As Michael Weatherly Departs, ‘NCIS’ Cast Says Goodbye In Video

The Season 13 finale of NCIS will air next week, but fans are already getting ready to say goodbye to a major cast member. Michael Weatherly, who played Agent Tony DiNozzo for 13 seasons, is leaving the series and even his cast members find his departure hard to take.

Mashable has an exclusive video of NCIS cast members speaking fondly of Weatherly, which came out on Friday, May 13. Weatherly, Mark Harmon, Pauley Perrette, Sean Murray, Rocky Carroll, Brian Dietzen, David McCallum, and Emily Wickersham are all featured in the video, and Weatherly’s cast members talk about fond memories of working with the actor.

Perrette considers Weatherly one of her friends, and she mentions how Weatherly’s permanent exit from the show is like “this sense of mourning.” Harmon had nothing but nice things to say about Weatherly, and that it would be unfathomable to not miss a co-star of several years.

“You don’t spend 13 years with someone and not miss them. That’s crazy to think that.”

Brian Dietzen, who plays medical examiner assistant Jimmy Palmer, calmly talked about Weatherly’s departure and says that the whole cast is like family, but sometimes a family ends up having to move away for good.

Sean Murray, whose character, Timothy McGee, always partnered with DiNozzo, talked about how there’s always been changes to the NCIS cast in previous years, but he’s going to miss Weatherly and all the good times they had together while filming the series.

David McCallum, who plays Donald “Ducky” Mallard, talks about how Michael Weatherly’s character and the actor himself are a bit like each other, and that the two of them have quirky comedian-like qualities, which is why DiNozzo is such a popular character.

Emily Wickersham, who plays Eleanor “Ellie” Bishop and joined the series at Season 11, says in the video that Weatherly “is fun to have around” and she also mentions that he helps keep the on-set atmosphere laid-back and friendly.

Rocky Carroll, whose character, NCIS Director Leon Vance, has been part of the series since Season 5, also added his thoughts about Weatherly, and said that he could make the audience care about the character and not take himself seriously all the time.

Weatherly, who appears in the beginning and the end of the video, talks about how the NCIS cast has been through a lot together, and that he always found a way to make fellow cast members laugh behind of the scenes.

While Agent Tony DiNozzo won’t be returning to NCIS next season, fans of Michael Weatherly do not have to wait too long to see the actor in a new project. In fact, they don’t even have to change the channel: CBS has gone forward to greenlight a new drama called Bull, which features Weatherly as the main star, as reported on Cinema Blend.

Weatherly will play Dr. Jason Bull, a man who’s the leader in a trial consulting firm. His character is loosely based on talk show host Dr. Phil McGraw, who used to work at a trial consultation service.

Weatherly will be joined by Six Feet Under alum Freddy Rodriguez, The Mob Doctor’s Jaime Lee Kirchner, and Rescue Me’s Geneva Carr in the series. Bull will air this coming September during the new TV season.

Meanwhile, Michael Weatherly stated in the video that while he won’t be coming back to NCIS so soon, fans of the series shouldn’t take his recent departure as a permanent farewell.

“The craziest thing that I could say right now is that it ain’t over. Stay tuned because in the world of NCIS, nobody knows anything.”

NCIS’s last episode of this season will air on May 17. The show’s executives have yet to say who will replace Weatherly in the series. NCIS is schedule to air for at least two more seasons.

[Photo by Christopher Polk/Getty Images]