It's been a pretty hectic last few months for NCIS. Veteran actor Michael Weatherly left the drama to pursue a new project with CBS, and the show ended up making some major casting changes in order to fill the space left by the actor. We only recently learned that Wilmer Valderrama would be joining the cast of the long-running drama, and the actor spoke out this week at San Diego Comic-Con to explain exactly how he feels about taking over for Michael Weatherly on the hit series.
I had a great conversation with Mark [Harmon] and said, 'Hey listen. I'd love to come in and break some shit and roll some shit up.' This season is going to be quite explosive. Mark and I are getting along awesome, I already shot a guy off a motorcycle and blew a car up, so it's going to be awesome.
It's hard to replace any character on a series that has recently left. It's even harder if that character has been on since the beginning of a show's run like Michael Weatherly, but Wilmer Valderrama seems to be having fun with the high-octane gig. And why not? I think fans are used to seeing the characters on NCIS get into crazy and unpredictable situations, but it's totally different to be the actor shooting those sorts of scenes.
As far as replacing Michael Weatherly goes, Wilmer Valderrama also promised that he is going to be putting his own spin on the series. So, if you were expecting some more head slaps from Gibbs, think again. Here's what we should expect from the character:
I think we are probably going to develop our own little thing. The slap was Tony's. So far, Gibbs and I are quite butting heads already. I'm the black sheep of the family so far.
Wilmer Valderrama signed on for NCIS about a month ago. At the time, we learned he will be playing a field agent who had gone undercover without telling anyone, making many people in his industry assume he was dead. We also learned he will be unpredictable and a bit erratic, lending credence to the actor's Comic-Con comments. Along with Valderrama, Jennifer Esposito also recently joined Season 14.
Wilmer Valderrama comes off as a generally likable dude to have around. That's probably why it has been easy for him to hop from gig to gig over the last several years, taking roles in Awake, Minority Report, From Dusk Till Dawn and even Grey's Anatomy. Hopefully, NCIS will be the role that really sticks for the actor, though. You can catch Season 14 when it returns to the schedule on Tuesday, September 20 at 8 p.m. ET. You can check out more fall TV premiere dates, here.
