Tony DiNozzo actor Michael Weatherly teases his character’s long-awaited return to NCIS, and hints that he won’t be alone.
Michael Weatherly, who played Tony DiNozzo on NCIS, teases the return of his character, as well as the return of another fan favorite.
The long-running CBS procedural returns on January 9 for a major crossover event that will bring together NCIS with two spinoffs, NCIS: Los Angeles and NCIS: Hawai’i, for a three-hour saga that will begin with the NCIS episode “Too Many Cooks.”
It will then continue with the Hawai’i episode “Deep Fake” before concluding with the NCIS: Los Angeles episode “A Long Time Coming.” Bringing together different teams for a case that hits close to home is a significant milestone for the franchise.
Now, in a Twitter response to a fan, Weatherly strongly suggests that he will return to NCIS and that he will not be alone.
Weatherly, who last played DiNozzo in the NCIS season 13 finale in 2016, was interacting with a fan who expressed a desire to see DiNozzo and Ziva David (Cote de Pablo) reunited.
The actor responds in a way that implies the characters may be returning. Check out the following Twitter exchange:
Why Did Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo Resign From NCIS?
During DiNozzo’s final appearance, the character decides to leave the team in order to care for Tali, Ziva’s daughter from years ago. As an ode to Ziva, he’d start his time away with a trip to Israel, followed by Paris.
De Pablo has returned to NCIS as a guest in the time since Weatherly left the show. It was established that Ziva was alive, just as DiNozzo had suspected, but on the run. Given the circumstances, the couple didn’t have the most happy ending. This has sparked speculation about whether Ziva and Tony have reconciled off-screen.
De Pablo initially stated in a 2016 interview that she left NCIS out of respect for her character, saying, “Unfortunately, because of political things and scripts not being good enough, I chose not to [return to NCIS].” She’d later clarify those remarks after returning to the show as a guest in 2019, saying they were taken out of context.
In any case, de Pablo’s decision to leave influenced Weatherly’s, as he valued the relationship between DiNozzo and Ziva. He also stated that he wanted to try a new role and went on to direct another CBS procedural, Bull, which ended in May 2022.
Weatherly recently expressed interest in reprising his role as DiNozzo, a sentiment echoed by NCIS showrunner Steven D. Binder. While there has been no official confirmation, these hints are an encouraging sign for fans hoping for closure on what happened to Ziva and DiNozzo, especially since Weatherly and de Pablo’s runs as series regulars ended several years ago. Despite the fact that the procedural has frequently lost pivotal main characters, including Gibbs, some exits have been more messy than others.
Related News – Be sure to get some more news when it comes to NCIS.