NCIS star Brian Dietzen has shared an optimistic outlook on the show’s future. Dietzen has played the Naval Criminal Investigative Service’s Dr. Jimmy Palmer since season 1 of the crime procedural, which premiered on CBS in 2003. The show has since expanded to include a variety of spinoffs set in various locales, including Los Angeles, New Orleans, Hawai’i, and Sydney, with the franchise’s overall 1,000th episode set to air as part of the ongoing NCIS season 21 on April 15.
When asked about the show’s future by TV Insider, Diezten weighed in on the possibility of NCIS season 22. He acknowledged that he was gratified that “our fans… followed us” once the show moved from Tuesday nights to Monday nights. He further said he is “hoping” that season 22 will happen, and “the show has been doing really well” so “why stop at 1,000?” Read his full quote below:
I’m hoping so as well. I think that no one ever wants to count their chickens, but I think that the show has been doing really well. And I feel like we’re halfway there. We want a clean, even 2,000. We’ll just keep it rolling. I was shocked [about the show’s move from Tuesday nights.] I thought that was an institution that would never move. But I’m really happy that since the move, our fans—I shouldn’t be surprised, but I still am—followed us and said, no, we’re going to keep watching this thing and make sure that this is still—I think it was this last year, we were the most viewed scripted show on television, still even opposite Monday Night Football. I think we all understand how blessed we are on that set.
How Long Can NCIS Conceivably Run?
Because the crime procedural has already lasted for so many years, it is one of the longest-running scripted programs in the history of American television. As such, there hasn’t been much precedent for how long it could conceivably run after NCIS season 21, and if it could reach the length that Dietzen hopes it can. In fact, there are only four longer-running scripted shows, all of which are currently still on the air. Below, see how NCIS compares to those programs:
Considering the fact that both Law & Order and its spinoff SVU are similar live-action crime procedurals that have run for even longer, NCIS has a chance at mimicking their longevity. The episodic nature of all three shows allows new viewers to jump in at any time without needing background knowledge from previous seasons, a fact that helps the shows reach such substantial lengths. This is also the case with the animated sitcoms that fill out the remainder of the chart of the top 5 longest-running scripted shows.
One other important place where the show has proven its ability to keep running is the shifting slate of NCIS characters. Former lead actor Mark Harmon, who was one of the last remaining cast members from season 1, left the show in season 19, but it has still found enough of an audience to carry on for two additional seasons so far. Because its shifting ensemble has a proven ability to outlast any given character or star, the show could keep running for as long as audiences watch, no matter how many cast members it has to replace.
