The NCIS: Origins two-hour series premiere introduced us to a young Leroy Jethro Gibbs as he began working at Camp Pendleton for what was then called the Naval Investigative Service (NIS). In "Enter Sandman," we were introduced to both new and familiar names and faces. One familiar face was Gibbs’s father, Jackson.
Fans of NCIS know the history Gibbs has with his father, who was played by the late Ralph Waite in the series. Now in the prequel series, Robert Taylor portrays a younger Jackson, who makes an appearance at the end of the premiere.
Why does Jackson Gibbs think his son is not fit for NIS in NCIS: Origins?
After Gibbs completes his first case with the team, he finds his dad at his house. They have barely been speaking. From the show history of NCIS, we know they fought at the funeral for Gibbs' wife Kelly, but new fans may not know the entire backstory yet. This will likely be something we see play out in NCIS: Origins.
In addition to Jackson asking about whether they caught the person who killed Shannon and Kelly, he also learns about his son’s new job. He is unhappy about the position he has taken. But why does he have an issue with Leroy working for NIS?
In an interview with Deadline, co-showrunners Gina Lucita Monreal and David J. North explained Jackson's negative reaction to Gibbs working for the NIS, citing their shared military background and the person he knows his son to be.
" Gibbs joined the Marines at 18 and was a sniper his entire life. He was defending his country by hunting the enemy. He was a killer. That’s how Jackson sees his son as, sadly. He did not see him as someone who has the patience to do these investigations. I think any father/son relationship is complex and fathers don’t always see everything that’s there with your son. That’s a really tough moment."Gina Lucita Monreal
"Jackson, too, is a military man. We’ve established in the original show that he flew planes in the army and the war. So I think it is really ingrained in who this family is, being in the military. So for him to see Gibbs make this shift sort of unannounced, is jarring for Jackson."David J. North
We know that it's not true that Gibbs isn't suited for the job because in NCIS he'd already been working as an agent for over 10 years when the show premiered in 2003. But in 1991, Gibbs had just lost his family and failed a psych evaluation. He had one particular teammate worried about him being a part of the squad. However, thanks to Mike Franks, he was still brought on board regardless.
This will be a different iteration of the relationship we saw with Gibbs and his father on the original series. While we don’t know exactly how things will be left between them, we do know that in the future it does all work out. With a grittier feel than NCIS, seeing how the events in Gibbs' life shaped him into who he is today will be fun to watch.
NCIS: Origins airs Mondays on CBS at 10/9c. You can catch up on the episodes on Paramount+. Stay tuned to Americans Undercover for coverage. Follow us on X and Facebook for more content!