‘NCIS’ Season 15: Mark Harmon Reacts To Pauley Perrette’s Official Exit From CBS Show, Actress Reflects Decision

Mark Harmon has always been the one whom people thought will leave NCIS. The actor was repeatedly rumored to be suffering from some health issues that may result in him quitting his job. While fans were still gathering their thoughts about those speculations, Pauley Perrette came out of nowhere and revealed that it was her who’s leaving the hit CBS show. Now that the actress has officially bid her farewell as Abby, the Certain Prey actor reacts to her decision and Pauley reflects on it as well.

Mark Harmon (Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs) and Pauley Perrette (Abby Sciuto) are two of the main characters in NCIS. After the 49-year-old actress announced that NCIS Season 15 would be her last, many are convinced that the show will never be the same again.

Being in the industry for almost five decades, Mark Harmon knows how it feels like to be a part of something big and wants to explore other things as well. So after learning Pauley Perrette’s decision to leave NCIS, he completely understands where she’s coming from.

“Oh, we’ll miss her. I’m really aware, and we’re all aware that audiences grow to love characters, and it’s a big deal. And we honor that,” Mark Harmon told ET at the time. “Fifteen years is a long time. People do what they do, and they move on, and they do other things, and that’s part of life.”

Although Mark Harmon knows that Pauley Perrette's departure will surely affect the dynamic in NCIS, he took his ex-co-star's exit as something positive for the show.  He sees it as an "opportunity to rebirth, to rejuvenate, to try new things, to grow." 

Meanwhile, Pauley Perrette revealed in her Sunday Morning interview that she is “still grieving” after her decision to leave NCIS. The actress shared that it makes her “sad to imagine a world without Abby in it.”

The NCIS Season 15 star then added that there were times that she would cry on her car on the way to work and on the way home, thinking that she will not be doing this routine once her time is finally up. But despite this heartache, Pauley Perrette noted that it is time to move on.