‘NCIS’: What Would Have Happened in Season 17 Finale Without Coronavirus Shutdown

Many NCIS fans are wondering what would have happened in the Season 17 finale had production on the show not been shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic. Well, now, they finally have their answer. While speaking to TVLine, co-showrunner Frank Cardea revealed that the show “planned to have a very surprising ending” but “did not have a cliffhanger,” necessarily.

“We do plan to go forward with the episode in the early part of Season 18 but will probably reevaluate the ending when the time comes,” he went on to share. Cardea then shared that he and the rest of the creative team “have a lot of flexibility” with the episodes they did film. “We can pretty much air the first six episodes in any order that we choose,” he said.

Previously, ahead of the Season 17 premiere, Cardea spoke with Entertainment Tonight what fans could expect to see. “Some of our other characters are going to go find out new things about each other, certainly Kasie (Diona Reasonover), who is the newest member of our cast. We also advance the relationships amongst our existing characters,” he said.

NCIS co-executive producers Steven D. Binder then added, “We’re keeping our eye on Bishop and Torres (Wilmer Valderrama). We’ve gone down this path once before and if we go down it again, we want to make sure that it’s worth going down. But we’re definitely spending a lot of time thinking about it. We also hope to have some surprises in store for you. We had a season finale that set the bar high. We’re working hard to try and top ourselves.” At this time, NCIS does not have an announced return date.

Notably, fans can rest assured that they will eventually get closure on what happens with Gibbs and the team, as NCIS has already been renewed for Season 18 at CBS, along with other hit shows like FBI, Blue Bloods, Bull, MacGyver, Magnum P.I., SEAL Team, and SWAT. CBS announced the news during its virtual up-front presentations last week.

“Thanks to these exceptional shows, we’re going to win the current season by 1 million viewers,” CBS Entertainment president Kelly Kahl said in a statement on the series renewals. “Next year, we’ll have these strong returning series as our foundation … and Super Bowl LV, too. It’s a well-balanced lineup across entertainment, news and sports that will put us in an incredibly stable position for 2020-2021.”