NCIS: Origins Is Bringing In The Younger Version Of Scott Bakula’s New Orleans Character, And There’s One Big Moment I’m Eager To See Between Him And Gibbs

Back in late May, NCIS: Origins co-showrunner Gina Lucita Monreal shared that the prequel series was planning to address the Fed 5, the law enforcement group that counted Leroy Jethro Gibbs, Mike Franks and Dwayne Pride among its members. The group’s existence was revealed in the NCIS Season 11 two-parter “Crescent City,” which introduced Scott Bakula as Pride and paved the way for NCIS: New Orleans’ seven-season run. Now word’s come in that Origins is set to bring in the younger Pride, which has me eager to see a big moment between him and Austin Stowell’s Gibbs.

Just a week after Monreal confirmed to me that that NCIS: Origins still planned to “touch on the Fed 5, though not in the way people might think,” TV Insider has learned that the series is casting Pride for an appearance later in Season 2. At this stage of his life, the character, previously a sheriff’s deputy, is a “newly minted Probationary Special Agent” from the NIS Panama office who already has history with Gibbs, and they’ll need to “resolve their past tension as they go undercover on a case.” Monreal and co-showrunner David J. North had this to say about Origins featuring Pride:

During “Crescent City,” which aired back in 2014, Mark Harmon’s Gibbs told his team that he’d known Dwayne Pride for 30 years at that point and trusted him with his life. That means they met in 1984, when Gibbs was still a Marine sniper and Pride was presumably still a sheriff’s deputy in Jefferson Parish. Pride joined NIS in 1989, and Gibbs followed suit two years later. However, with NCIS: Origins Season 2 taking place in 1992, we’re still a couple years away from these two teaming up with Mike Franks, Dan McLane and Felix Betts to apprehend who they thought was the Privileged Killer (the true Killer was revealed in “Crescent City”). Harmon also appeared as Gibbs in four episodes of NCIS: New Orleans, which you can stream with your Paramount+ subscription.

Whenever the younger Dwayne Pride makes his debut on NCIS: Origins, hopefully we’ll get some exposition or even flashbacks of how he and Leroy Jethro Gibbs met eight years prior. After all, we need to learn the background of this “past tension.” More importantly, though, I’m looking forward to seeing how Gibbs and Pride overcome their differences and became “brothers,” as they referred to each other in “Crescent City.” I’m assuming whatever goes down in this undercover mission will be the catalyst for that, and perhaps this will even lead to Pride becoming a recurring character on Origins.

The news of Pride’s forthcoming NCIS: Origins entrance follows three weeks after Adam Campbell reprised the young Ducky Mallard after making several appearances on the flagship show. Season 1 featured a guest appearance from Lucas Dixon as the young Tobias Fornell, and last season’s finale also included Claire Berger and Kathleen Kenny as the young Lara Macy and Diane Sterling, respectively. The latter woman, who will become Gibbs’ second wife, has continued to appear in Season 2, which airs new episodes Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on CBS.