‘JAG’: CBS Reportedly Eyeing Revival of David James Elliott, Catherine Bell Series

The pieces are in place for a JAG revival, with both David James Elliott and Catherine Bell returning to their roles for NCIS: Los Angeles. Now, it looks like the court is back in session with CBS reportedly considering bringing back the show NCIS was born out of.

On Friday, TVLine reported that CBS is “testing the waters” for a new series starring Bell and Elliott as Lieutenant Colonel Sarah “Mac” MacKenzie and Navy Captain “Harm” Rabb Jr., respectively. The network declined to comment.

Back in March, NCIS: Los Angeles showrunner R. Scott Gemill confirmed Elliott would make his first appearance as Harm since JAG ended in 2005. A few days later, it was confirmed that Bell would be in the multi-episode arc.

“Bringing Harmon Rabb to work with [the Los Angeles NCIS team] makes for a formidable coalition, and both entities are going to need all the help they can get when confronted with the greatest challenge of their careers,” Gemmill told TVLine last month. “[As a writer and producer] I did the first four seasons of JAG with him, so to be able to work together again in and of itself is great. But to do so with the same character, on our show, this many years later… that’s pretty damn amazing.”

When Bell was confirmed, the executive producer gushed, “Not only is it great to be working together again as friends, but to be able to write for Catherine and have her same character interact with our NCIS: Los Angeles characters now, that’s wonderfully surreal. It feels like everything has come full circle.”

The first episode they will appear in is “The Guardian,” the penultimate episode of the current NCIS: LA season. In it, the NCIS team finds ISIS sympathizers plotting to destroy aircraft characters. During their investigation, Callen (Chris O’Donnell) and Sam (LL Cool J) work with Harm, who is now the XO Captain of the USS Intrepid.

The new episodes are “a really cool [new] permutation” of JAG, Gemmill told TVLine, adding, “It’s more exciting than just going back with a case where they’re JAG officers still and we get pulled into it. Instead we took a different direction.”

Incredibly, this is the first time the two actors will appear on an NCIS show since JAG ended. In fact, very few actors from the show have appeared in NCIS episodes. John M. Jackson has reprised his role as Admiral “A.J.” Chegwidden on NCIS and NCIS: LA, while Patrick Labyorteaux has shown up as Captain Bud Roberts on NCIS.

NCIS: LA airs on CBS Sundays at 9 p.m. ET. The JAG reunion arc starts on May 12.

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