“NCIS” Season 14 has been put to a big test with the departure of Michael Weatherly in the series. Rumors have it that the show has seen a huge deep in the ratings following Weatherly’s exit but somehow, the remaining cast members have kept the fans to continue being invested in the long running show.
Weatherly played Senior Agent Tony DiNozzo and left after 13 seasons to headline his own CBS series, Bull, which is based on the life of Dr. Phil McGraw. Together with rumors going around that “NCIS” will be cancelled after Season 15, speculations have also come up that series lead Mark Harmon, who plays Jethro Gibbs, will be the next to go.
Reports say that Harmon have been noticeably growing thin recently in his appearances in “NCIS” Season 14 which sparked concerns about his health and general well-being. Speculations are rife that this could prompt Harmon to leave the show for some well-deserved rest. Or, just like Weatherly, sign on to do a new show.
Harmon was recently named America’s Favorite TV Personality and dethroned TV host Ellen DeGeneres reports Yahoo. She was able to hold on the title for the past three years but Harmon’s win was just fine with her. In order to congratulate Harmon, Ellen declared one week of her show as “Mark Harmon Week”. She even had an exclusive dressing room put up for the “NCIS” actor.
Before rumors of Harmon’s departure from “NCIS” emerged, reports also claimed that 82-year old actor David McCallum, who portrays medical examiner Donald “Ducky” Mallard is said to be leaving at the end of the season. But, the actor confirmed in an interview that he still wants to continue playing Ducky for as long as his health allows him to.
As previously mentioned, “NCIS” Season 14 rating took a huge dive post-Weatherly that could be the main reason for the cancellation talks. TV Series Finale notes that there is a 13.35 percent decrease than the previous seasons of the show. But, CBS has already decided to renew the series for Seasons 14 and 15 despite Weatherly’s departure from the series.