NCIS is bringing Season 13 to a close over the next week, and when the show goes away for the summer, actor Michael Weatherly is going away for a lot longer than that, as the show will bid farewell to Agent Tony DiNozzo. The hit drama is adding two new characters to potentially fill DiNozzo’s void next season, and CBS has revealed the first looks. Below is 24 actress Sarah Clarke as Special Agent Tess Monroe.
Now, we’re obviously not going to get a whole lot of insight into Tess Monroe’s methodology or personality by looking at her stern face. But she’s totally standing in front of DiNozzo with her hands on her hips, and her badge is clipped in the middle of her torso. She’s totally calling territory in that room, and she’s not letting some guy who’s heading out the door stop her.
Maybe I’m reading too much into that, but Monroe has been described as a no-nonsense agent who is always on top of her game and doesn’t do distractions well. She’s divorced several times over and is joining the New York City team from Washington D.C. The character was originally envisioned as a Season 14 character, but she’s obviously showing up a tad early, and though Clarke is officially listed as a “guest star” for the episode, don’t let that fool you into thinking she won’t be returning next season.
And now, I introduce Duane Henry’s MI-6 officer Clayton Reeves.
While CBS also released a shot of Reeves standing next to Gibbs, I like this stoic pic of him alone on the MTAC stairs. You’ve got to be a calm and collected mofo to do some bannister-leaning like that, presumably in the middle of a crisis involving an escaped British spy. Almost too calm and collected. Dammit, Reeves, are you made of robot parts?!?
The British actor only signed on for Reeves to be a recurring role at the dead end of this current season, but Henry also has it stated in the contract that he can get promoted to regular by the time the fall rolls around. So it’s partially about audience appreciation for both Reeves and Monroe. If they’re well received and highly regarded by viewers, we can almost definitely expect to see them hanging around bannisters in Season 14. The same cannot be said for Michelle Obama’s guest spot.
If these characters do indeed end up theoretically replacing DiNozzo, I’m glad we get to see them all in the same episode together so that a proper comparison can be made. Michael Weatherly will definitely be missed, but it’s hard to look down on new characters and story avenues for a show that’s been on for 13 years.
NCIS airs Tuesday nights on CBS.
