Mark Harmon is set to make the comeback to a beloved role that fans have been hoping for, but it's not to NCIS.
Despite the love both the actor and his fans have for his character Leroy Jethro Gibbs on the long-running CBS procedural, which he exited in 2021, he will instead be reprising his role as Ryan Coleman from the beloved family comedy Freaky Friday, which first premiered in 2003.
More than 20 years after its release and after several months of hints and rumors, Disney has confirmed that a sequel helmed by lead stars Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis is officially in the works.
On Monday, June 24, the media giant shared a photo of the two co-stars on set, sitting outside their respective trailers labeled with their characters Tessa Coleman (Jamie) and Anna Coleman (Lindsay), the mother-daughter duo who hilariously swapped bodies in the fan-favorite movie.
"The Colemans are back and coming to theaters in 2025! The sequel to Freaky Friday is now in production!" Disney wrote. Making over $160 million worldwide, the 2003 movie is Lindsay's highest-grossing film.
Nisha Ganatra will direct the sequel, and in addition to Mark, Variety reports original cast members Chad Michael Murray, Christina Vidal Mitchell, Haley Hudson, Lucille Soong, Stephen Tobolowsky, and Rosalind Chao are also set to return, with the addition of new stars Manny Jacinto, Julia Butters, Maitreyi Ramakrishnan and Sophia Hammons.
After Disney, Lindsay and Jamie shared the exciting photo on Instagram, fans were quick to take to the comments section under the post to express their anticipation, with one fan excitedly declaring: "My 2025 has just been made," as others followed suit with: "The goodest of the good choices," and: "So excited for this!!!!" as well as: "Freaky Friday is one of my absolute favorites. I laugh SO much every time I watch it! The comedy and acting is on point. So excited for this new movie!"
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Mark previously addressed reports of the sequel back in November of last year, during an appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show.
© GARRETT PRESS / MEGASpeaking with host Kelly Clarkson, Mark credited Jamie, who starred in the movie as his wife, for bringing newfound attention to the movie — and making the sequel happen. He revealed: "I've known her since she was 15," and that: "If she's talking about it, then it will happen, because all things happen."
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© AlamySince Mark left NCIS after 19 seasons on the show, he has remained close to the NCIS family as an executive producer, but has also ventured into projects outside of acting, most recently with the release of his first historical nonfiction book, Ghosts of Honolulu: A Japanese Spy, a Japanese American Spy Hunter, and the Untold Story of Pearl Harbor.
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© GettySpeaking with People about his career and the project last year, he maintained: "I left the show, I didn't retire," and musing over his latest passion project, added: "I've always thought you can learn from history… Things tend to repeat themselves."
Plus, the book does have ties to NCIS. "This is the first story [leading] to the birth of what became [the real] NCIS," he explained of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, adding: "These agents are really a different breed. I hope that there's a story revealed here that you don't know. It was important work they were doing, and no one knew about it."
