'NCIS: Origins' Fans Get Exciting News After 13 Episodes

In a conversation with Mark Harmon the day before the news was released by CBS that NCIS: Origins was getting picked up for five more episodes completing its first season on the air, the star, who created the role of Leroy Jethro Gibbs, talked to Parade about his hope that the prequel series would get picked up—and now it has.

And he had reason to be concerned because his memory goes back to 2003 when CBS wasn’t the No. 1 network, and it was a struggle to stay on the air.

“People are real good at thinking that the mothership, NCIS, that from the moment it opened, it was a hit and it wasn’t at all for four years,” Harmon pointed out. “Maybe that’s the perspective of a convenient memory where people go, ‘Oh, yeah! It wasn’t so bad. People have jobs.’ That’s been the fun in doing Origins for me is getting to re-introduce that but in a different way. It’s all these people together, including the crew, and you’re not in Atlanta, you’re not in Canada, you’re here in L.A. They are all at home and they’re getting a chance to work and do a job from L.A., which is unheard of right now.”

Related: NCIS: Origins' Kyle Schmid on Mike Franks Being a Gruff Cowboy on the Outside but a Lover on the Inside

With the official announcement that NCIS: Origins was picked up for an additional five episodes, bringing the total for Season 1 to 18, the prequel will continue to tell the story of how it all began for Gibbs.

“NCIS: Origins has added a brilliant new dimension to the NCIS franchise with an origin story of Leroy Jethro Gibbs and a cinematic ’90s experience that features distinct characters, stories and crime solving. [The show fits] seamlessly into our Monday night lineup while resonating with viewers on CBS and Paramount+,” Amy Reisenbach, president of CBS Entertainment, shared in a statement.

Related: NCIS: Origins Star Austin Stowell Reveals the Personal Tragedy He Used to Get Inside Gibbs’ Head

NCIS: Origins follows a young Leroy Jethro Gibbs (Austin Stowell) in 1991, years prior to the events of NCIS, and is narrated by Harmon. In the series, Gibbs starts his career as a newly minted special agent at the fledgling NCIS Camp Pendleton office, where he forges his place on a gritty, ragtag team led by NCIS legend Mike Franks (Kyle Schmid).

The cast also includes Mariel Molino (Cecilia “Lala” Dominguez), Tyla Abercrumbie (Mary Jo Hayes), Diany Rodriguez (Vera Strickland) and Caleb Foote (Bernard “Randy” Randolf).

NCIS: Origins airs Monday nights at 10 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.

Related: NCIS: Origins Showrunners on How Mark Harmon's Narration Takes Us Inside Gibbs’ Head