NCIS fans received some major news on June 30: Mark Harmon is not only going to be appearing onscreen again as Leroy Jethro Gibbs in the third season of the prequel, but he’ll be in all 10 episodes!

“The story he never told enters a new chapter,” teased the social post. According to CBS, his role in NCIS: Origins Season 3 is “part of a present-day mystery tied to his ‘90s Camp Pendleton days in an action-packed story that unfolds all season long.”

He has only appeared onscreen on the prequel — in the series premiere and crossover with the mothership — since his exit from NCIS in Season 19. (He did, however, offscreen, team up with Gary Cole‘s Parker to use his sniper skills to take out one of the men responsible for the death of Director Vance, played by Rocky Carroll, in Episode 500.) Both times on Origins, he was seen in Alaska; he narrates every episode of the series, which features Austin Stowell playing the character in the early ’90s as he starts out at NIS (now NCIS, after rebranding in the Season 2 finale).

While we don’t have any more details about the mystery, we do know a few things we need to see with Harmon onscreen in such a major way. Read on for ours, then let us know yours in the comments section below.

An Origins character joining him in Alaska

So far, Gibbs has been mostly alone in Alaska, though he was joined by “the perfect blue-eyed” dog in the crossover. (That came about, as executive producer David J. North told TV Insider, because he and Harmon are both “dog obsessed.”)

North said, “Gina [Lucita Monreal] and I talked, and we thought it’d be a cool thing, and we knew Mark would enjoy it, and sort of the notion of where did that dog come from and out in the middle of nowhere, and we liked the idea of Gibbs not being alone as we continue to learn more about his story.”

But now that present-day Gibbs is going to be onscreen for a full season’s worth of episodes, it’s about time that another human (but let’s keep the dog) joins him in that cabin — and that it be someone from his Origins days. It can’t be Franks (Kyle Schmid), since the character died on NCIS (played by Muse Watson). Plus, we already know that Vera (Diany Rodriguez, Roma Maffia) is in touch with him from the crossover, so, while it would be great to see, it wouldn’t be a major moment. Also, thanks to the crossover, we know that Woody (Bobby Moynihan) and Phil (Ely Henry) survive to the present.

But there are major questions about Lala (Mariel Molino) and Randy’s (Caleb Foote) futures. This is “the story of her,” and it’s unclear just what happens between Lala and Gibbs, especially now that they’re together, that he never talks about her (more on Lala in a bit), and Randy was kidnapped at the end of the Season 2 finale. This could be the perfect time and way to reveal something about either of their futures. We’d also love to see Mary Jo (Tyla Abercrumbie) pop up.

Proof he’s in touch with his former team

Since Parker was able to reach Gibbs in Season 23 — and Wilmer Valderrama teased to us, “I think people would be surprised how in touch with Gibbs Torres has been secretly” — it’s about time we see this from his side, such as with the beginning or end of a call with, say, McGee (Sean Murray) or Palmer (Brian Dietzen). A guest spot from one of them would also be fun and a way to do another crossover across timelines.

Reveal something more about Lala’s future and “the story of her”

NCIS: Origins is “the story of her,” the one that Gibbs hasn’t talked about until now, and when better to really tell all of that than when Harmon’s version of the character will be onscreen? Even if we don’t see a present-day Lala, or we don’t until the finale, and he just mentions her to someone else, imagine if, at some point, there’s a glimpse of a photo that’s later revealed to be an older version of her, suggesting she’s still alive. (When we spoke with Molino about the Season 2 finale, she did say she’d “love to act with Mark Harmon” and appear as the older version of her character, like Moynihan and Henry did in the crossover.)

NCIS: Origins, Season 3, Fall 2026, Tuesdays, 10/9c, CBS