'NCIS' Shocks Fans With Major Character Death After 18 Seasons & The Actor Speaks Out

NCIS‘ Steven D. Binder is addressing a shocking death in the series, and the actor is also speaking out about their future on the show.

The executive producer and showrunner of the hit CBS series spoke out in a new interview about a particularly emotional exit after nearly two decades that just aired on Tuesday (March 24).

Keep reading to find out more…

The 500th episode of NCIS sadly saw the exit of Director Leon Vance, played by Rocky Carroll for ever since joining as a recurring star in Season 5 back in 2007, and becoming a main star a year later in Season 6.

In the episode, the late character Ducky (Adam Campbell) makes a surprise return and brings him into the afterlife.

“You know, there was a period of time where with this show — like a lot of shows, and Walking Dead was big this way — nobody was safe; anyone could become a casualty. And although we were a character-based show in a lot of ways, and humor was a part of our DNA, the stakes were always real,” the showrunner told Variety.

“So, Director Vance’s wife gets killed…and at some point we started talking about reuniting them in some way — that the loss hurt him so much that he never got over it…it’s a testament to the character of Leon Vance and to Rocky himself that nobody wanted to pull that trigger, because we didn’t want to lose him. But eventually I think we knew we were going to. We knew the story was gonna happen that would end with him getting a chance to reunite with his wife.”

“It was becoming more and more apparent that, not knowing what the future holds, if we’re ever gonna do it, we probably ought to start considering doing it soon. And then when the 500th came around, one of the things was, ‘What can we do that’s epic and mythic and shocking and twisty and reminds you of how much you love this show?’” the showrunner continued.

“And the hope is, in much the same way that Kate’s death, I think, put us on the map and reinvigorated interest, we hope that this story is so powerful that it has the same effect, that it reminds people how much they love the show. It gives people a very happy ending that you couldn’t have otherwise, without Vance dying — a chance to be reunited with his loved one. And it gives us a few more years…that’s really what it came down to. It was not an easy decision, I can tell you that.”

Rocky Carroll also addressed his exit.

“I think they figured, ‘Look, 23 seasons in, who knows how much more time we have. If we don’t do it now, there may not be a season that allows us to do something of this magnitude, because we’re in overtime here,’” he said in an exit interview for Variety.

He also addressed whether he could return as a ghost.

“Oh, I think we coined the term ghost stars. We have more ghost stars on our show than anybody. So I absolutely foresee it. And I also direct three, sometimes four episodes every season. And I think that will continue,” he revealed.

“So for me, it’s really goodbye for now. It’s not as final as as it feels. Even when I shot the final scene on Dec. 11, when we finished the episode and shot the final scene, and all of us as a crew were all saying goodbyes and hugs, I just remember saying, ‘Guys, I’ll be back in a month to start doing prep work and pre-production for the episode that I’m directing.’ So, I’m not here for every meal now as a relative, but I come back for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I’ll be around.”

Rocky also confirmed he’s already been back to set to direct.

“The answer is yes. Literally a month after we shot this show, I was back in January to direct what I think is maybe the third-to-last episode of this season,” he teased.

Find out which real-life stars have sadly passed away since filming NCIS.