor two NCIS agents who are thinking about a relationship and letting them in on the ins and outs of doing dangerous work alongside your partner. Maybe they can stop by when Jessica's ex Jimmy Palmer leaves to hike Mt. Kilimanjaro?

Season 24 of NCIS seems like it'll be a jam-packed season, with a big cliffhanger to resolve and a hint that Alden Parker may lean into his darker side. While he's flown the straight and narrow in terms of abiding by the law so far, he helped execute Director Vance's killer when he cut a deal that would've left him walking free instead. I'm curious to see how much the series will lean into that storyline, and who may need to stand in for Parker if he's put on leave. I know two former agents who would be great stand-ins!

NCIS: Tony & Ziva is available to stream on Paramount+. I'm not sure the streamer will be convinced to revive the series after its cancelation, but I'd say the odds of them showing up in another series are better than not.

While a lot of cancelations news comes down the pipeline this time of year (Rip Law & Order: Organized Crime), unfortunately, the powers that be can make disappointing decisions at any time during the year. Such was the case with NCIS: Tony & Ziva, a globe-trotting NCIS adventure story that brought back two fan-favorite characters. Fans were enamored with it, but the audience for the franchise has been split between CBS and Paramount+, and it ultimately got canceled. Now, a CBS head honcho has been asked about it.

So, What's The Tea With NCIS: Tony & Ziva?

CBS Entertainment President Amy Reisenbach was asked about the cancelation recently after news broke that NCIS ise getting another spinoff, this time set in New York and featuring LL Cool J’s Sam Hanna. We’ve been asking if Hanna might be back in a full time capacity, anyway, but if there’s bandwidth for the mothership NCIS, NCIS: Origins, NCIS: Sydney and now New York, why not ask Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo back? Unfortunately, Reisenbach shut that question down with Deadline really quickly. Here’s her blunt response when asked, “Did CBS consider Tony & Ziva?”

It’s a stone cold response, but I respect it, and I do think LL Cool J has done so much for the franchise in recent years. He was part of what made NCIS: Los Angeles so special. When that got canceled, he gamely helped out NCIS: Hawai’i. Most recently, he’s been signed on for an arc on NCIS. People like the Sam Hanna character a lot.

Plus, NCIS has had a glut of concepts get pitched in recent years, and it has to be mentioned that some of them are more expensive to film than others. NCIS: Hawai’i may have also gotten canceled far too soon, but it was also noted that it was really pricy to shoot. Tony & Ziva completely left the U.S. and filmed in Budapest (and other locations in Europe), and it was also doubtless more expensive to bring the veteran leads back than bring in newbies. So, unless the ratings were crazy good and led to a ton of new Paramount+ subscriptions, I’m not sure the network would have ever seriously considered it. At least that’s what I’m taking from Reisenbach not mincing words, here.

When Tony & Ziva ended earlier this year, at first I thought there might be reason to celebrate. It was a solid season of TV, and plus, Michael Weatherly had celebrated filming wrapping with a video in the tub, giving me reason to be bullish there’d be more. It sounds like, however, that was mistaken confidence.

I'm still glad we finally got to see Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David reunite onscreen. It was years in the making, and I can't be upset with CBS for giving fans their ultimate wish. I just wish it had worked out a little more magically, and we had gotten Season 2. At least they'll always have Paris.

Many actors have starred on the various NCIS-verse shows over the decades, but it’s safe to say that Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo are among the most well-known. In addition to their respective long tenures on NCIS, the two actors reprised Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David last year for the aptly-named spinoff NCIS: Tony & Ziva, which was cancelled after just one season. Well, as CinemaBlend learned from NCIS: Sydney actress Mavournee Hazel, even stars from these other NCIS shows can get starstruck meeting franchise icons like Weatherly and de Pablo.

Last November, Sydney series regulars Olivia Swann, Todd Lasance, Sean Sagar and Tuuli Narkle took pictures with Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo when the latter two actors visited Australia. However, Mavournee Hazel and William McInnes, who round out NCIS: Sydney’s main cast, weren’t present. So when I had the opportunity to speak with Hazel about topics like how long she’d known about Bluebird Gleeson’s backstory, I asked about her absence during the photoshoot with Weatherly and de Pablo, and she responded:

It’s a shame that scheduling conflicts prevented Mavournee Hazel and Claude Jabbour (who’s recurring in NCIS: Sydney Season 3 as Travis “Trigger” Riggs) from getting their picture taken with Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo. That said, at least they were able to spend some time with the NCIS OGs during their visit. That’s a better outcome than when NCIS: Origins star Mariel Molino missed out on meeting Tom Cruise because she was taking a nap during a break from filming.

Unfortunately, as mentioned earlier, NCIS: Tony & Ziva ended up being cancelled a month after this photoshoot on the NCIS: Sydney set took place. There are various theories about why Paramount+ decided to pull the plug on the series, but there’s also a contingent of fans now campaigning for the streamer to change its mind and bring back Tony & Ziva for Season 2. This has included driving a truck around Paris, France with “Save Tony and Ziva” written on the side to promote their cause.

While I’m skeptical of these revival efforts, I like Mavournee Hazel’s idea about bringing Tony and Ziva over to NCIS: Sydney. Their spinoff saw them going on the run across Europe, so why not fly out Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo out to Australia for a guest spot and give them further global reach? Given how difficult it is for Sydney to cross over with the other NCIS shows, it would be amazing if having Tony and Ziva visit the Land Down Under could be worked out.

Of course, my main preference would be for both these characters to return together to their old stomping grounds on the main NCIS, but beggars can’t be choosers. For now, I’ll just look for that series, Sydney and Origins resuming their current seasons on Tuesday, March 3. It’s also been officially confirmed that all three of these shows have been renewed for the 2026-2027 TV season.

Along with NCIS, NCIS: Origins and NCIS: Sydney continuing their runs on CBS, 2025 also delivered the Paramount+ subscription-exclusive spinoff NCIS: Tony & Ziva. Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo reprised their NCIS roles and executive produced the show, though it ended up being cancelled. Still, given the romantic nature of the first season, and some steamy scenes, I was surprised to learn the two leads had declined using an intimacy coordinator. With this being such a popular topic in Hollywood, I had to ask the actress to elaborate!

Just this month alone, we've read The Housemaid's intimacy coordinator sharing why filming sex is like "stunt scenes," as well Heated Rivalry's intimacy coordinator passing along advice on what actors should do when they get aroused. Regarding NCIS: Tony & Ziva, I asked its leading actors during the show's junket if it was challenging at all figuring out these steamy scenes.

After all, they were a step up from the OG network TV days. Cote de Pablo told me:

As I already mentioned, there were a few instances in the original NCIS where Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo acted out intimate scenes, though that was usually as part of maintaining cover for an investigation or operation. So, the actors already had that familiarity with one another, and like de Pablo said, they planned out what they intended to do during these scenes on NCIS: Tony & Ziva. Improvisation was not the name of the game. So she and Weatherly decided they had the intimacy handled on their own.

Some minor spoilers from the season can be found here! Though NCIS: Tony & Ziva started out in the present day with its protagonists simply co-parenting their daughter Tali, flashbacks depicted Tony and Ziva getting romantically close once the latter’s life on the run ended, resulting in them nearly getting married.

Then as the present day storyline continued, they got close again, and by the end of the season, they were once again a couple. Looking back on filming the Paramount+ series, Cote de Pablo was pleased with how her and Michael Weatherly’s decision to decline an intimacy coordinator, concluding:

Fortunately, NCIS: Tony & Ziva season delivered on the “happy something” that Cote de Pablo desired for these characters, and Tali was also ok with her parents getting back together. It's just a shame we won't get to see them front and center in the NCIS-verse again, though I'll keep my fingers crossed that Tony, Ziva and maybe even Tali can appear on the flagship series, or elsewhere, someday.

Meanwhile, the other NCIS shows will resume their current seasons Tuesday, February 24.

2025 has been an especially good year for NCIS fans. Not only are the flagship show, NCIS: Origins and NCIS: Sydney still running on CBS and now all airing on the same night, the Paramount+ subscription-exclusive spinoff NCIS: Tony & Ziva had its run on the 2025 TV schedule not too long ago. Of these four currently-airing shows, Sydney and Tony & Ziva are arguably the most self-contained shows from the procedural franchise. However, after seeing pictures of Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo with members of the Sydney cast, I definitely would like to see a TV crossover with their characters.

Although NCIS: Tony & Ziva Season 1 concluded last month, Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo are still on the promotional circuit for their show. Last week, the Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David actors visited Australia for a press tour, and they also carved out some time to visit the NCIS: Sydney set. That’s where they took photos with Olivia Swann, Todd Lasance, Sean Sagar and Tuuli Narkle, four of its series regulars. Check out the first picture:

Oh yeah, I like these seeing these six together dressed to the nines with the backdrop of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, which is the world’s tallest steel arch bridge. They also moved into the set that serves as the main NCIS: Sydney headquarters and took a photo that had a more intense (in a cool way) vibe to it:

I’m glad Weatherly and de Pablo were able to meet Swann, Lasance, Sagar and Narkle in the midst of plugging NCIS: Tony & Ziva in the Land Down Under. It’s fun when the cast of multiple NCIS shows get to spend time with each other, showing a camaraderie among these actors. I’d argue Weatherly and de Pablo’s visit was the second biggest thing to happen on an NCIS show set this year, trailing only behind when Tom Cruise made a surprise visit to the NCIS: Origins set just last month.

Now that the lead actors of NCIS: Tony & Ziva have spent time with four of the six leads from NCIS: Sydney (the other two being Mavournee Hazel and William McInnes), I would gladly welcome these two corners of the franchise coming together on the small screen. I actually think it might be easier to arrange a crossover between them rather than Sydney with NCIS. Tony & Ziva followed its titular characters on the run across Europe, and the cast and crew really did film in several locations on that continent. If Tony & Ziva came back for another season and the scope was expanded to across the globe, then maybe it would be possible to arrange for those two to end up in Sydney, Australia and run into agents Olivia Swann, Jim Dempsey, DeShawn Jackson and Evie Cooper.

Maybe pulling something like this off is a pipe dream, but I’ll keep my hopes up that it could happen sometime. Meanwhile, while we await news about if NCIS: Tony & Ziva Season 2 is in the cards, remember that NCIS: Sydney airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET on CBS.

Warning: SPOILERS for the NCIS: Tony & Ziva episode “Ride or Die” are ahead!

It seems like just last month NCIS: Tony & Ziva was kicking off its run on the 2025 TV schedule… oh wait, it was last month. Well, that journey is almost over, as tonight Season 1’s penultimate episode, titled “Ride or Die,” was released. The present day storyline was certainly eventful, with the action moving over to Isla Safira, Spain where, among other things, Martine finally teamed up our protagonists, she killed Aaron Graves in front of her now-former partner Jonah Markham, and Tali was kidnapped by Graves’ goons.

You can stream this Tony & Ziva episode with your Paramount+ subscription to see that full sequence of events unfold. What really stuck out to me in “Ride or Die,” however, was finally learning why Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo’s characters never got married a few years back. And yet, despite knowing this information, I’m keeping my fingers crossed that Tiva, as the NCIS fans call the Tony and Ziva ship, pulls through.

Tony And Ziva Cancelled Their Wedding At The Last Minute

In November 2021, Tony and Ziva were preparing to marry in Barbados, and as is the case with weddings, there were various complications popping up. Tony decided to handle supervising everything, as he wanted to make sure Ziva was able to stay stress-free before they got hitched later in the day. However, upon learning that a hurricane would delay the arrival of Tony’s father, Ziva agreed to push the wedding back a day so Anthony DiNozzo Sr. would be there.

In the midst of all this commotion, Tali went missing. Tony initially didn’t tell Ziva because he thought he, Claudette, Sophie and other members of the wedding party could find the girl. But one of the hotel employees inadvertently let Ziva know, and when she confronted Tony about their missing daughter, an argument broke out. Tali was found moments later, but not before Tony angrily brought up how Ziva had been absent from her life for four years, referring to that period when she was forced to go on the run.

That evening while they were sitting by the hotel pool, Ziva brought up the spontaneity of Tony’s proposal, and how it came right after she’d expressed fear that she was the reason for Tali’s nightmares. That paved the way for a heartfelt conversation where they acknowledged their trust issues with one another. So they opted not to go through with the wedding.

Hopefully Tiva Getting Back Together Sticks

While it was sad to see Tony and Ziva cancel the wedding, I’m glad they reached that decision maturely and with civil conversation rather than out of anger. However, the present day NCIS: Tony & Ziva events have seen these two reconnecting on a romantic level. So with just one episode left this season, I hope they realize they’re truly meant to be together.

Now granted, Cote de Pablo only agreed to sign onto the NCIS spinoff if Tony and Ziva got a “happy something” by the end of the season. So I think we can safely assume that at the very least, these characters will continue to love each other, even it just ends up being platonically. There’s also the fact that Tali expressed concern in “Ride or Die” about her parents getting back together. Still, maybe she’ll change her mind once she understands that Tony and Ziva are serious about making their relationship work again.

We’ll find out next week when the final episode of NCIS: Tony & Ziva Season 1 drops on Paramount+. It remains to be seen if the series will be renewed for Season 2, but you’re welcome to stick around on the streaming service to watch new episodes of NCIS Season 23, NCIS: Origins Season 2 and NCIS: Sydney Season 3 after they air on CBS.

Warning: SPOILERS for the NCIS: Tony & Ziva episode “Wedding Crashers” are ahead!

Although NCIS: Tony & Ziva’s flashback storyline has been showing its title characters getting quite intimate with each other, last month, showrunner John McNamara informed CinemaBlend that the reason they weren’t romantically paired when the present day storyline started is because he “didn’t see enough conflict in that.” Well, that may be changing thanks to the events of “Wedding Crashers.” The newest episode of the Paramount+ series to air on the 2025 TV schedule ended with Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo’s characters kissing, and the actors/executive producers and McNamara told me what this big shakeup means for the rest of the season.

The plan to apprehend Martine and clear their names with that faux wedding operation may not have ended the way they wanted, but Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David did manage to steal her phone and evade INTERPOL. Then, after Ziva had changed out her wedding dress on the boat they were fleeing on, she and Tony (who suffered a massive heartbreak just days earlier) started passionately kissing, only to be interrupted by Fruzsi. However, Tony was shown putting his suit jacket around Ziva in the episode’s final moments, so where do things go from here with their relationship? Here’s what Michael Weatherly told me when I asked about that:

Cote de Pablo requested that Tony and Ziva get a “happy something” by the time this debut season of their NCIS spinoff ends (no word yet on if Season 2 is a possibility). So at the bare minimum, we shouldn’t have to worry about tragedy striking these two when this 10-episode run wraps up. That said, Michael Weatherly is making it sound like just because these two locked lips again doesn’t meant mean it will suddenly be smooth sailing for them.

De Pablo echoed that sentiment when I posed the same question to her, as well as noted how amazing it is for Tony and Ziva to reconnect in each other in this way amidst all the adversity they’re facing. As she put it:

As for John McNamara, when I asked if the kiss on the boat meant that Tony and Ziva were officially back together or if this just another stepping stone in their continued complicated relationship, he answered:

Next week’s NCIS: Tony & Ziva episode, titled “To Be Determined” will follow Tony and Ziva working with their allies to free Jonah Markham, the Secretary General of INTERPOL, from a supermax prison in Austria. It’ll be their riskiest operation yet, as the facility has security measures like biometric checkpoints, magnetic locks and every prisoner being tracked 24/7, not to mention we don’t know why Markham was suddenly thrown in there. Yet during this intense operation, and in the following two episodes, time will be carved out to clarify where things stand with Tony and Ziva.

Whatever happens, we know that these two will always be in each other’s lives to co-parent their daughter Tali. For now though, I’m going to stay optimistic and believe that they’ll get their happily ever after by the time NCIS: Tony & Ziva’s debut season is over. We also learned in “Wedding Crashers” that Ziva agreed to Tony’s proposal several years back, so I’m curious to see what went wrong there.

Warning: SPOILERS for the first three NCIS: Tony & Ziva episodes are ahead!

Like my colleague Laura Hurley, I enjoyed watching the first three episodes of NCIS: Tony & Ziva on the 2025 TV schedule, though in my case, it’s as someone who followed along with Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David on NCIS for years. Still, I wasn’t expecting for the Paramount+ subscription-exclusive spinoff’s opening episodes to not only keep flashing forward to a wedding, but one where Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo’s characters aren’t tying the knot. As surprising as it was to see this, I was delighted to learn the origins of this scene directly from de Pablo and Tony & Ziva showrunner John McNamara.

What John McNamara Said About NCIS: Tony & Ziva’s Wedding

This information came to light when I asked McNamara during my interview with him what the collaborative process was like working with Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo as executive producers on NCIS: Tony & Ziva. After discussing how Weatherly came up with the idea for this series to be a “globe-trotting spy thriller,” he then shared the important contribution de Pablo provided when the three of them were cracking the story:

That’s one hell of a way to grab viewers’ attention right off the bat. John McNamara and the rest of the NCIS: Tony & Ziva writing team later hashed out the specifics, but props to Cote de Pablo for coming up with that. The good new for the Tiva shippers out there is that this wedding is definitely not legit, but rather part of a sting operation set for Nassima Benchicou’s Martine Aranow that requires Ziva to be the bride and Maximilian Osinski’s Boris Peskov to be the groom.

What Cote de Pablo Said About NCIS: Tony & Ziva’s Wedding

So how did Cote de Pablo think of this idea? Chalk it up to some good ol’ social media use. The actress, who last played Ziva David in NCIS Season 17, explained to me:

After this image appeared in her imagination, de Pablo “went into a little bit of lucid dreaming” and started putting together how it would be interesting to see these characters “had this fake wedding, but most people thought they were getting married, but they're not getting married.” It’s all part of a mission they have to complete, but the audience doesn’t know yet how they got into this strange predicament. Cote de Pablo continued:

The good news is we won’t have to wait much longer to see how this wedding came together. After suffering that major heartbreak with his now-ex-girlfriend Nicole, Tony came up the idea to have Boris and his fiancée, Anne-Marie Waldeck’s Fruzsi Gortva, to go through with their wedding as planned in order to use it as a trap for Martine. The preview for this Thursday’s NCIS: Tony & Ziva episode, titled “Wedding Crashers,” will finally see the events of this faux-matrimonial ceremony unfolding in the present day storyline,

However, it doesn’t look like the plan will go off without a hitch since we see that Ziva will end up chasing after Martine, and Tony will end up fighting the guy who threatened Tali in order to get the 9.4 hacking device. But not to worry, Tiva fans: just because this wedding wasn’t meant for Tony and Ziva doesn’t mean these two won’t get some sort of “happy something” by the time the season’s over.

Last year’s NCIS episode paying tribute to the late David McCallum, who played Donald “Ducky” Mallard in the procedural’s first 20 seasons, ended on quite the surprising note. Michael Weatherly, who had exited NCIS in the Season 13 finale, reprised Tony DiNozzo in a surprise cameo appearance to share screen time with former costars Brian Dietzen (who co-wrote the episode) and Sean Murray. As it turns out, the new spinoff NCIS: Tony & Ziva, which is premiering on the 2025 TV schedule, played a big part in why Weatherly appeared at the end of "The Stories We Leave Behind.”

I had the pleasure of recently interviewing both Weatherly and Cote de Pablo, who starred as Ziva David on NCIS for eight seasons (plus guest and recurring appearances in Seasons 16 and 17) about NCIS: Tony & Ziva, which is pairing its title characters back together onscreen for the first time in over a decade. At the end of our conversation, I mentioned to Weatherly how much I enjoyed seeing him return to NCIS back in early 2024, and he told me this:

Not to worry, dear readers, because while I have indeed seen the first four episodes of NCIS: Tony & Ziva early, I won’t be sharing any spoilers here. Frankly, there’s enough context provided in the spinoff’s first trailer to understand what Michael Weatherly’s talking about. The preview reveals that Tony and Ziva aren’t romantically together when the show starts, instead focusing on co-parenting their daughter Tali. So while both Tony and Ziva would obviously want to pay their final respects to Ducky, it wouldn’t have made sense for them to go to the memorial service as a couple.

For added context, NCIS: Tony & Ziva was announced in May 2024, three months after "The Stories We Leave Behind” aired on CBS. So a cameo needed to be arranged that didn’t tip off the public to what was coming, and ultimately it was decided that it would be better for Michael Weatherly to appear on his own. As Cote de Pablo added:

While it’s a shame that having Tony and Ziva back together on NCIS wasn’t possible, at least this fan-favorite duo is now only days away from returning to our small screens. Even better, Cote de Pablo requested these characters get a “happy something” by the end of the season before she agreed to sign onto NCIS: Tony & Ziva. So whatever unfolds on this 10-episode season that kicks off September 4 on Paramount+, at least we don’t have to worry about their story ending badly.

Meanwhile over on CBS, NCIS Season 23 will begin on Tuesday, October 14, with NCIS: Origins Season 2 and NCIS: Sydney Season 3 premiering afterwards the same night. It was announced earlier this week that Nancy Travis is coming the flagship show aboard to play Harriet Parker, the sister of Gary Cole’s Alden Parker.

When Cote de Pablo joined NCIS at the beginning of Season 3 in 2006 to play Ziva David, it didn’t take long for fans to embrace Ziva’s ‘will they, won’t they’ dynamic with Michael Weatherly’s Tony DiNozzo and eventually ship them as Tiva. Now, we’re just weeks away from seeing these two paired back together onscreen for the first time in over a decade thanks to NCIS: Tony & Ziva’s impending premiere on the 2025 TV schedule. However, before de Pablo signed onto the Paramount+ subscription-exclusive spinoff, she had one request for Weatherly about Tony and Ziva’s relationship was going to be handled.

In addition to being on the NCIS: Tony & Ziva panel at San Diego Comic-Con, where topics like how the spinoff will welcome newcomers and the touching statement Michael Weatherly made when filming ended, the actors also spoke with a variety of press outlets during the event, include ScreenRant. During that interview, Cote de Pablo was asked if she wanted Tony and Ziva to get together while making this new show or if she preferred them continuing to be a “slow burn” ship. The actress answered:

The last time Tony and Ziva were seen together in NCIS, they shared a kiss before the former went back to the United States and the latter stayed in Israel. That happened in Season 11’s second episode, and then in the Season 13 finale, viewers learned these two had indeed slept together too with the introduction of their daughter, Tali. But we never actually got to see Tony and Ziva enter into a committed relationship, and Cote de Pablo hasn’t minded that these characters have never been able to properly come together.

That said, she did make it clear to Michael Weatherly that she would only agree to be in NCIS: Tony & Ziva if there was some kind of positive resolution with what’s been going on between these two for all these years. It was indicated in the Tony & Ziva trailer that things are still complicated between these characters as they co-parent Tali, and it’s not like they’ll be paired back together romantically by the time the premiere is over. Still, for those who’ve been shipping Tony and Ziva all these years, you can now look forward to some kind of positive payoff on this front by the time the season (perhaps the series?) is over.

This new journey for the NCIS fan-favorites will begin when NCIS: Tony & Ziva premieres its first three episodes on Thursday, September 4. Considering how popular this procedural franchise is and how the spinoff’s trailer broke a major Paramount+ record, it’s safe to say there are a lot of people invested in what’s next for Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David, and if they’ll get their happily ever after.

To say that fans are eager for the upcoming spinoff NCIS: Tony & Ziva to hit the 2025 TV schedule, it would be the understatement of understatements. The new series, which will be available to stream with a Paramount+ subscription, marks Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo’s official returns as series-regular protagonists Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David, with Isla Gie debuting as their daughter Tali. Weatherly knew the perfect way to get everybody’s attention when the release date was announced, too.

Okay, I guess the perfect way would be if the actor himself showed up out of the blue at one’s front door specifically to share the news. But as far as the next best idea goes, Weatherly went shirtless for a super-casual and slightly out-there Instagram post.

Michael Weatherly looking like a true dad with only a limited notion of how to start and end a video post smoothly. But hey, whenever he's cluing the rest of the world in on when Tony and Ziva will finally reunite on our televisions, all is allowed and forgiven.

Unsurprisingly, fans were quick to heap hype-laden comments on the actor's post, though I admittedly was surprised to see that the majority of the responses were just generally appreciative and thankful that the show exists, without mention of his shirtless nature.

• At last, a date to count down to !!! The anticipation is real MW!! Thank you for bringing T&Z back to our screens 💙🩷 I know it will not disappoint 👏❤️ - @wendy.atthebarn
• i don’t know if my job will accept this as proof for why i need september 4th off work but i’ll try - @maddie_mills_
• Cannot wait! Super excited! Tiva! Tiva!❤️🙌 - @emmyloucohen
• our favorite duo is back on screen 🥰 I can’t wait!! #tivaforever - @marinasqudaily
• So very excited. Thank you and Cote for giving us fans #Tiva. - @kelliefogg
• The best moment, you're like a good wine 🍷 I love seeing this more mature Tony and at this stage of being a father, without stopping being that great kid 😘😍 - @cristalcortesvaldez
• Ommmg summer can end right now 🙌🔥 - @tneally97

Really, that comment section might just be one of the most positive places on the Internet right now, so feel free to soak some of that up before going anywhere else.

Also, I can't pretend there weren't ANY comments that veered towards thirsty. But even those were tasteful enough.

• OMG 😍 you’re always looking gorgeous no matter the age. I’ve been ready for some more Tony DiNozzo for 10+ years! I’ll never get tired of saying THANK YOU. Big kiss 😘 - @angelazulvj
• Clothing is optional - @ashaleyxbrown
• Omg, you look so incredible 😻. I'm really looking forward to it @themichaelweatherly , and a thousand thanks 🙏🏻 that will hit like a bomb 💥 surpassing all NCIS series. Love from afar 😘🤗💙 - @olijane81

It's clear that NCIS fans around the world are ready to see Tony and Ziva raising Tali in Paris, at least until they're forced to go on the run after Tony's security company gets attacked. Before they're able to fully sync up as a family again, they'll need to discover who's trying to take them down.

For those who may have missed it the first time around, check out NCIS: Tony & Ziva's trailer below.

Fans can look forward to seeing more from the extended NCIS family when Tony & Ziva debuts on Paramount+ on Thursday, September 4, with the first three episodes dropping at once. Here's hoping enough fans tune in to guarantee Season 2's existence.

After more than a decade spent away from each other onscreen, former NCIS mainstays Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David are finally being paired for their aptly-titled spinoff NCIS: Tony & Ziva. This Paramount+-exclusive series will premiere on the 2025 TV schedule this fall, and last month, the first images from the show were released. Now the first trailer for Tony & Ziva is here to watch as well, and in the midst of kicking so much ass, Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo’s characters are still figuring out their vibe together. Just like old times, am I right?

Not only does this spinoff mark the first time we’re seeing Tony and Ziva together since the NCIS Season 11 episode “Past, Present, and Future,” it’s also giving us our first taste of them parenting their daughter Tali, played by Isla Gie. While the characters look like they have the co-parenting down pat, their romantic relationship status is still very much up in the air, with Ziva describing it to her therapist as, “On again, maybe again, kind of again.” What on Earth could finally bring these two crazy kids together for good?

Evidently their daughter being put in danger, because although Tony and Ziva hired have hired someone to protect Tali, their girl has now been targeted by someone Tony trusted. On top of that, Tony’s security company is attacked, so all these unfortunate events will force the title protagonists to go on the run across Europe and use their combined law enforcement and combat experience to get out of this mess. The preview also amusingly highlights a moment when Ziva’s the one who has to be “charmingly persuasive” and Tony is kicking ass, a 180 from what we usually expect from these two.

Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo’s other co-stars in NCIS: Tony & Ziva include Amita Suman, Maximilian Osinski, Julian Ovenden, Nassima Benchicou, Lara Rossi, Terence Maynard and James D’Arcy. John McNamara is serving as the spinoff’s showrunner and executive produces with Weatherly, de Pablo, Laurie Lieser, Christina Strain, Shelley Meals and Mairzee Almas. For now, Tony & Ziva has been envisioned as a “single, serialized story of intrigue and espionage over 10 episodes,” as McNamara described it. So it’s hard to say whether Season 2 will happen if the limited series is successful, but for now, at least NCIS fans can take comfort knowing they’re only months away from getting Tiva back, as they’re so affectionately known together.

NCIS: Tony & Ziva doesn’t have a specific premiere date yet, but we’ll pass that along once it’s announced alongside our continuing coverage of the spinoff. This fall will also bring NCIS Season 23 and NCIS: Origins Season 2 to CBS, and it remains to be seen when NCIS: Sydney Season 3 will premiere.

Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo will soon be returning to the NCIS franchise via the highly-anticipated upcoming spinoff NCIS: Tony & Ziva. Premiering this fall amid the 2025 TV schedule for Paramount+ subscription holders, the show will see the actors reprise their fan-favorite roles from as Tony DiNozza and Ziva David. The pair will be on the run across Europe with their tween daughter, Tali, following an attack on Tony’s security company. Even though the show has yet to premiere, the showrunner is weighing in on the chance it of returning for Season 2 on one of the best streaming services.

NCIS: Tony & Ziva only has a 10-episode order thus far, which isn't that much compared to the bigger orders that the franchise's network TV offers receive. As a fan, I'm not sure 10 episodes will be enough to satisfy me. On that note, showrunner John McNamara told TVLine he was “excited to tell a single, serialized story of intrigue and espionage over 10 episodes.” Hence why it was better for the spinoff to be on Paramount+ as opposed to NCIS home network CBS.

Although it sounds like fans could be a limited series, the outlet reports that, depending on how successful the first season is, the possibility of more seasons being ordered is very high. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time a miniseries ended up having its run extended due to positive reception. Based on the fact that this new series centers on two of the most popular NCIS characters, I wouldn't be surprised if a plethora of viewers check out the show. Of course, it's still too early to say if that'll definitely be the case.

Honestly, I find it disappointing that NCIS: Tony & Ziva is only getting 10 episodes. There is a bright spot to it being on a streamer, though. Without the constraints of a network, the producers have more creative freedom to feature more mature content. The production also isn't limited to the usual 40-44 minute runtime associated with broadcast procedurals.

What's obviously most exciting about this production, of course, is the prospect of seeing the titular characters again. Fans have been clamoring for the fan-favorite couple to reappear for years, and what made that worse was Michael Weatherly consistently trolling fans about it. Weatherly has since continued to do that in the lead-up to the show.

The series is still months away, but Paramount+ did drop a dramatic first look at Tony & Ziva that even saw Tony making Tali laugh, and my heart melted. It's been revealed that the series will premiere this fall, but an actual date has yet to be announced. I sincerely hope the wait will be worth it, and that if it's good, the series will prove popular enough to warrant a second season for Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David's spinoff.

While you wait for an official release date to be announced, why not hop on to Paramount+ now to stream classic episodes of NCIS? They'll give you a taste of the dynamic between the lead characters of Tony & Ziva.

Have you been missing Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David in the NCIS-verse and have had your fill of watching their old NCIS episodes with your Paramount+ subscription. Good news, they’re finally returning to this procedural franchise for the aptly-named NCIS: Tony & Ziva, which will be exclusively available on the aforementioned streaming platform. We finally have our dramatic first looks at Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo reprising their characters, but I’m especially getting a kick out of seeing Tony making their daughter Tali laugh.

These photos from NCIS: Tony & Ziva’s first episode, titled “No Country is Safe,” accompanied the news that the spinoff will premiere sometime this fall on the 2025 TV schedule, as shared by TVLine. The show marks the first time Tony and Ziva have been onscreen together since the NCIS Season 11 episode “Past, Present, and Future,” meaning we’ll also finally see what they’re like parenting Tali, played by Isla Gie. Clearly Tony has no trouble amusing his daughter with funny faces, as seen below.

NCIS: Tony & Ziva picks back up with the title protagonist as they’re living in Paris, France, which is where Ziva was headed to reunite with Tony and Tali when she was last seen in NCIS Season 17. I’m glad we’re getting this lighthearted moment between father and daughter, if not several, as their lives are about to be thrown into disarray. Here’s a look at the family looking at something offscreen that appears to put them on edge.

Here we have Tony and Ziva appearing to drop Tali off at school, although given the environment, it’s unclear if this is where she normally gets her education or someplace temporary she’s going while her mother and father deal with the problems put on their plate in their new show.

You can see the rest of NCIS: Tony & Ziva’s first photos in the gallery at the bottom of the article. They include looks at new characters Claudette, played by Amita Suman, and Boris, played by Maximillian Osinski. The former is the Chief Technical Officer at the security company Tony runs, and the latter is a Russian ex-pat who’s one of the world’s best computer hackers.

Other characters set to appear in the spinoff include Lara Rossi’s Sohpie, who served in the Special Intelligence Service and will be Tali’s caretaker; Juilan Ovenden’s Jonah, the Secretary General of Interpol, Nassima Benchicou’s Martine, who was once a French intelligence agent for the Directorate-General for Eternal Security, Terence Maynard’s Dr. Lang, an experienced therapist; and James D’Arcy as Henry, a high-ranking Interpol official. Behind the scenes, Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo are executive producing alongside showrunner John McNamara, Laurie Lieser, Christina Strain and Shelley Meals.

NCIS: Tony & Ziva began filming last summer in Budapest, the Canary Islands and Paris, and cameras stopped rolling in February. Now we have roughly half a year to go until its arrival, so keep checking back with CinemaBlend for more updates on what it has in store.

Following the announcement of the NCIS: Tony & Ziva spinoff in February 2024, it went into production over the summer and wrapped a couple of months ago. Now, the wait is really on for the highly anticipated series. So, while we all ponder what is going on with this show, Michael Weatherly has been leaving clue-filled answers about the show’s release date, and he’s continuing to troll fans with his latest post.

The Bull alum took to his Instagram on Thursday, likely in response to fans constantly asking when NCIS: Tony & Ziva will premiere. However, instead of giving a direct answer or dropping more hints, Weatherly hilariously shared a video of a turtle alongside the caption, “Sometimes TV takes a little bit of time…”

Many fans are hoping that NCIS: Tony & Ziva will air on the 2025 TV schedule, and since filming is complete, it’s entirely possible. But it sounds like post-production could take a while, so for now, we all need to sit tight. Thankfully, though, Weatherly certainly knows that fans are itching for the new spinoff, and he seems more than willing to keep us hyped and wanting more.

He proved this by keeping fans plenty occupied while filming Tony & Ziva, posting BTS content that even included camels. He also shared a first look of himself looking dapper while in full Tony DiNozzo mode, complete with a suit. It wasn’t all work, though, as the crew took a break to watch the Super Bowl. Even in a different country, American football was still a must.

Meanwhile, Michael Weatherly is not the only one who has been keeping fans on their toes when it comes to the series. Longtime NCIS star Brian Dietzen told CinemaBlend why fans should be excited, revealing that he often talks to his former co-star and has even taken a peek at a script or two. Well, that has certainly excited me, and I was already thrilled about this spinoff!

It also made me even more antsy to see this series we've been waiting quite a while for. However, as Weatherly's post implied, patience is a virtue.

As of now, it’s hard to tell when NCIS: Tony & Ziva will premiere, but the wait will be worth it. Weatherly will likely be keeping fans occupied until then, whether it’s more trolling or BTS content.

We'll also be sure to keep you posted on all updates about this series and the other shows in the NCIS franchise so you know what's going on and when to tune in. Meanwhile, all seasons of NCIS are streaming for those with a Paramount+ subscription, so fans can always relive Tiva’s love story to keep them busy until Tony & Ziva’s eventual return.

NCIS fans are getting excited for the debut of NCIS: Tony & Ziva the new series is the ever-growing NCIS franchise that will focus on the fan-favorite characters played by Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo. But when the show arrives later this year you won’t find it on CBS, and Michael Weatherly is here to quietly make sure you know which streaming service it’s not going to be on.

In a recent post to the platform formerly known as Twitter, Michael Weatherly poked a little fun at his own character Tony DiNozzo, while also having a bit of fun at the expense of a rival streaming service. You’ll need a Paramount+ subscription to watch NCIS: Tony & Ziva, so never mind with the Peacock.

While it seems likely that almost everybody interested in watching an NCIS spinoff knows that having a Peacock subscription won’t help them, considering how fast the world of streaming has been evolving, a little reminder probably doesn’t hurt. The new show will be the first of the franchise to not air on CBS and will only be available on Paramount+, so any NCIS fans who have only been watching the shows on network TV will need to pony up the money if they want to watch the new show.

Fans responding to Weatherly’s post do accuse his character of being a Peacock. He was certainly always strutting around during his initial run on NCIS, only being kept in check by the not-infrequent smacks to the back of the head offered by Gibbs.

DiNozzo won’t have Gibbs there to smack him around, which makes one wonder just what sort of a character we’ll get when we meet DiNozzo again in NCIS: Tony & Ziva. Weatherly made a brief cameo appearance back on NCIS in the episode that paid tribute to the late David McCallum, and his character, Dr. Mallard, but we never got to see him in action.

We know NCIS: Tony & Ziva will start out in Paris, with the title couple finally starting to build a life together now that nobody is on the run and fighting for their life. But when the security company that Tony started gets attacked, the pair must work together, while being parents of a 12-year-old daughter, to fight off the bad guys. The series has been filming largely in Budapest, though the nation could stand in as nearly anywhere in the world.

Exactly when the new show will debut on Paramount+ is still a mystery. What isn’t unknown is how popular the show is expected to be. Fans have wanted to see Weatherly return to the world of NCIS since before his previous series was canceled. Considering how popular the characters are, and how popular NCIS and its various iterations still are, the show is almost guaranteed to be a hit.

At the beginning of NCIS Season 11, Cote de Pablo departed after eight seasons as a main cast member. However, that wasn’t the last we saw of her character, Ziva David, who became a beloved addition to the popular CBS procedural when she was brought in to replace the murdered Caitlin Todd. De Pablo made a surprise appearance in the final moments of the Season 16 finale, then appeared in several Season 17 episodes. Great steps were taken to ensure that the actress’ return was kept a tightly-guarded secret, which executive producer Mark Horowitz described as “invoking Fight Club rules.”

Horowitz stopped by Off Duty: An NCIS Rewatch to talk with de Pablo and Tony DiNozzo actor Michael Weatherly, both of whom will be paired back together in the upcoming spinoff NCIS: Tony & Ziva. When the conversation turned to everything that went into planning de Pablo’s Season 16 cameo, the producer started off by saying:

Following Cote de Pablo’s exit as a series regular, it was thought that Ziva had died offscreen towards the end of Season 13, though Tony didn’t believe this. After resigning from NCIS, he went to Israel to look for answers with their daughter Tali, who he’d only just learned about, and then Paris to honor Ziva’s love for the French city. Then in Season 16, Ellie Bishop learned that Ziva was still alive, and at the end of that season’s finale, de Pablo’s character showed up in Leroy Jethro Gibbs’ basement to warn him he was in danger.

You can see how the rest of this story unfolded by watching NCIS Season 17 with your Paramount+ subscription, but I like how Mark Horowitz and the show’s team channeled the first rule from the Fight Club novel and film adaptation, “Don’t talk about Fight Club,” in order to ensure the secrecy of Ziva’s return. Horowitz also described what it was like on the night that Cote de Pablo arrived to shoot her cameo. As he explained:

When we left off with Ziva in Season 17, she was going to reunite with Tony and Tali in Paris, marking the first time the three would finally be together. Ziva hasn’t been seen on NCIS since then, though Tony did make his own surprise return earlier this year for the tribute episode honoring David McCallum and his character, Donald “Ducky” Mallard. We’ll finally get to see Ziva and Tony reunited on screen in their aforementioned spinoff, which will be a Paramount+ exclusive and follow them going on the run across Europe after Tony’s security company is attacked.

NCIS: Tony & Ziva doesn’t have a release date set yet, but count on it premiering sometime on the 2025 TV schedule. New episodes of NCIS air Mondays at 9 pm ET on CBS, followed by the prequel series NCIS: Origins.

As the NCIS franchise continues to pull in money for CBS, a new spinoff, NCIS: Tony & Ziva, is coming soon. The upcoming series will see Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo reprising their beloved titular characters as they’re on the run across Europe with their tween daughter. As of now, there isn’t any word on any fellow NCIS stars joining them, but NCIS: LA’s Eric Christian Olsen is keeping tabs on it and getting fans riled up.

Production on Tony & Ziva kicked off over the summer, and Weatherly has occasionally been sharing some fun content on social media. Last month, the Bull alum shared a photo on Instagram from set, complete with camels in the background as he posed with writer John McNamara. Then, the Marty Deeks actor took to the comments and asked a pretty great question:

I would definitely love to see Deeks back in the franchise. What would bring him to Europe is unknown, especially since he and Kensi would have likely welcomed their baby by the time the series rolls around. Regardless of that though, it would be fun to see him appear, even if it was briefly or over video. And fans are feeling the exact same way as they commented:

• yes!! Pleaseeeee!!! I miss seeing you on my screen!! -princessjulz7
• petition for this here!! – alex_ogle33
• sneak onto set - what can they do to stop you? -jxrdancasey
• you totally should be -cynthia_rowe_

This isn’t the first time Eric Christian Olsen has thrown his hat in the ring to appear on another spinoff following the end of NCIS: LA, either. Last year, he pitched himself for NCIS: Sydney, again taking to the comments of an Instagram post to point out that “Deeks loves surfing and Oz has great waves….” Unfortunately, he never appeared in the first season, but with Season 2 coming to CBS on the 2025 TV schedule, it’s always possible.

Plus, since his co-star LL Cool J managed to come back as Sam Hanna for NCIS: Hawai’i and Daniela Ruah appeared as Kensi Blye via video the 1,000^th episode of NCIS, perhaps Olsen could be next.

Michael Weatherly even had something to say about it, commenting:

If Olsen were to show up on NCIS: Tony & Ziva, the logical thing would be for Deeks to video chat the duo about something. However, it’s possible that a job could take Deeks international, as it’s happened before. So, him being in Europe is not completely out of the question. It would just have to make sense and probably be connected to something Tony and Ziva are dealing with.

Whether or not Tony & Ziva will bring on other NCIS stars is unknown, but it sounds like Olsen would love nothing more than to come back to the franchise. So, as we cross our fingers for that comeback, those with a Paramount+ subscription can go back and watch him as Deeks in LA.

After Caitlin Todd was killed in the NCIS Season 2 finale, Ziva David stepped in to take her place on the team after she killed her own half-brother, recurring antagonist Ari Haswari. Cote de Pablo played Ziva for eight seasons as a series regular on the popular CBS show, during which time her character and Michael Weatherly’s Tony DiNozzo built a ‘will they, won’t they’ dynamic. Now for the first in over a decade, these two are finally being reunited onscreen for the upcoming spinoff NCIS: Tony & Ziva, but these two are more than just actors leading a Paramount+ subscription-exclusive series together. De Pablo shared how during the making of Tony & Ziva, Weatherly has been her “greatest asset” in a specific way, and it makes me even more pleased these two are sharing the screen again.

De Pablo and Weatherly host Off Duty: An NCIS Rewatch together, and during the episode where they chatted with Leon Vance actor Rocky Carroll, the actress mentioned how she’s had friends ask her how she feels revisiting the NCIS world, and she’s answered that, “it’s going to be so much fun” because she’s getting to re-explore an old character she really cares about. She continued:

NCIS: Tony & Ziva won’t be Cote de Pablo’s first time has reprised Ziva since exiting early into NCIS Season 11, as she later appeared in the Season 16 finale and several Season 17 episodes. In Weatherly’s case, he exited the main cast in the Season 13 finale, then cameoed as Tony in the Season 21 episode paying tribute to the late David McCallum. However, as already mentioned, this spinoff is the first time she and Weatherly have gotten to work together since the good ol’ days when these two were on NCIS’ main cast together.

A lot has changed since then, so although there’s obviously an air of familiarity with Tony and Ziva being side by side again, they’re also coming at this project with different personal and professional perspectives. So in that way, de Pablo feels comfortable leaning on Weatherly for support and talking things out with him if she’s having a difficult time, and I’m so glad they have that kind of relationship with each other. In her words:

Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo have been shooting NCIS: Tony & Ziva in Budapest since June, and Weatherly recently shared a photo on social media of him and showrunner John McNamara on set with some camels nearby. The spinoff will follow Tony and Ziva being forced to go on the run across Europe after Tony’s security company is attacked. Weatherly and de Pablo’s co-stars include Isla Gie, Amita Suman, Maximilian Osinski, Nassima Benchicou, Julian Ovenden, Terence Maynard, Lara Rossi and James D’Arcy.

NCIS: Tony & Ziva doesn’t have a release date yet, though it’s reasonable to assume it’ll arrive on Paramount+ sometime in 2025. Meanwhile, NCIS Season 22 and the prequel NCIS: Origins premiere Monday, October 14 on the 2024 TV schedule, and NCIS: Sydney Season 2 is also on the way.

A lot of actors have appeared on NCIS over the course of its 20+-year run, and outside of the main cast, the actor who has the most appearances under his belt is Joe Spano. He debuted as Tobias Fornell in the CBS show’s first episode, “Yankee White,” and most recently appeared in “A Thousand Yards,” the NCIS franchise’s 1,000th episode that tied back to the series’ 2003 launch. In total, Spano has played Fornell in 58 episodes of the flagship show, so he’s spent a lot of time with its leading actors, including Cote de Pablo. In fact, the actress shared an emotional story about how Spano supported her before she left NCIS as a series regular.

Cote de Pablo exited NCIS two episodes into Season 11, though she would later reprise Ziva David for a surprise guest appearance in the Season 16 finale, followed by recurring in Season 17. Shortly before she took her final bow as a series regular, de Pablo had a touching moment with Joe Spano, which she talked about when the Hill Street Blues alum stopped by Off Duty: An NCIS Rewatch to chat with her and co-host Michael Weatherly, saying:

As you can see, the Ziva actress still isn’t willing to fully pull the curtain back on why she left NCIS back in 2013. Three years after that exit, Cote de Pablo attributed her decision to “political things and the scripts not being good enough,” but then when she came back in 2019, she said that her previous comment was “taken out of context at a certain point.” Whatever her reasoning, once she made that decision and shared it with the NCIS cast and crew, Joe Spano, who appeared as Fornell in “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” and “Past, Present, and Future”, simply hugged and congratulated her without inquiring about why she was leaving, which touched her. Now starting to tear up, De Pablo continued:

Cote de Pablo added that she didn’t think Joe Spano was “aware” of what he’d given her, and that it was important to bring it up on the podcast since this was the first time she was seeing him since filing those episodes. Spano said that at the time, he had “a sense that that’s what you needed,” and he ended up being correct. If you’re interested in revisiting Season 11’s first two episodes, they, along with the entirety of the NCIS franchise, can be streamed with a Paramount+ subscription.

Speaking of Paramount+, Cote de Pablo is currently shooting the upcoming spinoff NCIS: Tony & Ziva with Michael Weatherly in Budapest, and that show will exclusively stream on that platform rather than air on CBS like the past NCIS shows. It hasn’t been announced yet when Tony & Ziva will premiere, but NCIS Season 22 and the new prequel NCIS: Origins will both hit the 2024 TV schedule on Monday, October 14.

NCIS has been airing for over 20 seasons, with Season 22 just weeks away from premiering on the 2024 TV schedule. In that time, many cast members have come and gone, and two of the most well-known faces associated with the CBS procedural have been Sean Murray, who’s still part of the main cast, and Cote de Pablo, who was a series regular from Season 3 to the beginning of Season 11. Obviously the show’s in a much different place right now compared to its humble beginnings as a JAG spinoff, but while reminiscing about good times together, de Pablo and Murray went over why Season 3 in particular meant so much to them.

Why Cote De Pablo Is So Appreciative Of NCIS Season 3

You might be thinking Cote de Pablo holds Season 3 in such high regard because it marked her debut as Ziva David, and you’d be absolutely correct! However, while speaking with Sean Murray and Michael Weatherly, who plays Tony DiNozzo, on Off Duty: An NCIS Rewatch, the actress also explained how just the experience of working on set with the cast and crew was so wonderful with these words:

Cote de Pablo’s NCIS journey didn’t get off to the smoothest start, as she initially thought that Michael Weatherly was trying to “sabotage” her audition. But once that misunderstanding was sorted out and she came aboard to play Ziva, she was amazed by how effectively everything was coming together during her first season. Sure, her exit from the show didn’t come under the best of circumstances, but thankfully it didn’t lead to her distancing herself from NCIS permanently, as she cameoed at the end of the Season 16 finale and recurred in Season 17. Now she and Weatherly are shooting their own spinoff, NCIS: Tony & Ziva, which will be exclusively available to stream with a Paramount+ subscription.

Why Sean Murray Looks Back At NCIS Season 3 So Fondly

After debuting in NCIS’ Season 1’s seventh episode and spending the rest of the season as a recurring character, Sean Murray’s wish to return for Season 2 was granted, and once Ziva joined the team, Timothy McGee was technically no longer the “probie.” While Murray enjoyed working on NCIS’ first two seasons, he feels that Season 3 is when the show started to find its groove with the characters. As he explained:

Later in the podcast episode, de Pablo asked Murray if he always felt like NCIS was a family or if that came later, and he responded that Season 3 was when that started to happen, saying:

I’m glad he didn’t throw any shade towards Sasha Alexander, with her character, Caitlin Todd, having been killed in the Season 2 finale. While NCIS was a long ways off from achieving the kind of popularity it boasts today, without ironing out the kinks during Seasons 1 and 2, not only would the show not still be airing today, but CBS wouldn’t have one of its most popular procedural franchises. Michael Weatherly also pointed out that Season 3 also introduced Lauren Holly’s Jenny Shepard, who had a unique dynamic with Mark Harmon’s Leroy Jethro Gibbs that helped spice up Season 3. Unlike Cote de Pablo though, Holly only spent a few seasons on NCIS, with Jenny being killed in Season 5’s penultimate episode.

NCIS premieres its 22nd season on Monday, October 14, and the prequel NCIS: Origins, which follows a young Gibbs, will air immediately afterwards. We’ll let you know when NCIS: Tony & Ziva drops on Paramount+, and don’t forget that NCIS: Sydney is also returning for a second season.

Following the death of Sasha Alexander’s Kate Todd in the NCIS Season 2 finale, Cote de Pablo was brought aboard in Season 3 to play Ziva David, who ended up taking Kate’s spot on the team. Over the character’s eight-season run as a series regular on the CBS show that’s ran well over 250 episodes and can be streamed with a Paramount+ subscription, she built a flirtatious dynamic with Michael Weatherly’s Tony DiNozzo, leading to fans affectionately referring to them collectively as “Tiva.” In fact, it didn’t take long for Tony and Ziva to end up getting intimate with one another on NCIS, and de Pablo recalled how a “considerate” Weatherly sweetly looked out for her while filming this scene.

The actors recalled their time working on “Under Covers,” i.e. NCIS Season 3’s eighth episode, on Off Duty: An NCIS Rewatch, the podcast they host together to keep fans entertained while they wait for the spinoff NCIS: Tony & Ziva. This episode follows Tony and Ziva going on an undercover assignment where they’re pretending to be two married assassins, and it gets off to a steamy start when they passionately kiss and pretend to have sex in order to fool anyone who may be watching and listening in. Starting off, de Pablo had this to say about how Weatherly wanted to make sure she was feeling comfortable while they were in bed together:

Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo hadn’t been working together long at this point, but it’s great to hear he was already being courteous towards her by making sure she liked the smell of the deodorant he applied. After all, if you have to spend a long amount of time filming a scene in bed with one of your costars, you want to make sure the scent doesn’t bother your onscreen partner. Additionally, de Pablo shared a subtle way that Westerly helped to make sure that she would look her best on camera, with the actress explaining:

Although this “relationship” between Tony and Ziva was only a ruse so they could figure out who hired the couple they were impersonating and who they were sent to kill, “Under Covers” planted the first Tiva seed. The two had a ‘will they, won’t they’ thing going over the course of nearly a decade, and in the end, they acted on their feelings for one another. Now they are finally raising their daughter Tali together since Ziva is no longer on the run as of NCIS Season 17 episode “In the Wind.” Unfortunately, the events of NCIS: Tony & Ziva will shake up their lives and force these two to hightail it across Europe after Tony’s security company is attacked.

NCIS: Tony & Ziva doesn’t have a premiere date, but unlike the other NCIS shows, it will stream exclusively on Paramount+. Meanwhile, the 2024 TV schedule will bring NCIS Season 22 and the debut of the prequel NCIS: Origins on Monday, October 14, and NCIS: Sydney has been renewed for a second season, though there’s no word on when it will return.

If you’re familiar with Cote de Pablo, then chances are you first learned about her from NCIS, the long-running CBS procedural that’s returning for Season 22 this fall on the 2024 TV schedule. Pablo came aboard to play Ziva David in Season 3 following the death of Sasha Alexander’s Caitlin Todd at the end of Season 2, and she stuck around as a series regular for eight seasons. However, she got quite a scare during one of her earliest NCIS appearances, as she didn’t have her lines memorized during an important scene with David McCallum’s Donald “Ducky” Mallard, which led to her feeling like “such a failure.”

De Pablo recalled this uncomfortable moment in the episode of Off Duty: An NCIS Rewatch where she and co-host Michael Weatherly, who plays Tony DiNozzo in the NCIS-verse, were talking with Eric Christian Olsen, who played Marty Deeks on NCIS: Los Angeles and is now producing the Matlock reboot. Weatherly started off the story by saying:

Apparently Cote de Pablo wasn’t aware that this autopsy scene was going to be shot on this particular day, and immediately after she was done shooting another lengthy sequence for this unnamed NCIS episode. De Pablo then took over telling the story on the podcast, explaining how disappointed she was that she didn’t already have her lines memorized. She came from the world of theatre and needed “at least a couple of hours” to be able to recite her dialogue, but the NCIS people told her it didn’t work that way on the TV show and suggested she just look over the script a few times. So that panicked her, but fortunately, she caught a break:

That’s right, somewhere in NCIS Season 3, there’s a scene with Ziva and Ducky in the autopsy lab, and while you’ll hear her giving dialogue in this wide shot, she was actually counting just like the director suggested. Then the actress spoke with some of the show’s producers to clear things up, although then gave her a different reason to be stressed:

It worked out in the end for Cote de Pablo, and she went on to play Ziva David on a regular basis for nearly a decade. Then at the end of Season 16, Ziva, who was thought to have died towards the end of Season 13, resurfaced, leading to de Pablo making recurring appearances in Season 17. Now she’s teaming back up with Michael Weatherly for the upcoming spinoff NCIS: Tony & Ziva, which will follow the title characters going on the run in Europe.

As for NCIS Season 22, it premieres Monday, October 14, the same night that the Leroy Jethro Gibbs-focused prequel NCIS: Origins begins airing. You can stream all the NCIS franchise’s shows with a Paramount+ subscription, and it’s important to note that this platform will be the exclusive home for the Tony & Ziva spinoff.

For the first time in 10 years, NCIS fans are going to see Michael Weatherly’s Tony DiNozzo and Cote de Pablo’s Ziva David together again on screen when their spinoff, NCIS: Tony & Ziva, hits Paramount+. While we don’t know whether the series will make the 2024 TV schedule or we’ll have to wait until next year, each new bit of information is exciting to longtime Tiva fans. The couple’s “will they, won’t they” dynamic was such a huge part of the CBS procedural, and Weatherly’s latest social media post has me excited for that premiere date to get here already.

NCIS: Tony & Ziva is officially in production, and Michael Weatherly shared a photo on location — in Budapest! The Hungarian capital has been revealed as one of the key filming locations for the spinoff, and it sounds like the actor approves of the choice. He posted to Instagram: 

The Tony DiNozzo actor said he’s excited about the “beautiful sights and sounds” of the locale, and it’s got me hyped all over again for what’s to come. Of course, given what we know about the plot of the straight-to-streaming spinoff, it was clear that NCIS: Tony & Ziva would take place internationally, and I can’t wait to experience some of Hungary amidst all the inevitable action.

It’s been a long time since either Michael Weatherly or Cote de Pablo was regularly featured on NCIS, with de Pablo leaving the show in Season 11. Weatherly followed two seasons later, with Tony leaving in the Season 13 finale to care for their daughter Tali after it was thought Ziva had been killed. However, in the Season 16 finale, it was revealed that she was in fact still alive, and de Pablo appeared in a handful of episodes the next season as she tracked down the woman who had forced her to fake her death.

NCIS: Tony & Ziva — an appropriately named spinoff to be sure, but one that even Michael Weatherly agrees isn’t quite right — will see the trio reunited in Paris. It doesn’t sound like there will be much time for scones in front of the Eiffel Tower, though, as they’re forced to go on the run across Europe after Tony’s security company is attacked.

The spinoff will feature new characters to the NCIS universe, including Tali, who was just a toddler when we first learned of her in Season 13 of the CBS drama and is now a pre-teen. Tali will play an important role in the Tiva series, adding “a new element of trouble” for her parents to consider, according to Michael Weatherly. 

Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo’s on-screen reunion has received a 10-episode order from Paramount+, and the actor’s photo from Budapest makes me all the more impatient to get there already. In the meantime, though, fans can relive all of the fun Tiva chemistry by streaming past seasons of NCIS on Paramount+, which is one of the best streaming services to subscribe to. 

Tony DiNozzo was one of NCIS’s first leading characters, being introduced with Leroy Jethro Gibbs, Abby Sciuto and Ducky Mallard in the JAG episodes that functioned as the show’s backdoor pilot. Following the death of Sasha Alexander’s Caitlin Todd in the NCIS Season 2 finale, Ziva David was introduced at the start of Season 3 and took her place on the team. For the next eight years, these two solved crimes together for the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, and now the time has come for these two to finally reunite in the appropriately-titled NCIS: Tony and Ziva.

This will be the seventh show in the procedural franchise that was launched in 2003, with the original NCIS spinning out of JAG. So what can we expect from Tony and Ziva’s long-awaited reunion on the 2025 TV schedule? Read on to find out!

What Is The NCIS: Tony And Ziva’s Premiere Date?

NCIS: Tony and Ziva will premiere on Thursday, September 4. The first three episodes will drop at once, and then episodes will be released weekly until the season finale airs on October 23. This will give the show some slight overlap with the other currently-airing NCIS shows, as NCIS Season 23, NCIS: Origins Season 2 and NCIS: Sydney Season 3 all premiere Tuesday, October 14 on CBS.

What NCIS: Tony And Ziva Will Be About

After faking her death and spending years in hiding, NCIS Season 17 saw Ziva finally becoming a free woman again after the woman who’d been targeting her was killed. After that mess was cleaned up, Ziva traveled to Paris to reunite with Tony and their daughter Tali, with the former only learning about the latter’s existence in the Season 13 finale. That’s where viewers will find them when NCIS: Tony and Ziva starts.

Unfortunately, it won’t take long for their lives to become a lot more complicated. After Tony’s security company is attacked, he and Ziva must go on the run across Europe to figure out who’s after them and, as stated in the official synopsis, “maybe even learn to trust each other again so that they can finally have their unconventional happily ever after.”

Yes, despite all they’ve been through, the NCIS: Tony and Ziva trailer showed that the title characters aren’t romantically involved when the spinoff starts, instead focusing on co-parenting Tali. However, the preview also indicates the spark could reignite between them, and Cote de Pablo requested that Tony and Ziva get some kind of “happy something” by the end.

The NCIS: Tony And Ziva Cast Includes Michael Weatherly And Cote De Pablo

It would be bizarre if NCIS: Tony and Ziva didn’t star the two actors who originally played the roles, but we don’t have to worry about experiencing such an odd twist. Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo will respectively reprise Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David, marking the first time these characters have been onscreen together since the NCIS Season 11 episode “Past, Present, and Future,” which aired on October 1, 2013. That was de Pablo’s last episode as a series regular, and Weatherly exited the main cast in the Season 13 finale, “Family First.”

After being presumed dead at the end of Season 13, Ziva made a surprise appearance in the Season 16 finale, “Daughters,” and went on to recur throughout Season 17. Tony briefly popped back up again in the Season 21 episode “The Stories We Leave Behind” to attend the memorial service for Ducky Mallard. Although the NCIS showrunner once expressed interest in both Tony and Ziva returning to the show before their spinoff starts, there's nothing to indicate that's in the cards.

The Other Characters Expected To Appear In NCIS: Tony And Ziva

There are a lot of people joining Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo in NCIS: Tony and Ziva’s main cast.

Isla Gee as Tali

Starting off, following Michael Weatherly confirming Tali will play an important role in the spinoff, we learned that Isla Gee was cast to play her in the spinoff. Described as Tony and Ziva’s “precocious 12-year-old daughter who is sick of being treated like a child,” Tali is said to be “more intuitive and vigilant” than she’s given credit for by the adults in her life, and she welcomes the opportunity to prove this to her.

Lara Rossi as Sophie

Tali will be looked after by Lara Rossi’s Sophie, who served in the Special Air Service (SAS) and brings "maternal warmth and hyper-vigilance” to her role as the girl’s caretaker.

Amita Suman as Claudette

Amita Suman is playing Claudette, the Chief Technical Officer at Tony’s security company who ensures operations run smoothly and is skilled at solving problems and cracking codes.

Maximillian Osinski as Boris

Maximilian Osinski has been cast as Boris, a Russian ex-pat and one of the world’s best computer hackers who welcomes the anonymity and freedom that living outside the law gives him.

Julian Ovenden as Jonah

Julian Ovenden’s Jonah was once a computer programmer for the NSA, and is now the Secretary General of Interpol and is confident he knows how to fix a world he sees as broken.

Nassima Benchicou as Martine

Nassima Benchicou will play Martine, who used to work as a French intelligence agent with the Directorate-General for Eternal Security (DGSE), and can easily play both sides of a conflict to protect her own self-interest.

Terence Maynard as Dr. Lang

Terence Maynard has come aboard as Dr. Lang, an experienced therapist who, as said in his description, “treats patients with severe traumas and helps them find comfort and agency.”

James D’Arcy as Henry

Finally, James D’Arcy will participate in NCIS: Tony and Ziva as Henry, a high-ranking Interpol official who doesn’t have a wife or family, but that’s ok because he’s welcomed prioritizing his career.

The Series Will Be Exclusive To Paramount+

Unlike all the other NCIS shows that come before it, NCIS: Tony and Ziva will not air on CBS. Instead, it will be exclusive to watch with a Paramount+ subscription, the same streaming home where the other shows can be accessed.

While speaking with Vulture, George Cheeks, the president and CEO of CBS, and chief content officer for news and sports at Paramount+, said the reason NCIS: Tony and Ziva is being sent straight to Paramount+ rather than airing on CBS first boiled down to two reasons. One, it “felt more like a serialized streaming show,” and two, it’s an “example of us trying to expand the aperture of NCIS,” like what was done with Criminal Minds: Evolution.

As such, NCIS: Tony and Ziva is taking full advantage of a TV-MA rating rather than sticking within TV-14 like the other NCIS shows. We already know that there will be some sexy scenes in the spinoff, as Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo talked about declining an intimacy corner on set. TVLine also shared that we’ll hear Ziva swear, and I’m hoping that includes some f-bombs.

Will Other NCIS Characters Show Up In The Spinoff?

In March 2024, Deadline asked CBS Studios president David Stapf if there was a “possibility” if other NCIS characters could appear alongside Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo in NCIS: Tony and Ziva, and he responded, “In all honesty, as it’s designed now, no, but never say never.” So don’t expect any special NCIS appearances in the spinoff during this inaugural season.

As things currently stand, NCIS: Tony and Ziva has only been planned as a 10-episode miniseries, with showrunner John McNamara saying that he was “excited to tell a single, serialized story of intrigue and espionage over 10 episodes.” However, if the spinoff ends up performing well, the possibility of it getting more seasons is reportedly “very high.” If that happens, then the possibility opens up for folks like Mark Harmon, Sean Murray, Brian Dietzen or Rocky Carroll to stop by (Pauley Perrette reprising Abby Sciuto seems less likely since she retired from acting).

However, looping in Murray, Dietzen and Carroll could be problematic scheduling-wise, given how many episodes the flagship show films each season. Plus, if NCIS: Tony and Ziva were to continue filming abroad, then it’d be a harder process to fly out these familiar faces for a guest appearance, though the fans would undoubtedly be appreciative of that extra effort. To provide an even deeper NCIS cut, de Pablo once expressed interest in having Rudolf Martin reprise Ari Haswari, Ziva’s late half-brother, as a ghost or hallucination.

Keep your eyes on CinemaBlend for continuing NCIS: Tony and Ziva coverage as we approach the show’s premiere and as episodes drop weekly. Again, you’ll need to make sure you’re subscribed to Paramount+, one of the best streaming services, if you want to enjoy this addition to the franchise.

NCIS has been one of the most popular TV shows for several of its 21 seasons, and it has at least one more on the way. In that time the show has created multiple equally beloved spinoffs, though NCIS Hawai'i was recently canceled. Now there are so many characters, storylines, and histories that it’s hard to keep track of them all, but even though Mark Harmon has been off the show for several years now, his Agent Gibbs is still the standard bearer. And the character with the most questions left unanswered.

Gibbs was a unique character, an FBI agent who lived a nearly monastic existence, avoided any technology he was able to ignore, and hand-built boats in his basement without even the use of electric tools. However, one of Gibbs' oddest quirks was that he never locked the front door of his house. The reason for this was never entirely clear, but during a segment on the Off Duty: An NCIS Rewatch podcast hosted by Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo, ahead of their own NCIS spinoff, de Pablo revealed the apparent reason, and it’s absolutely heartbreaking…

Throughout NCIS, we learn a great deal about Agent Gibbs, and that includes the fact that his first wife and his daughter were killed, leading Gibbs on a mission of vengeance where he ultimately murdered the man who killed them. It’s made clear that Gibbs has never really gotten over the experience, and it manifested in part in the lifestyle he has on the show. 

Honestly, if somebody did want to break in and steal stuff, they wouldn’t get much. Gibbs doesn’t own anything beyond the necessities. But that can potentially be traced back to the same reason.

It’s unclear exactly where this information de Pablo reveals came from, since it doesn’t appear the show itself ever directly addressed why Gibbs doesn’t lock the door. This may be something the writers came up with as an idea while building Gibbs' character but never felt a need to say. It could also be something they came up with after the fact to explain what was originally meant to just be a personality quirk. Michael Weatherly had suggested he doesn’t lock the door because he wants it open in case his wife and daughter ever come back, which is maybe a more optimistic take on the same idea.

Unless somebody says otherwise, this certainly feels like a perfectly acceptable canon reason for any fans who need such a thing. With the NCIS: Origins premiere date approaching, a new spinoff focused on the early days of Gibbs, we’ll certainly learn a lot about how he became the man we know, and perhaps this detail will be included officially.  

Although Cote de Pablo and Michael Weatherly departed NCIS as series regular long ago, that didn’t mark their last appearances on the popular CBS show. The former made a surprise appearance in the Season 16 finale and then recurred during Season 17, and the latter cameoed earlier this year in Season 21’s tribute episode to the late David McCallum. However, now the time has finally come to reunite these Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David onscreen, with an NCIS spinoff centered on these two heading to Paramount+ subscription holders in the near future. Naturally though, such a series will also have fresh faces along for the ride, and now we have the first details about some of the new characters who will appear in NCIS: Tony & Ziva.

Who NCIS: Tony And Ziva’s New Characters Will Reportedly Be

According to TVLine, this entry in the NCIS franchise, which also has the prequel NCIS: Origins on the way, will include the following characters: a “British nanny/bodyguard role,” a “Russian hacker extraordinaire” and a “French Interpol liaison." We also learned from Michael Weatherly this past weekend that Tony and Ziva’s daughter Tali will play an important role in the spinoff, and the outlet mentioned that the preteen girl will “ideally be played by a French-American ingenue.”

Considering that NCIS: Tony & Ziva will begin shooting in Budapest later this summer, it probably won’t be too long until we learn who’s selected to play these characters. The spinoff will follow Tony and Ziva going on the run across Europe after Tony’s security company is attacked. Along with their leading roles, Weatherly and de Pablo are executive producing the series alongside showrunner John McNamara, who also wrote the first episode. Laurie Lieser, Christina Strain and Shelley Meals will also executive produce.

What Can We Expect From These Characters In The Spinoff?

Naturally I’m already eager to see what kind of dynamics these characters have with Tony and Ziva, but that in turns brings me into speculation mode.

When it comes to Tali, it still hasn’t been officially clarified if she’ll be with her parents while they’re fleeing the people after them or if she’ll be in hiding somewhere else so that Tony and Ziva decrease the chances of her being a target. That said, learning about this “British nanny/bodyguard role” has me thinking the latter might be more likely, Sure, this nanny could easily just accompany the family as they’re on the run, but wouldn’t it make more tense for Tony and Ziva to task this person with keeping Tali safe somewhere else? However, that in turn leads me to wonder if the nanny is indeed trustworthy or if they’re secretly one of the show’s villains.

As far as the other two roles go, it’s hard to gauge whether the Russian hacker and French Interpol liaison will be good guys or bad guys. To just spitball though, my guess for now is that the former is working for whomever NCIS: Tony & Ziva’s main villain is, while the latter is technically a good guy, but perhaps is hunting for the main protagonists because they’ve been framed for a crime. In any case, once these casting announcements come in, the additional character details will paint a better picture about what this show has in store.

It’s unlikely NCIS: Tony & Ziva will be ready in time to air on the 2024 TV schedule, but once an official premiere date is announced, we’ll let you know. Michael Weatherly has also teased Cote de Pablo might be stopping by NCIS again, so that’s something to keep an eye out for in Season 22.

Ever since it was announced that Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo were reuniting for a brand-new NCIS spinoff, fans have been anticipating seeing them together once again and in person. After the duo started their own NCIS rewatch podcast, they reunited for the Monte Carlo Television Festival. Weatherly shared a sweet message for the fans, who could not get enough of seeing him and his costar on the red carpet.

Fans of Weatherly’s Tony DiNozzo and de Pablo’s Ziva David, a.k.a. Tiva, have long been hoping for a reunion between the actors and the characters. It didn’t help that Weatherly frequently teased a Tiva reunion on social media. Now that it’s finally happening, Weatherly is having even more fun by hyping up the fans and shared a message on Instagram following their latest red carpet appearance:

It is definitely nice to see Weatherly and de Pablo together after all these years, as well as seeing how much fans still love Tiva. It also clearly still means a lot to Weatherly, which makes it all the more better. It has certainly been exciting seeing the actors hanging out with each other again, especially since this is only the beginning. Filming on NCIS: Tony & Ziva will kick off later this summer, meaning that there is much more content on the way.

The new NCIS spinoff will deliver a new element of trouble, as Tony and Ziva won’t be the only focal points of the series. Their daughter, Tali, will be just as important as the family is on the run across Europe during her pre-teen years. It will be interesting to actually see Tony and Ziva as parents together, not to mention fun to see more of Weatherly and de Pablo.

Considering Cote de Pablo initially thought that Michael Weatherly was trying to sabotage her Ziva audition, it’s nice that that didn’t get in the way of anything between them and their characters. There’s a reason why they’re coming back to Tony and Ziva after all these years, and it’s definitely because of their undeniable chemistry and the fans. It’s unknown if they will return to NCIS ahead of Tony & Ziva, but as long as they continue to appear at events together and share behind-the-scenes content from filming, that would be a great alternative.

As of now, a premiere date for NCIS: Tony & Ziva has yet to be announced, but once filming starts, more information will likely be released for people with a Paramount+ subscription. Fans have been waiting for years to see Tiva together again, so the wait for the spinoff will surely be worth it, and it’s going to be exciting when it’s finally here. Plus, there will be much more to come from Weatherly and de Pablo.

One of NCIS’ earliest recurring antagonists was Rudolf Martin’s Ari Haswari, a rogue Mossad agent who’d become the leader of an Al-Qaeda cell in Washington D.C. Ari’s biggest act of villainy on the show was without a doubt killing Sasha Alexander’s Caitlin Todd in the Season 2 finale (if you look closely, you’ll notice an accidental goof from Michael Weatherly in that scene), and then in the two-part Season 3 premiere, he was revealed to be the half-brother of Cote de Pablo’s Ziva David. She was forced to kill Ari by the end of the aptly-named “Kill Ari (Part 2)” in order to save Mark Harmon’s Leroy Jethro Gibbs, yet despite being dead for so long, de Pablo has an idea for how the upcoming Tony & Ziva spinoff could bring the character back.

The latest episode of de Pablo and Weatherly’s new podcast Off Duty: An NCIS Rewatch featured Martin as a guest, and towards the end of their conversation, Martin mentioned how sometimes he gets requests to audition for the NCIS spinoffs, but he inevitably turns them down since he knows he won’t be cast given his already-prominent role on the flagship series. That led de Pablo (who once thought Weatherly was trying to “sabotage” her Ziva audition) to say this:

If the idea of a ghost showing up on an NCIS series sounds weird to you, it’s actually pretty on point, at least as far as the main show is concerned. After all, in the “Kill Ari” episodes, the team members saw their own unique visions of Kate that spoke to them, and following the death of Muse Watson’s Mike Franks in Season 8, he would occasionally appear to Gibbs to offer him advice through to Season 15. So the concept of Ziva being haunted by a ghost/nightmare version of Ari is a legitimate plot element that could be explored, and since he doesn’t really exist, you’re not obligated to explain why he looks older.

Later on in the podcast episode, when Cote de Pablo and Michael Weatherly got on a video call at a different date to discuss their time speaking with Rudolf Martin, the former reaffirmed that she’s interested in exploring this ‘Ari as a ghost idea’ on Tony & Ziva, which will stream exclusively to Paramount+ subscription holders. In her words:

Back in March, CBS Studios President David Stapf told Deadline that as things currently stand with NCIS: Tony & Ziva, which was officially titled last month, there are no plans to include former NCIS cast members, albeit with the caveat “never say never.” So Ghost Ari won’t be in the cards for this first season, but if Tony & Ziva is renewed for Season 2, maybe Cote de Pablo can convince the writers to bring Rudolf Martin back for a guest appearance. The series will follow Tony and Ziva being forced to go on the run across Europe after Tony’s security company is attacked, though it’s unclear if their daughter Tali will be with them.

NCIS: Tony & Ziva is set to begin shooting this summer, though no premiere date has been set yet. It’s one of two NCIS spinoffs on the way, the other being NCIS: Origins, which will follow Leroy Jethro Gibbs in 1991 and is expected to arrive sometime on the 2024 TV schedule.

One of the first major NCIS status quo shifts occurred at the end of the Season 2 finale, when Caitlin Todd was killed by terrorist Ari Haswari. It didn’t take long for the second shift to occur either, as Cote de Pablo’s Ziva was introduced at the top of Season 3 as Ari’s half-sister and Caitlin’s replacement on the team. De Pablo went on to me a main cast member for eight seasons and returned for some appearances in Seasons 16 and 17, and now she’s on deck to lead the officially-titled NCIS: Tony and Ziva spinoff with Michael Weatherly that will stream exclusively to people with a Paramount+ subscription. So naturally she and Weatherly are pretty tight after all these years, but back when de Pablo was audition for the Ziva role, she initially assumed the Tony DiNozzo performer was trying to “sabotage” her audition.

The story behind this misunderstanding unfolded in the first episode of Weatherly and de Pablo’s new podcast, Off Duty: An NCIS Rewatch. The actors primarily talked about how their NCIS origins, i.e. how they came to join the show, so naturally such conversation also touched on what happened when they met for the first time. Right before she got the role, de Pablo tested with Weatherly immediately after another actress, and here’s how it unfolded:

Given that Cote de Pablo hadn’t seen either of NCIS’ first two seasons when she went in to audition to play Ziva David, there’s no way she would have known that Michael Weatherly was simply channeling Tony DiNozzo rather than being deliberately obnoxious. So it’s understandable why she started to get angry, as she assumed that her scene partner was messing with her. It was only after the other people in the room started laughing that she realized this wasn’t at her expense. Weatherly then explained what his thought process had been during the audition, saying:

So maybe Michael Weatherly didn’t make the best first impression, but the tradeoff is that the dynamic established in this audition resulted in Cote de Pablo being cast as Ziva David, with NCIS co-creator Don Bellisario sharing the good news with her shortly thereafter. Initially Ziva was only going to be a guest character, but starting with Season 3’s fourth episode, “Silver War,” she was billed as a series regular, which she remained until Season 11’s second episode, “Past, Present, and Future.” As mentioned earlier though, Ziva resurfaced in Seasons 16 and 17 after it was initially assumed that she died offscreen towards the end of Season 13.

Meanwhile, Michael Weatherly departed NCIS as a series regular in the Season 13 finale, when he learned he and Ziva had had a daughter together named Tali. Weatherly returned to NCIS earlier this year for a cameo appearance at the end of “The Stories We Leave Behind,” the tribute episode for the late David McCallum’s Ducky Mallard. Now NCIS: Tony and Ziva will finally bring the title characters back together onscreen for the first time in over a decade, with the streaming-only series seeing Tony and Ziva going on the run in Europe after the former’s security company is attacked.

It remains to be seen if NCIS: Tony and Ziva will air on the 2024 TV schedule or be saved for 2025. That said, NCIS showrunner Steven D. Binder is open to Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo returning to the flagship show before their spinoff begins. If that happens, we’ll let you know.

Though the NCIS franchise shrank a bit with the surprise cancellation of Vanessa Lachey’s Hawai’i spinoff, it’ll be expanding overall with the upcoming additions of the prequel spinoff NCIS: Origins and the follow-up centering on MIchael Weatherly’s Tony DiNozzo and Cote de Pablo’s Ziva David. The former and future co-stars revealed the new show’s title with a cute video ahead of production kicking off, but is there a chance fans will see them together before the premiere?

That all depends on decisions made by higher-up execs, as it goes with just about all TV show details, but if NCIS' showrunner gets to make the call, it sounds like a broadcast network return for the Tiva duo could indeed be in the cards, especially since Weatherly already appeared to confirm Ziva's impending return. Speaking with TVLine, Steven D. Binder shared the following hopeful take:

Obviously Binder & Co. would want to welcome Tony and Ziva to the family by having the titular characters reunite on the flagship drama later in the 2024 TV schedule. It only makes sense, considering that’s where fans first fell in love with the agents. But there’s a big difference between the desire to and that desire actually becoming a reality.

Still, I imagine few people involved with the situation have more positive influence in the matter than Binder, who’s held his executive producer duties for years now. And one would think the decision needs to be made fairly quickly, since NCIS: Tony And Ziva is set to kick off production in Budapest this summer, and I’d imagine it would be far easier to film something for the mothership drama before the spinoff gets into high gear.

Even if NCIS proper wouldn’t be filming its own eps yet, it wouldn’t require more than a one-room appearance to develop some current connective tissue between the two shows. Granted, fans would no doubt rather have a full-blown backdoor pilot-esque situation where the two get a lengthy on-screen reunion (even if the characters technically wouldn’t be reuniting) before engaging with every other long-term character in the series. One can certainly dream.

As it often goes with entertainment ideals, Weatherly and de Pablo's chances of showing up on CBS' NCIS probably comes down to timing and scheduling as much as anything, and whether or not there's a window where all parties involved can meet up and make the magic happen. But next-to-worst-case senario, NCIS viewers will get to see McGee or Vance getting a video call from Tony and/or Ziva at some point early on in Season 22. Give us something!

It’s not yet known when NCIS: Tony and Ziva will be available to stream via Paramount+ subscription, but that’s the very spot where all prior scenes of shows in the NCIS franchise can be found, among many of CBS’ long-running crime dramas.

While it’s unfortunate that NCIS: Hawai’i was recently cancelled after just three seasons, the popular CBS franchise as a whole is thriving. In addition to the flagship show continuing into Season 22 and NCIS: Sydney being renewed for Season 2, there are two new shows on the way: NCIS: Origins, which follows Leroy Jethro Gibbs in 1991, and an untitled spinoff focused on Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David. Or rather, it used to be untitled, because actors Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo have shared a cute video revealing that this NCIS spinoff will officially be called NCIS: Tony & Ziva.

As you’ll see in the below video that Weatherly shared on X (formerly known as Twitter), the two of them first ruled out the titles NCIS: Europe and NCIS: Trust No One, and honestly, I would have been cool with the former. But understandably, NCIS: Tony & Ziva was what was ultimately selected, although the fan-suggested NCIS: Tiva would have also been a good pick given how many fans love seeing these two paired together.

Although both Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo returned to NCIS separately following their respective exits as series regulars, this spinoff will be the first time that Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David have shared screen time in over a decade. That said, fans know these two have been reunited for several years now and have been raising their daughter Tali together, but NCIS: Tony & Ziva will complicate their lives. As previously announced: the title couple are forced to go on the run in Europe after Tony’s security company is attacked. It’s unclear if their daughter will accompany them or if she’ll be stashed someplace safe while her parents figure out who’s targeting them.

Michael Weatherly reaffirmed in this video that NCIS: Tony & Ziva will shoot in Europe this summer, and Cote de Pablo said that she expects “romance, the background of Europe, impossible situations that will make our life very complicated, but somehow a little something about love.” The video ends on an adorable note with the actress calling her co-star “chérie” after they say they’ll see each other soon.

Unlike the other NCIS shows, NCIS: Tony & Ziva will not air on CBS, as it’s instead being released exclusively to Paramount+ subscribers. CBS and Paramount+ executive George Cheeks said this is because it “felt more like a serialized streaming show, and also was an example of us trying to expand the aperture of NCIS, which is what we did with Criminal Minds on Paramount+.” Cheeks also stated that NCIS: Tony & Ziva’s first season will only consist of 10-13 episodes, which sounds about right for a streaming-exclusive series. No premiere date has been set yet, but since shooting begins this summer, presumably it won’t arrive until 2025.

Keep your eyes peeled on CinemaBlend for continuing coverage on NCIS: Tony & Ziva, including who will join Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo in the cast. Stay up to date with current programming using our 2024 TV schedule.

While franchise fans are still reeling from NCIS: Hawai’i getting canceled by CBS ahead of its Season 3 finale, two new spinoffs are still on the way to help soothe the woes. For my (streaming) money, the more exciting of the pair is Tony DiNozzo and ZIva Davd’s new drama that’ll reunite former co-stars Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo. Paramount+ still hasn’t unveiled a title for the follow-up project, so Weatherly took to social media to try and crowd-source that particular duty, and with solid results.

NCIS fans shared quite a few suggestions for what the long-running crime drama’s latest continuation spinoff should be called, and we’ll get to several of those lower down. But before peeping out the rest of the ideas, let’s first put a big spotlight on the best of them, as shared on X:

Now, I know it’s fairly unheard of for a TV spinoff’s title to specifically tie into fan-shipped monikers, especially now that we’re well past shipping’s pop culture heyday. But let’s put some respect on Tiva’s name, since viewers first mashed the two characters’ names together when they were both series regulars on the crime drama, which stopped being a that after De Pablo’s final episode aired on October 1, 2013. So Tiva has been in existence for long enough that it can serve as a series title without sounding corny or pandering.

And while Michael Weatherly’s other responses weren’t exactly essay-length, he did offer condensed opinions for several other suggestions that were actual thoughts. Here, however, he went with a simple “Hmmm,” which might mean nothing, or it might have been the actor’s way of textually holding a finger up to his nose to indicate that the suggestion was right on the money.

When a spinoff is called something like Origins or Hawai’i, audiences are given a rather limited window through which to glean what each show is about, with “the past” and “the island state” being the biggest inferences to make. But a title like NCIS: Tiva? Not a single viewer would be confused about what characters they could expect to see. Especially after de Pablo’s return in Season 16’s finale set up her recurring arc the next year, sparking a new wave of interest in Tiva as an on-screen couple. (Interest that doubled down once Weatherly vacated CBS’ Bull.)

Or course, given the way this franchise names things, we’re almost definitely in store for something akin to NCIS: Europe, but I’d even go for some of these other wonderfully hokey ideas that fans shared.

• @RStudard: NCIS: WE’VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS FOR 8 YEARS!
• Michael Weatherly: Too long

A commenter beneath this offered up the truncated revision of just NCIS: Finally, which has a weird ring to it, even if it doesn't quite mean anything. Same for the idea below:

• @mrbojanglez70: NCIS Beyond
• Michael Weatherly: That might be my daughters fave

Would there be some confusion for anyone with Paramount+ subscriptions between NCIS: Beyond and the sci-fi sequel Star Trek: Beyond? I mean, one can hope we're all smarter than that. The same way I'd hope that no one mixed the below suggestion up with the 1987 film of a similar name.

• @PaolaCalcaterra: NCIS: No Way Out
• Michael Weatherly: Kevin Costner references do not get old in my house.

Considering Kevin Costner's Yellowstone had its run on CBS during the 2023 strikes, wouldn't it be wild if the actor's next big connection with Paramount would be a starring role in Tony and Ziva's new show? After his upcoming feature Horizon: An American Saga, of course.

If Tiva is too indirect as a title, this one could fix that issue quite easily, even if it may not necessarily imply the most serious tone.

• @shayeraholz: NCIS: THE DINOZZOS
• Michael Weatherly: That's the sitcom title

And though Michael Weatherly didn't share any responses to the idea below, it fits in nicely with the TGIF vibe of the above suggestion.

• @LollieEEliza: NCIS: Family Matters

Get this: Tony and Ziva adopt a new kid who just happens to be the long-lost child of Steve Urkel, and....no wait, this is a terrible idea.

Hopefully Weatherly's post is a sign that fans can expect the new series to unveil its official title in the near future, so that we can see whose picks were closest. I'm throwing my hat in the ring now for NCIS: NCIS Spinoff.

Unless you’ve been hiding under a very large rock for the past few months (and I don’t think anyone would blame you if you had been), you probably know that big things are happening in the NCIS universe. The flagship show recently helped fans celebrate the 1,000th episode (!!!) of the franchise as a whole with great cameos and nods to the series’ very first episode, and two spinoffs are also on the way, with prequel, NCIS: Origins, focusing on young Gibbs and a currently unnamed drama following Tony DiNozzo, Ziva David and their daughter. The Tiva series is highly anticipated by those who’ve been dying to see the couple together again, and Michael Weatherly just shared Cote de Pablo’s sweet message for fans.

What Was Cote De Pablo’s Sweet Message For NCIS And Tiva Fans That Michael Weatherly Shared?

Not only was the late February news of the Tiva spinoff (which was given a 10 episode order and will debut for those with a Paramount+ subscription at some point in the not-too-distant future) quite welcome, but it was also a pretty huge shock. While Cote de Pablo had reprised her role for a few NCIS episodes in Season 17, and Michael Weatherly briefly made a surprise return for Ducky’s tribute episode recently, the two haven’t been on screen together as the bickering, bantering love birds since the beginning of Season 11. 

Now that we know that there are mere months until Weatherly and de Pablo begin filming their new series, he’s taken to Instagram to share her sweet message for fans. Observe:

As she noted in the short clip, which was also in honor of the franchise’s 1,000th episode, it’s the “beloved fans” who made the original series so popular that not only is it still on the air 21 seasons later, but there have already been long-running spinoffs set in Los Angeles and New Orleans, with newer shows like NCIS: Sydney and Hawai’i also gaining popularity.

The actress also noted that she and the former Bull star couldn’t “wait to make you happy, yet again,” as they rejoin the NCIS canvas for their upcoming series, and truthfully, from what fans have been saying about this Tiva renaissance (Tivanissance?) online, it’s clear that they already have.

Their series promises to be an action-packed one, as Ziva and Tony will traverse Europe with their young daughter, Tali, as they’re forced to go on the run after DiNozzo’s security company suffers an attack. They’ll be attempting to “figure out who is after them and maybe even learn to trust each other again so that they can finally have their unconventional happily ever after,” and if that doesn’t sound like we’re going to get some amazing family moments and lots of the old-time banter that we loved to hear from Tiva, I don’t know what does. Plus, I know fans can’t wait to see how Tali fits into all this adventure.

Weatherly has already teased that de Pablo is supposedly set to make an appearance on the flagship show at some point before our…I mean, their, Tiva spinoff hits streaming, so we’ve got that potential event and all the updates about the new show to look forward to over the coming months.

Back in 2013, Cote De Pablo exited NCIS early into Season 11 after playing Ziva David as a series regular for eight seasons, and by the end of Season 13, the character was said to have been killed in an explosion in Israel. But in the Season 16 finale, Ziva was revealed to still be alive, and she went on to appear a handful of times in Season 17. Now de Pablo is set to reunite with co-star Michael Weatherly for an NCIS spinoff focused on Ziva and Tony DiNozzo being made for Paramount+ subscribers, but per a recent comment from Weatherly, it sounds like the actress is set to return to the flagship show soon.

Weatherly, who cameoed last month as Tony in NCIS’ Ducky tribute episode, was doing an Instagram Live video (via TikTok user tivaology) with Brian Dietzen, who plays Chief Medical Examiner Jimmy Palmer. While speaking to a fan who joined the conversation, Weatherly teased that there’s a “surprise Cote de Pablo thing” coming. He wasn’t able to disclose any specifics, but did say that Dietzen is a part of it, and that he expects it will “blow people’s brains” since de Pablo is a “very private person,” which is in contrast with Weatherly, who’s more “outspoken” and “open” to putting himself on “the show.” He then stated:

Now just so we’re all on the same page, we shouldn’t consider this an official announcement that Ziva is set to appear in NCIS Season 21. Still, if Michael Weatherly felt comfortable enough with sharing that information to all the viewers of that video, then it sounds like a done deal. But don’t take my word for it; watch the video for yourself.

When we left off with Ziva in NCIS Season 17, the woman who’d tried to kill her years earlier was shot dead by Gibbs, allowing Ziva to finally abandon her life on the run and reunite with Tony and their daughter Tali. Presumably Ziva also came back to the United States with Tony to attend Ducky’s memorial service. Because Season 21 only consists of 10 episodes, and with the fifth episode, which was titled “The Plan” and introduced Jessica Knight’s dad, airing this past Monday, that means if Ziva is returning to NCIS, it’s going to be in the next several weeks.

What’s unclear, though, is if this appearance is meant to set up Tony and Ziva’s spinoff, or if it’s just a fun visit. Either way, the upcoming TV show, which has scored a 10-episode order, will see its protagonists being forced to go on the run after Tony’s security company is attacked. In addition to reprising their roles, Cote de Pablo and Michael Weatherly will executive produce alongside showrunner John McNamara, Laurie Lieser, Christina Strain and Shelley Meals.

A premiere date hasn’t been set for Tony and Ziva’s spinoff yet, but you can watch new episodes of NCIS on the 2024 TV schedule Mondays at 9 pm ET, with NCIS: Hawai’i following immediately afterwards. NCIS: Sydney has also been renewed for Season 2, and NCIS: Origins, the Leroy Jethro Gibbs-centric prequel, will air on CBS sometime in the 2024-2025 TV season.

Is there any aspect of fandom more precious and also wildly dedicated to its focus than shipping? People who become fans of not only certain franchises/shows, but specific potential or actual romantic pairings within, do nothing if not ride long and hard for their favorite fictional relationships. So, when it was recently announced that the long off-screen NCIS ship of Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David are getting their own series, folks went crazy. And, now that Tony’s portrayer, Michael Weatherly, has posted about the spinoff, Tiva fans have shared their thoughts.

What Did Michael Weatherly Say About His NCIS Spinoff And How Did Fans Respond?

Honestly, seeing as how news about the straight-to-series Tony and Ziva spinoff for those with a Paramount+ subscription is only a few hours old as of this writing, I think most fans are probably still pleasantly stunned. The couple hasn’t been together on screen since star Cote de Pablo took Ziva away from the flagship naval crime procedural (now in Season 21) at the start of Season 11, with Michael Weatherly retiring Tony in the Season 13 finale. The former Bull star took to X (formerly Twitter) to herald the coming of this new drama with a slightly sarcastic message that DiNozzo would definitely approve of:

Yeah, Mr. Weatherly. That did happen! With word on the new show also came confirmation that this project was long in the works, with de Pablo and Weatherly's joint statement about it noting that they’d been “talking about this story for many years.” Obviously, Tiva fans are beside themselves with joy, and responded to the star’s social media post with a number of enthusiastic comments:

• Michael…. When I Tell You I Am In Tears I’m Not Joking…. I Am So Excited… Thank You For Making This Happen.. Sending All Love From Ziva (My Cat) And Me
• Is there a NCIS Season 21/22 introductory episode in the works like how you guys introduced the other spinoffs. Just curious. Love to see Tony, Ziva, and Tali all together in a mothership episode.
• WE’RE GOING TO SEE TIVA AS PROTECTIVE PARENTS KEEPING THEIR DAUGHTER SAFE. AND TALI REFERRING TO HER PARENTS AS HER PARENTS — IE “DADDY”/“ABBA” and “IMA.” 
• THEY'RE GONNA CALL EACH OTHER MOM & DAD (MAYBE EVEN IN MULTIPLE LANGUAGES)
• I have 100% faith that Michael and Cote will do right by the characters, and do right by us as Tiva fans. I have faith that they’ll give us what we want — properly — because they know how important it is to us.
• ?!?!??!??!?!??!?@?!??!?!

Some things to notice? The amount of ALL CAPS responses was pretty significant, meaning that fans are absolutely surprised and completely ready for this one-time will-they-won’t-they pairing to come back into their lives and deliver more action-packed bickering and bantering. Really, though, that last comment might be my favorite. Someone was literally speechless over the spinoff news but still felt the need to post about it, guys!

Though de Pablo brought Ziva back for a spell in 2019 (when the big reveal was made that she wasn’t dead after all), and we recently saw Weatherly reprise Tony for the special NCIS episode that honored Ducky and the late David McCallum (who played the character for the entirety of the show’s run), whenever Ziva and Tony make their first appearance together it will be the first time fans have seen them at the same time in a little over a decade. 

The new series, which has no official title just yet, is set to begin filming later this year, and will see the couple on the run in Europe with their daughter, after Tony’s security company is attacked. So, I’m sure there will be plenty more good news coming in the weeks/months ahead for Tiva fans the world over!

One of the big draws on NCIS for a long time was watching the ‘will they, won’t they’ dynamic between Michael Weatherly’s Tony DiNozzo and Cote de Pablo’s Ziva David, with the former having been one of the CBS show’s original main cast members, and the latter coming aboard in Season 3. While both actors have long since departed NCIS as series regulars, they’ve popped back up on the procedural franchise’s flagship show in recent years. Now it’s been officially announced that Weatherly and de Pablo are reteaming for a Tony and Ziva spinoff, and as a longtime NCIS fan, I’m so jazzed about this news.

While this spinoff doesn’t have an official title yet, it has scored a 10-episode order, and production is scheduled to start later this year. Rather than air on CBS, it’s being developed for Paramount+ subscribers. In addition to reprising their characters, Weatherly and de Pablo will executive produce alongside The Magicians’ John McNamara, who wrote the premiere episode and will serve as the showrunner, as well as Laurie Lieser, Christina Strain and Shelley Meals.

This unnamed NCIS spinoff will mark the first time Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo have reunited onscreen in 10 years. Per the official synopsis, the upcoming TV show will follow Tony and Ziva raising their daughter Tali together, but after Tony’s security company is attacked, the couple “must go on the run across Europe, try to figure out who is after them and maybe even learn to trust each other again so that they can finally have their unconventional happily ever after.” Weatherly and de Pablo said the following about the spinoff in a joint statement:

This is the second NCIS spinoff to be announced within the past couple months, as in early January, we learned about NCIS: Origins, which will follow Leroy Jethro Gibbs in 1991, when he first joined the law enforcement agency. Currently the NCIS lineup consists of the original show, Hawai’i and Sydney, and past spinoffs included Los Angeles and New Orleans. Assuming those first three shows are renewed, then once Origins and this spinoff centered on Tony and Ziva get off the ground, fans will have their pick of five NCIS shows to check out, the most that have ever been on at one time.

As someone who’s been watching NCIS since 2008, five years after it premiered on CBS, hearing that we’re finally getting Tony and Ziva paired back together again is most welcome news. For those who need a refresher, Cote de Pablo exited the show at the beginning of Season 11, and by the end of Season 13, Ziva was believed to have been killed. Tony, upon learning that Ziva had given birth to Tali, left NCIS in that same season’s finale to take care of her.

However, by the Season 16 finale, it was revealed that Ziva was actually still alive, and in Season 17, we watched her in a handful of episodes track down the woman who’d been targeting her and forced her to fake her death. Ziva ultimately succeeded in doing this, and when we left off with her, she was heading to Paris to finally reunite with Tony and Tali, as she’d been steering clear of them in order to keep them safe. Then earlier this month, Michael Weatherly made a surprise cameo at the end of NCIS’ Ducky tribute episode, his first time appearing on the show since his Season 13 exit.

Like many fans, I’d been hoping for a long time that Tony and Ziva would be seen together on NCIS, but this spinoff is just as good of news, if not better. Now we get to see Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo take center stage in this universe, and it’ll be the first of these NCIS spinoffs not to actually focus on people working in the title agency. And besides, given how often NCIS crossover both big and small happen nowadays, there’s always the chance these two could pop by their old stomping grounds on the original show at some point.

Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for updates on the Tony and Ziva spinoff, including what it will be officially titled. For queries regarding currently-airing programming or shows set to premiere soon, check out the 2024 TV schedule.

At the end of NCIS Season 2, Sasha Alexander’s Caitlin Todd was killed by the terrorist Ari Haswari, and the following season, Cote de Pablo’s Ziva David initially came to Washington DC simply to stop her half-brother, but ended up taking Caitlin’s spot on the CBS show’s main team. De Pablo starred on NCIS for eight seasons, then departed at the beginning of Season 11. Looking back on the actress’ exit, one CBS executive described this status quo change on NCIS as a “ripple in the universe,” and one of the show’s creatives admitted he never believed this would happen… until it did.

The “ripple” comment came from former CBS Entertainment president Nina Tassler, who was among the many individuals surprised when De Pablo walked away from NCIS. As for why the actress decided to leave, executive producer Charles Floyd Johnson explained in THR’s NCIS oral history to commemorate the show’s 20th anniversary that De Pablo had reached a point where she felt it was time for a change. As Floyd recalled:

Fellow executive producer Mark Horowitz acknowledged that during Cote de Pablo “wasn’t necessarily as popular” at the beginning of her NCIS tenure compared to when she left, which is certainly accurate. Oftentimes new main characters coming into a show can have trouble fitting in among the existing regulars, but as the years passed, Ziva became a fan-favorite, with viewers especially enjoying her will-they-won’t-they relationship with Michael Weatherly’s Anthony DiNozzo. 

Back in 2016, De Pablo said she “chose not to stay” on NCIS because of “political things and the scripts not being good enough,” as well as feeling that her character “was not being treated with the respect that she deserved.” However, three years later, the actress stated that her previous comments were “taken out of context at a certain point,” though she wasn’t willing to elaborate on the specific circumstances concerning her departure. As Charles Floyd Johnson understood the situation, De Pablo had simply reached a point where she’d taken her NCIS journey as far as she wanted to, even though Johnson and plenty of other people wanted her to stick around.

Ultimately, Cote de Pablo appeared in NCIS Season 11’s first two episodes to wrap up Ziva’s arc, and just a few episodes later, Emily Wickersham was cast to play Ellie Bishop, Ziva’s replacement on the team. Johnson had the following to say about her coming aboard:

Although Ziva David was in initially thought to have been killed offscreen in Season 13, she reemerged in the Season 16 finale to reunite with Mark Harmon’s Leroy Jethro Gibbs, then recurred during Season 17. When we last saw her, she was heading to Paris to reunite with Tony and their daughter, Tali. As for Emily Wickersham, she left NCIS at the end of Season 18, with Ellie Bishop leaving the agency to go on a deep-cover mission. The good news for fans of both these characters are still alive, so the door is open for them potentially return again someday.

Catch up on NCIS’ first 20 seasons with a Paramount+ subscription and stay tuned for updates on Season 21’s progress. For all your queries regarding the rest of this year’s small screen programming, read through the 2023 TV schedule.

It's clear that NCIS fans are in for some major treats here in 2023. The franchise is gearing up for its first-ever three-show crossover, which will see the characters from the flagship series and the LA and Hawai’i spinoffs coming together to solve a case. Though that's exciting enough, now it's been suggested that there could be even more surprises in store for the main show later in the season. Series alum Michael Weatherly just seemingly promised as much and, based on his answer to a question, he has me wondering if a "Tiva" reunion is even in the cards.

Michael Weatherly portrayed Tony DiNozzo for the first 13 seasons of the CBS procedural and, since his exit in 2016, many have wondered whether or not he’ll reprise the role at some point. With the start of 2023, Weatherly is already giving viewers hope that Tony and Cote de Pablo’s Ziva David may finally have the reunion fans have been waiting years for. This is due to the way in which he replied to a fan on Twitter:

Now that Michael Weatherly’s Bull is done, his schedule has definitely opened up a bit. He’s been teasing a possible return to his former show for a while now, even explicitly feeding right into the rumors last November. It’s clear that NCIS and the Tiva dynamic are still on his mind and, after seeing that post, fans will surely be more hyped than ever for a reunion to occur.

When it was announced that Bull was ending, NCIS devotees were quick to jump on the Tiva reunion train. Around the time that Cote de Pablo returned in Season 17, it seemed that a Ziva and Tony meet-up would not come to pass. But it's possible that things have changed and the two characters have grown since off-screen. Regardless  of their personal circumstances though, I just want to see the two re-appear together in some form or fashion.

With Michael Weatherly still being relatively fresh off of Bull, it’s hard to tell when this  purported reunion could happen. When asked about Weatherly’s potential return last fall, NCIS showrunner Steven D. Binder said that he has talked to him about it over the years but that the actor would more than likely want to take a break for a bit. Again, we don't know for sure what is apparently being planned, but the star's Twitter update gives one the impression that he's eager to jump back into the fold.

Following his exit, Michael Weatherly has kept in touch with some of his CBS colleagues, and it’s been pretty sweet to see. Pauley Perrette penned a sweet birthday message to her friend and former co-star in 2021, with the two reuniting with other NCIS alums for a good cause in 2020. He also teamed up with Sasha Alexander for Bull’s final season when she directed an episode, and the behind-the-scenes photos she shared are proof that they are still just as close as ever. I'm hopeful that Weatherly will get the chance to reprise his famous role alongside his co-stars -- and give us more Tiva in the process.

New episodes of NCIS return on Monday, January 9 at 8 p.m. EST on CBS, starting with the big crossover event! And while you indulge in the new installments, relive some of Tony and Ziva's best moments by streaming past episodes with a Paramount+ subscription.

For TV audiences, it sometimes doesn't get better than a show's former stars returning to reprise their fan-favorite roles. Such was the case for NCIS viewers in Season 17, with Cote de Pablo making a surprising comeback as Ziva David for a handful of episodes. Many viewers are likely wondering if and when we might get to see de Pablo's Ziva finding her way back to Gibbs, McGee and the rest, and one of the show's producers is keeping hope alive that it'll happen one day, though no one should expect it to become a regular occurrence.

Executive producer Steve Binder addressed the Ziva question with TVLine, explaining what that thought process has to be in order to consider welcoming Cote de Pablo back in future episodes:

So while many fans would be perfectly content if NCIS' writers approached storylines from the opposite direction, with Cote de Pablo's inclusion already assumed, the truth of the matter is that any applicable storylines will need far more organic connections to Ziva David in order to convince the creative team to bring the character back into the fold. Granted, the writers know the character well enough that they could easily construct a narrative that would be tailor-made for more Ziva, but they only want to make that happen if the situation feels more authentic.

Those hoping that Steve Binder secretly has a Cote de Pablo-sized ace up his sleeve for Season 18 should probably curb such expectations until the rumor mill starts rolling. Here's what the EP said when asked if there are any story plans currently being talked out:

As disappointing as that may be, there's comfort to be found in Steve Binder asserting that NCIS' producers are always open to consider ideas for how Ziva David could pop back into the story. Plus, it's awesome that Cote de Pablo enjoyed returning so much that she didn't put an instant moratorium on making future returns. Ziva and Tony's reunion could finally happen one day, people!

Though Cote de Pablo wasn't around, NCIS did dip back into the past for its Season 18 premiere, giving audiences a fun trip back in time for Mark Harmon's Leroy Gibbs. So there are definitely story avenues where the writers can find ways to reinsert former characters into the fun, even if someone else might end up playing Ziva in her younger years.

NCIS airs on CBS on Tuesday nights on CBS at 8:00 p.m. ET. To see what other new and returning shows are on their way soon, head to our Fall TV 2020 premiere schedule and our Winter and Spring TV guide.

SPOILERS below for the midseason finale of NCIS, so be sure to watch before reading on.

The first half of NCIS' seventeenth season has been as memorable as ever, thanks to the limited return of former star Cote de Pablo as a slightly more fractured Ziva David. The details surrounding her return were flipped upside down in the most recent episode, which served as the long-running drama's fall finale. As fans have witnessed, though, Ziva's return has been entirely centered on the Sahar(Sarah) case, while very little screentime and conversation time was devoted to teasing a reunion with estranged beau Tony DiNozzo.

The logistics behind avoiding that information are salient, in that Cote de Pablo only signed on for a five-episode arc in Season 17, while Michael Weatherly has had his own CBS show keeping him busy in the past four years. But according to longtime executive producers Frank Cardea and Steven D. Binder, the creative team worked the current storyline in such a way that it keeps hope alive for a Ziva and Tony reunion. According to Binder, Tony almost definitely knows Ziva is alive, so it's just a matter of time.

By all means, NCIS fans would probably move mountains and oceans to give producers enough space to configure a big reunion between Cote de Pablo's Ziva and Michael Weatherly's Tony. Now that the show is reaching the end of this twist-driven storyline, there's less of a reason for Ziva to stick around in full, so it seems like it would be smarter to set up a rekindling with Tony sooner rather than later.

NCIS Star Talks Ziva's Return, First Meeting With Kasie

It sounds like the key to this whole situation hinges heavily on the idea that Ziva and Tony haven't spoken to each other or been in each other's presence since right around when she left. (Which is presumably around the time she got pregnant.) Here's Steven D. Binder talking about that element:

For the sake of pure drama, it would have been more emotionally ideal for the writers to craft a situation where Tony and Tali were kept in the dark about Ziva's survival, only to bring everyone together for a gobsmacking reunion. However, it probably wouldn't have earned Ziva any sympathy points had audiences been told she chose to fully keep her existence a secret from Tony and Tali. Sure, it's likely devastating to know that someone you love is out there in the world and unable to return home, but if the opposite involves breaching safety and putting a child at risk, it's understandable.

It appears as though the winter premiere, airing in January, will connect some more dots between Ziva and Tony, by way of how she might react to such a reunion given al the things she's been though in the interim years. Here's how Frank Cardea and Steven D. Binder put it to TVInsider:

Clearly, ZIva's years in hiding have taken a toll on her mental state, as well as her previously championed ability to be the most badass person in the room at any given moment. She's been living in a much different world from whatever Tony is doing these days, so a reunion could feasibly do damage to that fan-favorite relationship. Not that I think the writers and EPs would want to poke the bear that much, but it could happen.

Here's hoping the January 7 winter premiere offers NCIS fans some answers and a promise of closure on the Ziva and Tony front, among others, but even if it doesn't, at least Cote de Pablo is around for one more episode! (Let's just hope it sees an uptick in the ratings.) While waiting for CBS' primetime to kick back into high gear in 2020, check out all the other great shows that are on the way in the new year.

NCIS is the show that just keeps on showing, and as of the end of the 2019-2020 TV season, it will have outlasted two of the other longest-running shows on television. So, why is NCIS still so popular with fans now that it's in Season 17? Cote de Pablo, who returned in Season 17 after making a shocking Season 16 cameo, weighed in on what she believes are the reasons NCIS remains a favorite for many fans:

NCIS has had a surprising lack of star turnover over the 17 years of the series so far. While there have been some major departures -- including Cote de Pablo's herself, when she exited as a regular back in Season 11 -- NCIS still has four major members of the cast who have been on board from the very first season, including leading man Mark Harmon.

Admittedly, game-changing departures like those of Pauley Perrette (who is very unlikely to reprise her role as Abby) and Michael Weatherly (whose odds of returning are much better) rocked NCIS, but the procedural has just kept proceeding, and new characters fit into the vacant slots with ease. In fact, the latest episode even suggested that two agents could be Tiva 2.0, even if their relationship is more complicated than ever.

As Cote de Pablo said to KTLA 5 Morning News, the format has largely remained the same even as the years passed and the dynamics within the unit shifted. The static nature of the format is part of what has allowed de Pablo to step right back into Ziva's shoes for Season 17 despite being absent since Season 11 and presumed dead from Season 13 until the clues of her survival started dropping in Season 16.

Ziva Returns To NCIS For A ‘Life Or Death’ Situation

If Michael Weatherly takes a break from Bull (which was not cancelled despite allegations against him) if only for a cameo to give some closure to Tony/Ziva, fans presumably wouldn't have a hard time accepting him back into the fold despite the years since his left. In fact, NCIS' audience -- which already destroys the competition -- would almost certainly get a boost. Ziva episodes have definitely provided big numbers in viewership!

That said, NCIS is far from primetime's big winner in the ratings, and I've regularly ranked CBS' NCIS franchise (comprised of NCIS: New Orleans and NCIS: Las Angeles as well as the original NCIS) behind One Chicago on NBC when it comes to ratings and viewership in general.

To keep up on the latest NCIS cases, be sure to tune in to CBS on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET.

When Ziva David returned to NCIS in the Season 16 finale, after leaving the show in Season 11 to go back to Israel, something had changed. After losing her daughter and faking her own death, she was bound to evolve into a different Ziva. While Cote de Pablo’s beloved character appeared in the first couple of episodes early in Season 17, co-star Diona Reasonover teased Ziva’s return to NCIS in the midseason finale as being because of a “life or death” situation.

Before the beginning of NCIS Season 17, CBS confirmed that Cote de Pablo’s Ziva David would indeed return to the show (proving she hadn’t been a hallucination, after all). With a bunch of loose ends left to tie up, Ziva’s appearance in the first two episodes of Season 17 indicated there was more to come for her story.

The midseason finale would be one of two episodes (the other being the midseason premiere in January) that would focus on Ziva, and hopefully shed some more light on what happened to her in the years since she left. Diona Reasonover (Kasie Hines), who joined the NCIS cast in Season 16 following Pauley Perrette’s departure, previews the reasons for Ziva’s return.

It sounds like Ziva’s return will be full of tension and won’t involve the NCIS team going out for drinks to play catch up. Prior to Ziva’s big comeback, everyone thought she had died in an explosion in Israel. However, it turns out that the explosion, which was specifically targeting her, left her with a need for vengeance and this focused mission changed her in the years since she left. Gibbs even noticed she takes anxiety pills now.

For Diona Reasonover’s Kasie, Ziva is more of a legend. When Ziva appeared early on in Season 17, Kasie was far too focused on the case to care much about what was going on with her. As a newcomer, though, Kasie hasn’t really had the chance to bond with Ziva or get to know her. According to Reasonover, when speaking with TV Insider, that will change upon Ziva’s return in the midseason finale.

As exciting as it is to have Ziva back on the show, fans were hoping for a reunion between her and Michael Weatherly’s Tony, who left the team to care for his and Ziva’s daughter, Tali. Unfortunately, Cote de Pablo made it clear that it isn’t likely to happen.

Keep an eye out for Ziva's return in the NCIS midseason finale, which will air on December 17 at 8 p.m. ET on CBS. For more information about what shows are premiering through the end of 2019, be sure to check out our complete TV guide.

NCIS kicked off Season 17 on a thrilling note thanks to the return of Cote de Pablo as Ziva David, which both confirmed that she wasn't a hallucination at the end of Season 16 and that her story was far from over. Fans knew ahead of Season 17 that Ziva would appear in more than just the first couple episodes, but there was no news of precisely when her second two guest stints would go down. Now, CBS has announced the dates, with one before the end of 2019 and the other early in 2020.

Cote de Pablo's next appearance on NCIS will be in the December 17, 2019 episode, which also happens to be the midseason finale. Fittingly, her other appearance with be in the January 7, 2020 midseason premiere. There are no details available just yet about what will happen in these episodes, but considering de Pablo's next (and quite possibly last) two appearances in NCIS Season 17 will be these two episodes, the odds are pretty good that the midseason finale will end on a cliffhanger.

Considering NCIS performed quite well in the ratings with the two Ziva-heavy episodes of early Season 17 (and the NCIS franchise on CBS continues to lose to the One Chicago franchise on NBC in most key ways), the return of Ziva could provide a much-needed boost for the long-running show.

Ziva's departure at the end of her second episode back certainly was open-ended, and fans were left with a lot of questions. NCIS did at least go on to explain why Gibbs won't go looking for Ziva after it was such a huge deal in her return two-parter that he hadn't searched for her after news of her death. Perhaps the biggest cliffhanger of Ziva leaving her friends behind for a second time in early Season 17 was when Ziva would reach out to Tony.

Ziva did explain some of what's going on with Tony and their daughter Tali, and all signs point toward Tony being in the dark that Ziva hasn't been dead all this time. Ziva was more open with her regrets about the separation with Tali, but it was clear that she misses Tony as well. Her second episode back ended with Ziva promising of Tony that "he will" hear the news of her return from Ziva herself.

She didn't provide a time table, but that's good news for Tiva fans nonetheless! Should we start keeping on eye out for hints that Michael Weatherly steps off the Bull set to revisit his old NCIS stomping grounds? NCIS technically wouldn't need Weatherly to show that Tony and Ziva reunited, as the show could always shoot a Michael Weatherly-shaped stand-in from behind and focus the reunion on Ziva and Tali.

Still, anything is possible at this point, and we can only hope that the reason Ziva is apparently only back for four episodes in Season 17 isn't a sign that she's going to die for good this time around. For now, you can catch new episodes of NCIS that may or may not drop some details about what's up with Ziva ahead of her return in December. NCIS airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.

Ziva David is already back for more NCIS, and a new set photo of Cote de Pablo with one of her co-stars confirms it! Fans got the thrill of a lifetime when de Pablo returned to the crime procedural at the end of last season. As Season 17 got underway, NCIS wasted no time bringing a changed Ziva back into the fray.

After coming back and fulfilling that initial arc, Cote de Pablo departed again, which led to NCIS explaining why Gibbs has not gone looking for her. The good news is that fans already knew that Ziva would eventually be back in Season 17. Well, now they have visual confirmation of Cote de Pablo’s latest NCIS return, via the set photo below:

There you have it! Cote de Pablo is striking a pose with co-star Brian Dietzen, who plays Dr. Jimmy Palmer. Based on the fantastic picture taken by their co-star Diona Reasonover (Kasie Hines), the NCIS castmates are clearly having fun. It is not the first time that de Pablo’s return has been celebrated via set photos with her co-stars.

Now it is just a matter of seeing how Cote de Pablo’s next return as Ziva unfolds. There is so much unfinished business for her to get to. Now, the fan-favorite NCIS heroine will get a chance to tackle it. As previously reported, Ziva’s two-episode return at the start of the season would be followed by two more episodes that would air in late fall/early winter.

Cote de Pablo’s next stint on NCIS marks the latest in several limited returns she has made to the series since leaving. It all started with last season's seismic Ziva bombshell that revealed she was alive. How did NCIS get its former star back? The actress came after a pitch that went really well.

Fans will have to stay tuned to see how NCIS brings Ziva back next time. Gibbs has struggled with what to do in light of Ziva’s brief return, and subsequent departure. It has been a lot for him to take in, and he was already struggling so much before Season 17 that it seemed feasible Ziva was a figment of his imagination.

Thankfully for Gibbs and fans, Ziva’s return was real! Now she is about to be back all over again. Action and adventure are undoubtedly set to follow suit. As far as Cote de Pablo making a long-term return to NCIS goes, fans will have to stay tuned. It is surely on many of their wish lists!

New episodes of NCIS air Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on CBS. The crime procedural’s return is one of this fall’s premieres. You can relive Cote de Pablo’s Ziva past seasons via Netflix, along with arriving new content.

A couple of years ago, I would have been shocked to even consider the idea of Cote De Pablo returning to NCIS. However, the series spent a lot of last year teasing a potential Ziva return and it, in fact, has happened on the series. But it may have never come together if it weren’t for some clever crafting and a clandestine pitch.

In fact, despite the actress thinking her tenure was over and done, she was pitched on a return by NCIS executive producers Frank Cardea and Steven Binder, which Cardea says went really well…

By now, the cat’s way out of the bag that Cote De Pablo is back on NCIS, however, that wasn’t true at first. The actress talked about the secretive nature of her return in an the interview with USA Today, noting that she was on set late at night and that many, many people related to the show were kept in the dark about her return. This is true even after the series began teasing a Ziva-related plot last season.

The people who were around during her first day – well, night -- back on set offered her a warm welcome, however, as the actress reported about her return:

Cote De Pablo has previously talked about getting the first script for Ziva’s return and realizing the character had changed from the time she had last played her. At the time, she also noted that “challenging life situations” were the catalyst for the change for Ziva and it sounds like things have been a bit more challenging within the role this time around.

Related: Cote De Pablo Isn’t Ready To Explain Why She Left NCIS

As for Ziva, she’s been a part of the series for a few episodes in 2019, most recently appearing in the October 1 episode “Into the Light.” NCIS is on hiatus this week and there will be a rebroadcasting, but new episodes are expected to air on November 5 and 12.

As for the character, she currently is expected to be in four episodes of the long-airing drama, which means she should have two more appearances to go. Those are expected to air later this fall or early winter and, honestly, I can’t wait to see how those pan out, particularly given where the conversation between Ziva and Gibbs left off in regards to the Tony Dinozzo question.

NCIS airs Tuesday nights at 8 p.m. ET, only on CBS. For more premieres, keep tabs on our full schedule.

Cote de Pablo is not ready to explain why she really left NCIS. The actress has reprised her role as fan-favorite Ziva David on the hit series for Season 17, which has brought up questions as to why she initially left the show. The actress joined the series during its third season.

After eight seasons, she decided to leave, exiting the drama in Season 11. Fast forward to the Season 13 finale, and NCIS rocked the show by seemingly killing Ziva, off-screen. Ziva’s status changed again in Season 16, when it was revealed that she was alive, after all. After a lot of teasing, Cote de Pablo made her surprise return in the season finale.

Now, she is back and in a massive storyline with Gibbs. When it comes to addressing her reasons for leaving now, Cote de Pablo is choosing to remain quiet. That does not mean she is letting her previous comments go unaddressed. However, she is also not ready to delve into what prompted her exit from NCIS.

In talking about her choice to leave, Cote de Pablo seemed to address the nature of her previous comments. She also dispels speculation about certain things that led to her exit. Talking to USA Today, de Pablo said:

Need a refresher on the remarks that Cote de Pablo explains were taken out of context? You got it. Here is what she has previously said about her exit. Addressing her decision back in 2016, de Pablo did a Q&A, which made its way onto YouTube. In it, de Pablo explained the reason behind her decision to leave NCIS, saying:

At that point, Cote de Pablo indicated that the quality of the scripts was a part of her decision to leave NCIS. In explaining her thinking, de Pablo also revealed the plans that NCIS had in store for Ziva at the time. Describing the storyline, de Pablo said:

Clearly, NCIS has ensured Cote de Pablo of a storyline that warranted her coming back in Season 17. For those wondering, de Pablo’s return as a changed Ziva is not going to be a one-time thing, either. NCIS is planning to bring Ziva back for multiple episodes this season. Whatever her reasons for initially leaving, it has not kept her from returning.

In her latest comments regarding her exit, Cote de Pablo makes a few things very clear. She did not leave because she wanted to go, making a note that it was not due to fatigue. In closing, de Pablo added that she did not “really have an option.” Will further context ever come? Stay tuned.

NCIS Season 17 continues with new episodes airing Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on CBS. The crime procedural’s return is part of this fall’s premieres. You can catch up on the past of Cote de Pablo’s Ziva via previous seasons streaming on Netflix, along with arriving new content.

Cote de Pablo is returning to NCIS as her fan-favorite character. Ahead of the Season 17 premiere, she wants fans to know they should not expect the same old Ziva. Fans last saw her when she made her presence known to Gibbs, but in those fleeting moments, it was hard to tell how much Ziva’s time off-screen had changed her.

Well, prepare for some insight on that front from Cote de Pablo, herself. Upon reading the script, de Pablo immediately noted the changes in her NCIS character. Ziva will make a more intensely seen return in Season 17, and she is bringing a new side to herself with her. In an interview, de Pablo told BUILD:

From what Cote de Pablo is saying, NCIS fans can expect a determined and changed Ziva when she makes her return. Clearly, a lot has happened off-screen. All of which makes sense, as there has been a lot of time in between her exit and her return.

Since leaving the show, Ziva was presumed dead after being “killed” off-screen. Then came the bombshell revelation that she was seemingly alive last season. Thus, kicking off a lot of teases. After a lot of questions about the NCIS character’s future in Season 17, there are finally some answers.

Ziva’s return will be a massive part of the season premiere. The excitement has continued to build as photos were posted of Cote de Pablo and one of NCIS’ major stars. Not to mention, that explosive trailer for the new season. But, the buzz does not end there.

For NCIS fans hoping that Ziva will stick around for more than a single episode appearance, there is excellent news. The CBS crime drama is planning to bring Cote de Pablo’s fan-favorite character back quite a few times in Season 17. As to whether or not a reunion between Ziva and Tony will take place during those appearances, it is not looking super likely at this point.

Who could have expected Ziva to return in such an exciting way, though? Anything seems possible at this moment in time for NCIS, especially as the series prepares to kick off Season 17. There are a lot of reasons to remain hopeful.

In the meantime, do not expect the state of Ziva and Tony's relationship to go entirely ignored by NCIS. Answers are said to be “forthcoming” when it comes to the handling of the duo. The wait to find out what the drama has in store for viewers is almost over. NCIS and Ziva will make their much-anticipated returns tonight (September 24)!

NCIS comes back with the premiere of Season 17 on Tuesday, September 24, at 8 p.m. ET on CBS. The crime drama’s return is part of this fall’s premieres. You can catch up on the heroics of Cote de Pablo’s Ziva in previous seasons of NCIS on Netflix, along with arriving new content.

NCIS is gearing up for one of its most headline-worthy premieres yet for Season 17, thanks to the high-profile return of former star Cote de Pablo, who is reprising the role of Ziva David. It will mark the actress' first return to the role since her exit in Season 11, where her final moments with Michael Weatherly's Tony DiNozzo left fans wondering if the characters would ever share the screen again.

Though Code de Pablo's multi-episode return got lots of fans' hopes up for an onscreen "Tiva" reunion in Season 17, nothing has been confirmed, and Ziva herself has seemingly rained on that parade. When asked about chances of seeing Tony again, here's how both star Mark Harmon and de Pablo answered:

To play the devil's advocate, I'd like to now read way too much into Cote de Pablo's answer for just a second. While Mark Harmon sets up a slight tease to TV Insider, de Pablo follows up by saying Michael Weatherly is "shooting a procedural."

Nothing incorrect about that, since Michael Weatherly is currently filming on Bull, which got renewed for Season 4 following allegations made against the actor by former Bull star Eliza Dushku. But it feels purposefully dry and distant to state that he's shooting a procedural, as opposed to something like, "He's got his own TV show," or "He's currently filming Bull."

Then, Cote de Pablo drops an infobomb that Ziva and Tony likely haven't talked in a long time, possibly meaning since even before he took custody of Tali. So if they haven't spoken, it's likely for a reason: namely, Ziva would die for the safety of their kid. That's also part of why she returned to Washington, and back into Gibbs' life (and basement).

But what exactly did she mean by don't ask any questions, dot dot dot, to be continued? It's clear what she meant within the context of Tony not asking Mossad about any details. But what exactly is going to be continued? Will it be continued on the show with an on-screen appearance or phone call?

Granted, she does say "I don't think" when answering that question, so that kind of throws everything she said about Ziva and Tony's lack of contact into the wind. Until the show comes back for Season 17 and proves stuff right or wrong, fans can basically dream up whatever scenario they want

Here's what Cote de Pablo said when asked how dangerous this season really is:

Going by that explanation, it sounds like the safest place for Tony and their daughter to be is on the opposite side of the earth from Ziva and the people who are trying to kill her. Gibbs...well, Gibbs is probably fine in any situation.

Check out what will happen in the Season 17 premiere when NCIS returns to CBS with new episodes on Tuesday, September 24, at 8:00 p.m.

NCIS proved that it can still deliver a killer cliffhanger after more than a decade and a half when the Season 16 finale ended on the entrance of a very much alive Ziva David walking down into Gibbs' basement with a warning. Ziva, who had long been thought dead and played an actress who seemed unlikely to return, was back in the flesh, and poised to return for a Ziva-tastic Season 17 premiere. Still, there was no confirmation that we'd get more of Ziva than the premiere... until now.

CBS confirmed to CinemaBlend that Cote de Pablo will reprise her role as Ziva for the first and second episodes of Season 17, as well as two more episodes that will air in late fall/early winter. At least it's probably safe to say that Ziva won't be killed off in her first full episode back!

Considering how many questions there are about Ziva and the last few years of her life, fans should be relieved to know that her story won't be opened and shut again in the span of just the Season 17 premiere. NCIS co-showrunner Frank Cardea has revealed what whether and when Gibbs found out Ziva was alive will be covered in the premiere; what of everything else?

There are more questions than answers when it comes to Ziva at the moment, both regarding the immediate circumstances that brought her out of hiding to warn Gibbs and what led to her faked death. NCIS spent Season 16 slowly dropping clues that Ziva was alive and in the mix behind-the-scenes, and photos posted by star Wilmer Valderrama indicate that Ziva won't exactly be lurking in the shadows once she returns.

One NCIS Star Only Learned About Cote De Pablo's Ziva Return When The Episode Aired

If she is a semi-public figure again, does that mean the biggest threats against her and Gibbs' lives will be taken care of sooner rather than later? What was so serious that Ziva was willing to give up her life with her daughter, when there was no guarantee of what Tali's life would be without her?

Sure, Ziva could have guessed that Tony would rise to the occasion and do whatever necessary to protect Tali, even if he technically didn't know Tali existed until Ziva was "killed" in Israel, but that was a big decision that she couldn't have made lightly. Or was it out of her hands?

Speaking of Tony and Tali, will Ziva officially returning to the world of the living mean a reunion with Tony and another chance for a Tiva happily-ever-after? Michael Weatherly, who will presumably be too busy with Bull since it was renewed despite the allegations against him to appear in any kind of ongoing or recurring basis, has nevertheless seemingly been hinting at a Tiva reunion.

Even if NCIS can't get Michael Weatherly back, I have to believe that Tony and Ziva will reunite off-screen. Love him or hate him, Tony does deserve some answers from the mother of his surprise daughter who was supposed to be dead. NCIS will start out strong on the Ziva front, with Cote de Pablo present in the first two episodes of the season. Only time will tell when the second two will air and if they turn out to be more than just two.

NCIS returns for Season 17 on CBS next month, along with a whole bunch of other series in the 2019 fall TV premiere lineup.