The Big Picture

• NCIS universe will mark its 1000th episode by bringing back fan-favorite characters from other spinoffs.
• The landmark episode will tie in with a personal story of NCIS Director Vance's son, played by Spencer Moore II.
• The celebratory episode will feature Easter eggs for longtime fans and diverse appearances from multiple franchises.

NCIS is about to celebrate a rare milestone that almost no television universe can boast of. In a month, the show will air the 1000th episode across all the NCIS shows, and CBS has something special planned. TV Line revealed that the universe plans on bringing back fan-favorite characters from other spinoffs to commemorate the episode. Daniela Ruah, who played Special Agent Kensi Blye-Deeks throughout NCIS: Los Angeles‘ 14-season run, and Vanessa Lachey, who currently leads the NCIS: Hawai’i team as Special Agent in Charge Jane Tennant, will appear in the landmark episode. While in-person appearances by the characters will not happen, the appearances in whatever form will be interesting nonetheless.

To make the episode more meaningful, the creatives decided to tie it to NCIS Director Leon Vance's (Rocky Carroll) son's personal story. The role of Jared has been recast once again with Spencer Moore II portraying the character this time around as revealed by TV Line's Matt Webtomich. Khamani Griffin played the character in Season 3 while Ankisola Aribo was Jared in Seasons 9 to 11. Moore II is known for roles in shows such as We Are Who We Are, The Wonder Years, and Superman & Lois.

A Celebration of a Massive TV Franchise

NCIS co-showrunner David North teased, “One of our own beloved characters is going to end up in grave danger, and you’re going to see all of the different franchises brought into this in a little bit of a different way.” Steven D. Binder, a co-showrunner added, "There’ll be a personal storyline, and this one will circle around Director Vance." "We’re going to play plenty of homage to the past,” said North. “We're hoping to put some Easter eggs for longtime fans of the show…,” Binder teased. Executive Producer Charles Johnson teased that the Easter eggs will be tiny but they'll be there, saying, “If you’re watching it in 4K, you might have to blow some things up, but they’re going to be there.”

Even after NCIS: Los Angeles ended and Ruah took a break from Kensi, she has returned to NCIS as a director, most recently directing the March 4 episode of NCIS and the April 15 NCIS: Hawai’i titled "The Next Thousand" since it will the first in the next 1000 episodes to come. Lachey, meanwhile continues to shine on NCIS: Hawai'i Season 3 and has appeared in crossovers with NCIS.

The episode will air on April 15 on CBS. All seasons of NCIS are available to watch on Paramount+.

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