‘NCIS’: Will Michael Weatherly Return for Season 25?

For how long is Michael Weatherly back on NCIS? When his return was first announced, it was said to be for a season-long arc. So does that mean he’s just going to be in Season 24?

Not necessarily. As the premiere revealed, Tony DiNozzo is the new NCIS director, a role that has been a multi-season one in the past (Alan Dale‘s Tom Morrow for two seasons, Lauren Holly‘s Jenny Shepard for three, and Rocky Carroll‘s Leon Vance for 18). When TV Insider spoke with showrunner Steven D. Binder about that premiere reveal, we raised just that question (and point).

“We take these things one season at a time,” he said. “On the other hand, you blink and it’s Season 24. So I don’t really know. Network television is a real hand-to-mouth endeavor in terms of getting these scripts on time. We’re doing 20 episodes in a season where a streamer does eight episodes in 25 months. So we’re taking it one step at a time. Certainly, it’s been really great having him in that chair, and I don’t see any reason why it should slow, but I don’t know that we’re looking quite that far yet.”

Robert Voets/CBS

This also came up when we spoke with Michael Weatherly over the summer about returning as Tony. He commented, “We’re going to find for the rest of, at least, this season, a brand new DiNozzo, but he’s just like the DiNozzo you knew and loved before.”

Related

8 'NCIS' Shows, Ranked: 'Origins,' 'Los Angeles,' 'New York,' More

We then followed that up by asking if he could be back for more than just Season 24 and about that “at least,” all he’d say was, “Yes, it is season long and it’s a lot of episodes, but I’m not going to say how many because I want people to stay edged.”

Do you want to see Michael Weatherly back beyond this season? Let us know in the comments section below.

NCIS, Tuesdays, 8/7c, CBS