Gibbs And Vance Are Competing For The Same NCIS Record, And The Prequel May Help

The NCIS franchise is continuing to expand and, following the surprising cancellation of Hawai’i, two more shows are set to enter the fold. One of them, NCIS: Origins, will be a prequel to the Mothership series and follow a young Leroy Jethro Gibbs, played by Austin Stowell, at the fledgling Camp Pendleton during the NIS days. With this new series, the character of Gibbs is on track to break a franchise record, which the character NCIS Director Leon Vance is also in contention for.

Both characters are competing to break the record of appearing in the most shows in the long-running franchise (hattip screenrant). Originated by Mark Harmon, Gibbs was the face of the IP for almost 20 years and will take center stage once again in Origins. Aside from the parent series and the prequel, Gibbs has also appeared on the New Orleans spinoff and JAG, which the parent show itself is a spinoff of. Surprisingly, he never appeared in an episode of the Los Angeles offshoot.

As for Rocky Carroll’s Leon Vance, he made his debut in the fifth season of the OG show but has since become a very important part of the show. (And funny enough, Carroll thought he’d only get two seasons.) Since Vance is the NCIS Director, it would make sense for him to check in on other field offices every so often. Along with the mothership show, Vance has also popped up on LA, NOLA and Hawai’i and, following his name drop on Sydney, it wouldn’t be surprising if he appeared on the Australian-set spinoff at some point as well.

That being said, Sydney also isn’t the only way for Vance to hold the record. Since Origins will already be bringing back some familiar agents, so it’s possible that young Gibbs could run into a younger Vance, even for just a brief appearance. Maybe he can also check in on former agents Tony and Ziva on their upcoming spinoff. All in all, given the role that Vance has in the fictional universe, there are plenty of places in which he can show up.

As it stands, the NCIS franchise has been around for over 20 years now, and it doesn't seem to be losing momentum. One of the best parts about it is seeing characters from the different shows crossing over in various ways. When it comes to Gibbs and Vance, I'm hopeful that fans will continue to see them on their screens for years to come -- whether they're played by Mark Harmon and Rocky Carroll or not. Time will tell who ultimately maintains that record for series appearances, but I'm intrigued to see how it shakes out.

In the meantime, those who are eager to see what NCIS: Origins has to offer should know that it will be part of the 2024 TV schedule later this year when it makes its debut on CBS this fall. In the meantime, you can stream episodes of the parent show using a Paramount+ subscription.