A boss at CBS has addressed the possibility of Pauley Perrette's return to NCIS, as well as whether fans can expect any crossover episodes between NCIS and the upcoming Tony/Ziva spin-off series.
In a recent interview, CBS Studios President David Stapf was asked about the possibility of Pauley reprising her role of beloved character Abby Sciuto on NCIS or in a new spin-off show.
© Photo: Getty Images"Not a bad idea," said David. "We haven't talked about it or thought about it. We love Pauley, and she's always welcome in any of the NCIS franchise, but it hasn't come to us from the writers and/or from her.
"I kind of was kidding when I said, it's not a bad idea but it's genuinely not a bad idea, she was a beloved character," he told Deadline.
Pauley left the show back in 2018 after 15 years following an incident on set had left her feeling unsafe. Watch the heartbreaking moment Abby left below.
Executive producer Charles Floyd Johnson told The Hollywood Reporter last year: "In Pauley Perrette’s case, there was an incident with the show with a dog. The dog was Mark Harmon’s, and apparently the dog bit someone. Pauley was a huge, huge SPCA [Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals] animal person. And then the dog kept coming with Harmon, and she felt it wasn’t safe for the show," executive producer Charles Floyd Johnson revealed.
"By the end of that year, she just felt like it wasn’t working for her anymore, and it was time to move on."
© CBSIn his interview with Deadline, David Stapf also addressed the possibility of crossover episodes between NCIS and the upcoming spin-off series starring Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo.
"There could be," he said. "We're not there yet, writers room just started on Tony and Ziva."
Michael and Cote are set to reunite for the first time in ten years for the upcoming drama, which has been nicknamed NCIS: Europe.
© Sonja Flemming/CBSThe Paramount + series, consisting of ten episodes, will follow their characters, Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David, on the run in Europe.
While the couple have spent the past few years raising their daughter Tali in Paris, their family life is disrupted when Tony's security company is attacked. Together, Tony and Ziva must figure out who is after them and hopefully learn to trust one another again and have their "unconventional happily ever after".
© Sonja Flemming/CBS via Getty ImagesProduction on the show is set to begin later this year, meaning fans are probably looking at a late 2024/early 2025 release date.
