Wild 'NCIS' Fan Theory Brings 2 Beloved Old Characters to 'NCIS: Hawaii' Cast

With the news that the team behind hit CBS procedural NCIS is eyeing another spinoff, this time in Hawaii, fans of the franchise have already got their conspiracy theory hats on in a big way. Deadline reported in February that NCIS: New Orleans executive producers/showrunner Christopher Silber, Jan Nash, and SEAL Team writer-producer Matt Bosack are expected to head up NCIS: Hawaii, which is nearing an official green light. According to the report, the proposed show would follow a new team, and that "there are no current plans for NCIS: Hawaii to be introduced as a planted spinoff from one of the other NCIS series."

However, that doesn't mean that people aren't hoping to return fan-favorite characters Ziva David (Cote de Pablo) and Tony DiNozzo (Michael Weatherly). De Pablo returned to NCIS for a four-episode arc in 2019, confirming that Ziva and Tony were still together and raising their daughter, Tali. Knowing that this beloved couple was out in the world has people on Twitter desperately hoping that they relocate to Hawaii and head up the new team.

"But imagine if NCIS Hawaii meant that Tony and Ziva came back!" tweeted one fan. "Wouldn't it be so cool if they brought Ziva, Tony & Abby back in NCIS Hawaii???" wrote another. "Abby, Tony and Ziva in [NCIS: Hawaii] would be my dream cast," suggested another hopeful viewer.

De Pablo was cagey about the reason she left NCIS in 2013, telling TV Guide, "as far as my decision to leave, that's a personal thing, and I'd rather leave it at that." She continued, explaining that "the idea of leaving was not something I toyed around with for a long time. It was an overwhelmingly hard thing – at times terrifying."

However, she maintained that filming was a good experience and that she was open to the possibility of returning to the show in the future, which she did. "The greatest thing about this last episode is that Ziva doesn't die," she said. "As long as a character doesn't die, the character can always come back." Weatherly tweeted in 2018 that "I will always be ready to play DiNozzo when the time is right," so anything is possible. Still, fans might want to brace themselves for the likelihood that they'll have a brand new cast of characters to fall in love with instead.

Disclosure: PopCulture is owned by CBS Interactive, a division of ViacomCBS.