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NCIS season 21 release updates, strike delay, and everything we know

By Elizabeth Learned

“Butterfly Effect” – The NCIS team jumps into motion to investigate who is responsible for a potential bio terror attack at a strip mall parking garage. Also, Knight’s father deals with a health scare while in Japan, on the CBS Original series NCIS, Monday, March 13 (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network and available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+*. Pictured: Diona Reasonover as Forensic Scientist Kasie Hines, Wilmer Valderrama as Special Agent Nicholas “Nick” Torres, and Katrina Law as NCIS Special Agent Jessica Knight. Photo: Sonja Flemming/CBS ©2023 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
“Butterfly Effect” – The NCIS team jumps into motion to investigate who is responsible for a potential bio terror attack at a strip mall parking garage. Also, Knight’s father deals with a health scare while in Japan, on the CBS Original series NCIS, Monday, March 13 (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network and available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+*. Pictured: Diona Reasonover as Forensic Scientist Kasie Hines, Wilmer Valderrama as Special Agent Nicholas “Nick” Torres, and Katrina Law as NCIS Special Agent Jessica Knight. Photo: Sonja Flemming/CBS ©2023 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved. /
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Update: NCIS season 21 premieres Monday, Feb. 12 at 9 p.m. ET

NCIS finished up a successful season 20 with a twist that we did not see coming. After the episode concluded a storyline involving a possible terrorist attack that would be taking place, a character made a possible fateful decision. Once the culprits were found, it did seem like things were settling down, until a surprise twist involving Nick Torres left us with burning questions. What can we expect from NCIS season 21? Hopefully, we won’t be waiting too long to find out.

Unfortunately, NCIS season 21 is absent from the fall TV lineup this year, as are many other shows we expected to come back. That’s because of the writers’ and actors’ strikes, but it’s not all bad news. The writers’ strike has officially ended, and we have exciting news to share with fans of the show!

NCIS season 21 is now being written

According to Deadline, writers’ rooms for shows like NCIS, Grey’s Anatomy, Fire Country, and others, started back up after the writers’ strike concluded. We haven’t seen any updates from the writers of NCIS yet, though sources say they are currently working on the scripts. We’ll be sure to update this post if we get photos or other updates from the writers’ room.

The beloved police procedural drama NCIS debuted back in 2003 and has been capturing audiences worldwide ever since with its gripping storylines, compelling characters, and easy-to-count-on entertainment. Over the years we’ve seen numerous character deaths and exits along with new plot points and dilemmas, but the one constant is how much we can rely on NCIS to be nothing short of enjoyable.

Fans of the long-running drama were not kept waiting for a renewal announcement, as NCIS season 21 was officially announced in Feb. 2023, months before season 20 came to a close. If you follow the TV franchise, you’ll be happy to know that NCIS: Hawai’i was also renewed at the same time, with fans eagerly awaiting news on the third season of the spinoff.

Who’s returning for the new season of NCIS?

As of right now, it looks like we are set to see the main cast return. Whether or not Wilmer Valderrama will return for good is up in the air considering how his character’s arc left on a cliffhanger. But we are confident that we will see the main cast return, which consists of:

  • Rocky Carroll as Director Leon Vance
  • Sean Murray as Agent Timothy McGee
  • Wilmer Valderrama as Agent Nick Torress
  • Katrina Law as Agent Jessica Knight
  • Diona Reasonover as Kasie Hines
  • Gary Cole as Agent Alden Parker

Sadly, David McCallum, who portrayed Dr. Donald “Ducky” Mallard, passed away on Sept. 25, 2023, from natural causes at the age of 90. NCIS actors Mark Harmon, Michael Weatherly, Pauley Perrette, and Wilder Valderrama all shared heartfelt tributes to the actor, with Valderrama calling it “an immense honor it was to share the screen” with him.

NCIS season 20 ended with a big cliffhanger for Torres

In the NCIS season 20 finale, Nick was undercover during the case to find out more about the terror attack. While there, he saw a familiar face but it was not someone he wanted to recognize. The person in question apparently was someone he knew from his mom’s past. In fact, he got to know an inmate who said he was his mom’s boyfriend and was supposed to help with legal fees.

At the end of the episode, Nick was at the man’s house holding a gun and telling him he wanted him dead. Could this mean trouble for Nick Torres and Wilmer Valderrama’s time on the drama?

While we know the series will likely follow the same usual pattern of us seeing the agents solving individual cases, we know there is always an overarching theme at play. Whether or not this will involve Torres is unknown. However, since it looks like this is more of a personal arc, we may find out closer to airdate what is in store for the series as a whole.

How the writers’ and actors’ strike affected NCIS

The Writers Guild of America (WGA) went on strike in early May after not being able to come to an agreement on their contract with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP). That meant writers’ rooms were been put on pause and writers could not work on projects under the AMPTP.

After that, the actors went on strike after facing a similar dilemma in July, with the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) not being able to come to an agreement on their contract with the AMPTP either.

So how did this impact shows like NCIS?

Well, writers and actors under their respective U.S. unions could not legally work with the AMPTP while the strikes were going on. So although CBS had hoped they’d be able to write and start filming NCIS season 21 in time for the fall season, that was not the case.

In September, it was announced that the WGA had voted to end the strike, meaning writers’ rooms could get back to business! This included NCIS season 21, which began production shortly after the writers’ strike concluded.

In November, the actors’ union also reached a new deal which brought an end to the SAG-AFTRA strike. This allows actors, including those from the NCIS cast, to once again promote their shows and to begin returning to set to film new episodes!

NCIS season 21 still doesn’t have a premiere date

Unfortunately, NCIS season 21 does not have a premiere date yet, but we know it won’t be coming out in 2023. For the first time in 20 years, we’re experiencing a fall without new episodes of the beloved drama. While we know the new season will be premiering in 2024, we can’t say what month it’ll be.

Now that the actors can begin filming, CBS is looking to begin production on NCIS‘s next season in early December. That’s the first major step in getting the shows back on air. Once filming is able to begin, the production process will be moving along and the hope seems to be that shows will be able to return sometime in early 2024 perhaps in February or March.

Season 21 will be the shortest season of NCIS ever

As filming on the new season was unable to begin during the summer and was delayed due to the strikes, NCIS will be looking at its shortest episode count ever. CBS has yet to confirm the official episode count for season 21, but most broadcast shows will only have 10-13 episodes this season. That’s half the standard episode count for CBS’s longest-running drama.

Most seasons of NCIS tend to run between 20-24 episodes, with the show’s shortest season being season 18 which was filmed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Season 18 was just 16 episodes long, making it the shortest season of the show since its fifth season, which consisted of 19 episodes.

NCIS, 911 among 26 TV shows set to finally return to production. dark. Next

Make sure to keep an eye on Hidden Remote for updates as they come. And of course, you can catch up on episodes of NCIS season 20 on Paramount+.

FanSided Entertainment Staff contributed to this report.

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