Movies News Talk
Eight years before Vanessa Lachey joined the NCIS: Hawai'i team as Special Agent in Charge, NCIS nearly had a female team head. From Special Agents Caitlin Todd (Sasha Alexander) and Eleanor Bishop ( Emily Wickersham) among its several team incarnations in the primary cast of NCIS, the show has highlighted numerous strong female characters. Still said, the Franchise has lately shifted its focus to women as team leaders.
Jethro Gibbs of NCIS is the most iconic team lead of the show. Mark Harmon played the role for almost twenty years and represented the franchise until Gibbs departed after NCIS season 19. Other notable team leaders have been Dwayne Cassius Pride (Scott Bakula) from NCIS: New Orleans and G. Callen (Chris O'Donnell), from the ensemble of NCIS: Los Angeles. Although these characters are outstanding in their own right, it's great to see strong female characters take front stage. Years before NCIS: Hawai'i launched in 2021, NCIS almost achieved this accomplishment.
Vanessa Lachey became NCIS's first official Female Lead since Summerskill's crew never formally left the program. The event occurred eight years after NCIS: Red failed to premiere in 2021 when NCIS: Hawai'i debuted. Lachey starred Special Agent in Charge Jane Tennant, helmed the NCIS: Hawai'i squad. Vanessa Lachey gave the character substance. Lachey said in an interview with The Talk that her experience matched the plot of abandonment her character underwent.
For the show, Jane led decisively and gave the Franchise interesting representation. Few NCIS agents have brought to the small screen, but Lachey's character struck the mix of being a loving mom and a competent agent. Sadly, NCIS: Hawai'i was shelved prior to season 4, so it is the shortest-lived series. With its cancellation, including the first official female Special Agent in Charge, the brand is losing enormous money.
Had NCIS: Red been acquired for its own series following its premiere on NCIS: Los Angeles, Paris Summerskill would have been the first female star on the show. Said otherwise, NCIS: Red was shelved prior to ever starting production. Originating on the Los Angeles series as a two-part backdoor pilot in season 4, episode 18, "Red," and episode 19, "Red-2," the proposed NCIS Spinoff developed on Along with the Blue and Green squads, the Red Team was among several mobile NCIS divisions assigned based on color.
The episode debuted Kim Raver as Summerskill, the NCIS Red Team Special Agent in Charge. John Corbett as former Special Agent Roy Haines and Scott Grimes as Special Agent Dave Flynn, the team's forensic specialist (who is cooking fish soup when G. Callen and Sam Hanna arrive at the Red Team's temporary base) also comprised the cast. Although the teams were located in Georgia, Daniela Ruah's Kensi Blye from the pilot detailed how the teams worked, traveled, and slept on the road—that they were "never home".
Luckily, another outstanding Female Lead for the NCIS cast is Special Agent in Charge Michelle Mackey (Olivia Swann). Established in season 1 of NCIS: Sydney, Mackey leads the AFP/NCIS Sydney Task Force. Serving multiple tours under the Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron, the former Marine Corps Captain was a helicopter pilot with time spent in Afghanistan.
Mackey eventually signed on to NCIS. She was assigned aboard the U.S.S. Ronald Reagan as Agent Afloat when the show first launched. Mackey's experience in the Marine Corps gives her leadership ability and fighting prowess. Mackey maintains her sad background a secret so she doesn't come off as overly vulnerable to her team, even although she has numerous experiences that make her a fierce lead. Mackey should open in Sydney season 2, hopefully since the agent's sensitivity makes her excellent leadership abilities all the more remarkable.
Apart from Special Agent Mackey, NCIS: Hawai'i cancellation will not affect the intriguing female leadership the brand has to look forward. Tony & Ziva will bring back Ziva, who will occupy one of the two main roles in the Spinoff. Though not a Team Lead, Cote de Pablo has a history of giving the franchise strong feminine representation in the original NCIS series. De Pablo actually departed the program when she believed her character would no longer be a source of critical female representation.
De Pablo left NCIS in season 11 and then returned as a special guest star in season 16 and recurred for four episodes in season 17. De Pablo will re-star as Ziva in NCIS: Tony & Ziva, and executive produce the Paramount+ limited series concurrently. She is among the NCIS stars on the list who went beyond mere performance in the show. Her behind-the-scenes efforts on the show will guarantee that Ziva will remain the potent force of female Israeli-Jewish representation de Pablo pioneered in the main series.