‘NCIS: Origins’: Austin Stowell Breaks Down Gibbs’ Lingering Feelings for Lala After Diane Wedding

[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for NCIS: Origins Season 2 Episode 8 “End of the Road.”]

NCIS: Origins continues to move forward through the canon we know about Gibbs (Austin Stowell), with Diane (Kathleen Kenny) now officially his second wife; the two got married in a Las Vegas wedding in the December 9 fall finale.

But we can’t forget about Gibbs’ feelings for his teammate Lala (Mariel Molino) — and in fact, the two even start briefly talking about what could have been earlier in the episode. During a stakeout for a case, Lala brings up what could have been before he ruined it. They almost kissed in the Season 1 finale, and by the time she returned to work after recovering from a car accident, he was with Diane.

Below, Austin Stowell breaks down Gibbs and Diane’s wedding, his feelings for her and Lala, and much more.

We knew that Gibbs and Diane would be getting married at some point due to canon. We know what Gibbs said to propose because it’s said on NCIS, but Gina Lucita Monreal said that it didn’t feel like this Gibbs, so that led to what we see on screen with the drinking then the Vegas wedding. So how did how all actually transpired line up with anything you had in mind when it came to it?

Austin Stowell: Well, so much is in typical Gibbs fashion is quite vague about his past, but he’s also not somebody who would take something as important as marriage and love — At the end of the day, marriage is a team, too, and Gibbs is a team player. He’s a wonderful leader. He becomes a wonderful leader. But he loves to be a part of a team. That’s why he joined the Marines. It’s why he joined NCIS. It’s why he thrived in that environment. And a marriage is a team, too. We all know it doesn’t work out. And whether it’s because of his dedication to the job, because of, as Randy says, his horrible abilities as a communicator, which was slightly ad-libbed by the way — very, very funny as Caleb [Foote] always is. Whether it’s Lala. Whether it’s somebody else. I don’t know.

Greg Gayne/CBS

But this does make sense to me at the end of the day, especially the way it transpired with — he’s finding a real friend and confidant in Randy. They’ve buddied up a couple of times now and they’re good partners, and at this point, Franks [Kyle Schmid] is just still so much his boss that I feel like he can level with Randy. He obviously can’t do that with Lala because there’s so much, that’s so loaded, and so Randy’s his life preserver a lot. Also, he’s a great example of what a good marriage can be and how happy it can make you, how fulfilling that can be, how seemingly easy it is for him, that that life looks pretty good, and Gibbs is trying to find comfort as we all are at the end of the day. And Diane provides that. She really does. He does feel comfortable with her. He’s learning how to open up and be more of himself in front of her and around other people, too. Learning life lessons through her as he is so good at. I feel like that’s one of the things I love most about this character is how much he learns through other people.

Talk about filming that Vegas wedding scene — there was that cameo from David J. North.

[Laughs] So much fun! Exclamation point. Exclamation point. Exclamation point. We were having such a good time that night and looking forward to it. David came up to me that week, and he said, “How do you feel about me being the officiant for the wedding?” And I said, “It should be nobody else.” But he did not tell me that he would be in that mullet. How great is that? What an Easter egg for folks that know the show and are aware of David’s talents and his dedication to the show for over two decades. He has played such a part in creating the future of Gibbs that how fitting for he to be present at such a moment of Gibbs’ younger life. And we were having fun. This is obviously a very different side of Gibbs to showcase. I was really leaning into it and kind of taking some risks in that regard. I’ve had to. To play this safe would be the antithesis of Gibbs and certainly the antithesis of Mark Harmon. That guy is not afraid of taking risks. And so I have to follow in those footsteps. And so if Gibbs is drunk and going to go off to Vegas and get married, I am going to go full throttle and scrape the bottom of the barrel.

But before that, Gibbs and Lala started talking about what they’ve needed to since the pool with her calling him out on ruining everything that could have been. Was Gibbs ready for that conversation?

Oh my God, you have no idea how — this season has been so different from the first season in regards of Gibbs’ recovery. We’re seeing him learn more about the job, whereas I feel like Season 1 he was learning about himself and certainly those are not mutually exclusive, that he is the job and the job is him. But there was very little written in that scene where it’s going back and forth between the rap.

So good.

How good. I can’t wait to watch that tonight [December 9]. I’m really, really looking forward to it. I’m actually getting together with a few of the cast members to watch tonight because we’re all so excited about this. We’re fans of our own show and I don’t think I can ever really say that about any other project I’ve done and it’s really because I’m fans of my coworkers, of their talents and I’m a big fan of being on this team.

But to that scene specifically, yeah, there was not much on the page and it just poured out of the both of us. And of course that means I have to say it all with my eyes, that Gibbs rarely says it out loud. And I had a good cry after that scene. I really did. I love diving into those scenes with Mariel because we now know these characters for almost two years. And if that scene existed in Episode 103 instead of 208, I just don’t think it would’ve been the same at all, that we’ve gotten to know each other so well. We’ve spent an ungodly amount of time together as actors do when you’re in this position, you just spend so much time together, more than your family, more than your friends, and so they become family and friends.

Greg Gayne/CBS

And so I have wished so many times in the dialogue that I could give Lala the answers that she deserves and what is in Gibbs’ heart, that he loves her and that he’s just too afraid to go that close to the fire, that he’s been burned before and he doesn’t want to — it’s protecting himself, it’s protecting her, that he feels like he makes mistakes and that he doesn’t want to screw that up, I feel. And so to have to listen to Mariel as Lala and just knowing that Austin as Gibbs has to sit there and take it was difficult to say the least, but also incredibly a wonderful acting exercise to be full of so much of what you wish you could say and to just not be able to open your mouth. It’s something that I almost think I should take into call up acting coaches and say, “This is a wonderful exercise. You’re not allowed to speak. It has to be a character that intimately well and see what happens.” And that was really electric that day, as it always is with her.

I feel like there’s another electric and tough conversation coming up for Gibbs and Lala when he has to tell her that he’s married now. What can you say about that conversation?

See, I think after that conversation, the one that you saw in the car, it also influences his decision to get married. And it’s like, alright, how do I really put this behind me? How do I move off of this potential? Marrying another woman seems like a pretty good way.

And so when he comes back, as you’ll see — [Laughs] 209 is great, too. Origins goes The Hangover Part 4, wake up, what happened? And then seeing evidence of what did happen and what would ensue from there. But Gibbs, like I said, he’s not wishy-washy and it’s not lost on him what it would mean to play with Diane’s emotions. He’s not playing with Diane. He does love her. As he said, someone comes along at the right time in the right place and there they are. It’s a perfect situation. And that’s who Diane is at this time. It’s not that he doesn’t mean it. It’s not that he’s not all in. I think the way that we’re taking the audience on this journey through Gibbs’ second marriage after Shannon is a great glimpse into what it means to be a human being, that we do have options and that it’s up to you what to do with your life, and those your decisions have consequences.

Looking ahead, how is Gibbs going forward in 209? For example, we saw him learn a rule and the crossover. Is there more of that coming up?

There’s a lot of rules to go through, and we have certain behaviors that… We got to learn why he carries a knife. Don’t mess with a Marine’s coffee. I mean there are so many rules out there. Clean up your messes, where’s that come from? All of these fun, and there are ones out there that feel very specific, and so what was that occasion?

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I will say in the crossover, when Lala gave Gibbs back his knife, I thought that was going to lead to the rule.

Mm-hmm. But it has to be an occasion where a knife was necessary. And I do the same thing. I go through the rules and think about why, but there are some, there’s one I’m trying to think of and it’s toward the end and I do want to find it. It sounds like it was a very specific situation. [Looks up Gibbs’ rules] I mean, there’s a few of ’em here that I think are just, it’s like, oh boy, where did this come from? Always watch the watchers. Vague, but what’s that all about?

Yeah, that could be at any crime scene. So it’s like what was it that made him make that a rule?

There are two ways to follow someone. First way, they never notice you. Second way, they only notice you. Always look under. What? We need clarity, Mr. Gibbs. Rule 12.

Oh, I think we know.

Do we?

Could be.

So that’s the fun part right now is that I don’t know. What if somebody else gets into a relationship?

That’s true.

Franks and Gail [Marisa Baram] start hooking up in the evidence locker? I don’t know. Bad idea. It gets messy. People get together at work all the time. All the time. So it only makes sense. There are more coming and we’re going to see Gibbs is really starting to grow up. We’ve seen mistakes for a while. We’ve seen him use the eraser side of the pencil for a bit. I think we’re going to see some lead.

I can’t wait to see more of the boat that he’s building.

Isn’t it great?

I love that that’s on there now, that we’ve gotten up to that.

It’s really fun. When they come up, because I’m a fan of this, so when I finally read the episode, it was like — the way we read it for the first time. I mean, this is what I do, that I ruminate and fantasize and create it as I go. And so when I read that for the first time, the camera pulls back to reveal what NCIS fans have long looked forward to, Gibbs’ first boat, and it’s like, “Wow, great. That is fun.” And to think like, oh, that has to do with Herm, Herm’s grandma’s shed. It’s just all this kind of fun coloring of the world. It’s world building. It’s why we love, whether it’s Lord of the Rings or Star Trek or anything, as it gets bigger and if it’s well done, then you love it. You eat it up. And I guess that’s what I’m doing. I’m very hungry and I’ve got my spoon ready to go for more.

NCIS: Origins, Midseason Return, Tuesday, February 24, 2026, 9/8c, CBS