Will Brian Dietzen Return to ‘NCIS: New York’ After Premiere? LL COOL J Weighs In

Three and a half years ago, NCIS hosted its first three-show crossover with Los Angeles and Hawai’i. As a result, we got some really fun pairings, and at the top of those has to be Sam Hanna (LL COOL J) and Dr. Jimmy Palmer (Brian Dietzen). And so we were especially glad when we got more of it last spring, when the former guest-starred on the mothership, and will be getting it again when Dietzen appears in the NCIS: New York premiere. The new spinoff debuts on October 6, between the first episodes of the mothership’s 24th season and the prequel Origins‘ third season.

So, we of course have to wonder if we could see Dietzen again after this first appearance on the newest series in the franchise.

“It felt good [having him there],” LL COOL J told TV Insider on the NCIS: New York premiere red carpet on Thursday, October 1. “I love working with him. It was great to have him as a part of it. And I think we’ll do more crossovers in the future and I’d love to invite him back as well.”

Showrunner Byron Balasco added, “He might pop up again. Others might pop up. It’s one kind of big family, so there’ll be cross-pollination.” He wouldn’t say who else might be showing up.

As for what makes that pairing so good, “it’s about chemistry,” said LL COOL J. “At the end of the day, everything’s about chemistry. Sometimes one plus one equals three. Depends who the ones are. That’s what it is.”

Speaking of chemistry, Balasco was glad he was right about LL COOL J and Scott Caan, who plays Nick, being great as partners onscreen.

“My hopes and dreams were confirmed because just meeting these two guys personally before we started doing the show, I was like, ‘I think they’re going to be having some really great chemistry,'” he shared. “And then you just turn them loose, and they’re great. It just makes it easy to write for them because they could just take whatever you write and build on it. And it’s just the energy feels real and lived-in, and they’re just both really charismatic actors.”

Who do you want to see pop up on NCIS: New York? Let us know in the comments section below.

NCIS: New York, Series Premiere, Tuesday, October 6, 9/8c, CBS