I found out literally 20 minutes before it was released Not Mark Harmon Pauley Perrette Was Devastated When 1 Fan-favorite NCIS Star Left the Show!!!!!!
NCIS wasn’t just a show—it was a way of life for its devoted fans. So, when one of its beloved stars made a surprise exit, it wasn’t just the viewers left clutching their pearls. Pauley Perrette, the show’s goth queen, was hit just as hard—maybe harder. Turns out, she found out about this shocking departure just minutes before the news broke. Imagine being blindsided like that!
As if navigating Abby’s forensic genius wasn’t enough, Perrette had to process the sudden loss of her on-screen buddy. While fans were busy speculating, Perrette was probably grappling with the same heartbreak. It wasn’t Mark Harmon this time, but this departure still left a crater-sized void in the NCIS squad.
Pauley Perrette Opens Up About Cote de Pablo’s Shocking NCIS Exit and the Impact It Had on the Show
When Cote de Pablo, a.k.a. Special Agent Ziva David, exited CBS’ 2003 show NCIS in July 2013, it wasn’t just fans who were blindsided. Pauley Perrette, who played Abby Sciuto, didn’t even get a heads-up. During an interview with E! News, Perrette revealed,
It was huge news to us. I found out literally 20 minutes before it was released in the press. But we love her. She’s our friend. She had a personal decision to make. No one wanted her to leave. There was no drama…there really isn’t much to tell. There really wasn’t any drama. But we love her, we respect her and that’s what happened.
The shock? Real. The emotions? Raw. De Pablo’s departure came mere days before Season 11 filming kicked off, sending waves through the cast and crew. But not everyone agreed with that last part. Co-star David McCallum, known for his role as Ducky, didn’t hold back his frustration. In a chat with Digital Spy, he questioned how a leading lady on a global show could vanish so suddenly:
It was frustration and anger that someone should just walk out on us. I just don’t understand how a leading lady in a show that’s worldwide, who ostensibly wants to have a career as an actress, suddenly walks away from such a gem and just vanishes a couple of days before we start production.
Years later, de Pablo spilled the tea, during a panel for her film The 33. She admitted her exit wasn’t impulsive. Despite loving her character, de Pablo felt Ziva wasn’t getting the respect she deserved, and no paycheck could change her mind. She alluded,
Unfortunately, because of political things and the scripts not being good enough, I chose not to [continue]. I love this character. I worked eight years crafting this character and loving her, so when I felt or I perceived the character was not being treated with the respect that she deserved, all the money in the world [couldn’t make me stay].
While NCIS has endured cast changes and controversies over the years, Cote de Pablo’s exit still stands out as one of the most unexpected. Behind the scenes or on-screen, the drama was always intense.
Matt Jones’ Explosive NCIS Exit— The Surprising Story Behind His Decision to Leave
Mark Harmon’s career shift wasn’t the only bold move in the NCIS universe. Matt Jones, who played Ned Dorneget, went out with a bang—literally. His character was blown up in an explosion, and here’s the kicker: Jones actually asked for it.
During an Off Duty: An NCIS Rewatch chat, Jones spilled the tea on the moment he decided to leave. During a CBS event, chatting with the NCIS crew reported by The Mirror—when showrunner Gary Glasberg asked him to come back, he asserted:
I think I was literally standing with Emily Wickersham [who played Eleanor Bishop] and Brian Dietzen [who played Jimmy Palmer] at the Upfronts because I was hanging out with the NCIS people because everybody on CBS back in the day used to go to a party together.
