NCIS Season 18 release date and cast latest: When is it coming out?

NCIS is one of scripted television’s longest-running episodic series. With 17 seasons and 398 episodes under its belt, it is as popular now as ever.

However, every show has its time, and many fans were wondering if the last season, where Ziva returned and made a special appearance, was going to mark the end of this series.

The good news is that NCIS isn’t going anywhere, yet. There will be the eighteenth season with more exciting cases for this crack team of NCIS officers to solve.

Here is everything we know so far about NCIS Season 18.

This article provides everything that is known about NCIS Season 18 and all related news. As such, this article will be updated over time with news, rumors, and analysis. Meanwhile, let’s dig down into what is known so far.

Is there going to be a Season 18 of NCIS?

The 17th season of NCIS ended early due to the coronavirus pandemic shutting down production.

That 20th episode of a planned 24 hit on Tuesday, April 14, and the season ended with a truncated storyline, but not with the blockbuster cliffhangers fans are used to.

CBS announced the renewal of NCIS along with 23 other shows on May 6, 2020. This included the other NCIS shows but did not include the Pauley Perrette show Broke, which the network canceled after just one season.

The question now was when the new season of NCIS would hit, especially with the delay of production due to COVID-19.

Release date latest: When does NCIS Season 18 come out?

NCIS Season 18 arrives on Tuesday, November 17, at 8/7c on CBS.

Here is a full look at what you can expect in the NCIS season premiere.

According to TV Guide, the 18th season of NCIS will begin filming after Labor Day 2020, with a start date of September 9.

Since NCIS almost always started at the beginning of the fall season, this year, it won’t arrive until likely the beginning of 2021 – which will almost surely mean a shortened season.

NCIS is scheduled to keep its Tuesday night timeslot, at 8/7c before FBI and FBI: Most Wanted. However, when that starts is up in the air. If CBS pushes hard, the show could begin later in 2020 and try to get as close to 20 episodes as it can out.

NCIS Season 18 cast updates

The biggest news in Season 18 of NCIS is that a major character is leaving the show.

This shouldn’t be that hard to accept as names like Tony, Ziva, and Abby leaving were massive changes. In Season 18, the name leaving is Jack Sloane (Maria Bello).

Jack joined the team in Season 15 and has been part of some significant storylines ever since, including her harrowing life in the Middle East that left her emotionally and physically scarred.

Bello’s contract was only for three seasons, but she will return in Season 18 for eight episodes. These will finish off Jack’s story in the show’s world and send her off, hopefully with a happy ending.

However, most of the other characters should be back as normal.

Mark Harmon will be back as Jethro Leroy Gibbs, and he looks like he is ever-evolving, possibly becoming more open with his team as he gets older.

Also returning are Timothy McGee (Sean Murray), Ellie Bishop (Emily Wickersham), Nick Torres (Wilmer Valderrama), Leon Vance (Rocky Carroll), Dr. Jimmy Palmer (Brian Dietzen), Kasie Hines (Diona Reasonover), and Ducky Mallard (David McCallum).

There is no word on if Cote de Pablo will make any future appearances as Ziva David.

NCIS Season 18 spoilers

Gibbs started to change somewhat in Season 17, as he opened up to McGee about his childhood and his relationship with his father.

What led to this point was the case involving Joe Smith (Christopher Lloyd) and how that broke down Gibbs somewhat as he looked back over his life.

There is also the fact that it looked like Gibbs and Jack were considering breaking one of his biggest rules – never date a coworker. Could Gibbs and Jack finally break that rule, and could that be what leads her to leave NCIS?

One thing that fans will get in Season 18 is another landmark episode as the second episode of the season will be number 400.

There will also be an episode in the season about how Gibbs and Ducky met.

However, according to reports, there was not going to be a cliffhanger at the end of Season 17, so there wasn’t a planned return to action for the Season 18 premiere. That made the shutdown of production mean little for the future of the series.

However, there was going to be a “surprising ending,” and that reveal will now happen in Season 18, making one wonder if that is where Gibbs and Jack make their decision.

The only other major storyline heading into Season 18 concerns Emily Bishop and whether or not she decides to follow in Ziva David’s footsteps when it comes to her actions and career.

CBS has yet to announce when NCIS Season 18 will premiere.

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