NCIS: “It's a lot of pressure”… Mark Harmon gives his opinion on the new interpreter of Gibbs – News Series
What does Mark Harmon think of his replacement in NCIS Origins? He took advantage of an interview with Parade magazine to confide and you might be surprised!
NCIS: Origins is coming to CBS very soon! It’s a chance to travel back in time and see Gibbs in the ’90s, just as he becomes an agent with the Naval Criminal Investigation Service.
Needless to say, this spin-off should please long-time fans! And if Austin Stowell was chosen to play a younger version of Leroy Jethro Gibbs, what does Mark Harmon, his historical interpreter, think about it? His opinion is, without a doubt, very important since he will be the voice-over of the series, but also the executive producer of the project.
And it was during the Television Critics Association press tour that the actor confided in Parade magazine: “I always thought that this character had to maintain a very important calm.”
“That’s a lot of pressure!”
“It’s a lot of pressure for an actor to walk into a room with that kind of burden of, ‘Can I look like this person? Can I become this person?’ But Austin was just himself. He walked into the room and Gina Lucita Monreal, the showrunner, was like, ‘This guy is a star!’ That’s what she said!”
He pursues : “He lit up the room really. You’re in that room for a long time and you see people come and go and at some point you have to trust your instincts. That’s what we did!”
For her part, Gina Lucita Monreal clarified: “What really got me was that he had what represents the heart of Gibbs’ character: he’s broken, but he’s also incredibly strong. I think that’s a delicate balance to strike, and I think Austin struck it.”
“This character means so much to everyone!”
David J. North, co-showrunner confirms: “This character means so much to everyone and quite honestly, he means so much to us too (…) Mark gave us his opinion of course, but at the same time, he told us to trust ourselves with our choice. And we were lucky to have Austin come along!”
Statements that prove that Mark Harmon is delighted with the team’s choice of NCIS: Origins to embody this character of which he remains the emblematic interpreter.