NCIS: Hawai'i star Vanessa Lachey opens up on being franchise’s first female lead

NCIS: Hawai'i star Vanessa Lachey has opened up about being the franchise's first female lead.

The Love Is Blind host plays Special Agent Jane Tennant in the popular police spin-off, which debuted in September 2021.

Speaking to People Magazine to commemorate the world of NCIS reaching 1,000 episodes, Lachey explained how grateful she feels to be a part of the groundbreaking franchise.

"It's an honour to be able to add to this incredible franchise and to do it as the first female lead has meant more to me than I can ever express. It shows the incredible evolution and longevity that NCIS continues to give its fans," she said.

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Lachey went on to reveal that her favourite part of being involved in the franchise is getting to have a "family" across the "generations as well as continents."

She added: "Not only with our cast but the fans as well. The NCIS franchise is all over the world and it brings people together to watch and talk about, as well as provide comfort and entertainment, which is what you want when you dive into a show."

As part of the franchise's centennial celebrations, NCIS: Hawai'i and NCIS: Los Angeles will join forces for a special crossover event — which will air on CBS on April 15 (via TVLine).

NCIS: Los Angeles' Special Agent Kensi Blye-Deeks (Daniela Ruah) will appear in the hour-long episode alongside Lachey's Special Agent Tennant.

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Discussing the upcoming special with TVLine, NCIS co-showrunner David North said: "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."

Meanwhile, co-showrunner Steven D. Binder revealed that there will be a "personal storyline" that's set to centre around Director Leon Vance (Rocky Carroll).

"We're going to play plenty of homage to the past," North added, while Binder teased that they plan to scatter "some Easter eggs for long-time fans of the show."

NCIS airs on CBS in the US. Seasons 1-20 are streaming on Disney+ in the UK.

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