The Season 19 finale of NCIS ended with a number of sh0cking revelations. To begin, we learn that Parker reported his partner for accepting bribes. We discover that the bribe money ended up in an offshore account in Parker’s name. And we find out that the partner has been murd3red.
What are our thoughts on Viv? Even though Parker departs with her at the end of the episode, we are perplexed; she appears to be working for the same people who kidnapped her at the beginning of the episode. This Outsider piece delves into fan theories surrounding the Season 19 finale.
Because the Season 19 finale was so exciting, fans are even more eager for NCIS’s twentieth season. Fans have yet to receive an official announcement regarding the Season 20 premiere date. We’re hoping to get that information sooner rather than later.
But fans have another question: how long will the season last? If this question were asked in 2018, the answer would be obvious. However, there is no telling these days. What is the reason for this..?
C0V1D 19 is the answer.
The Impact of C0V1D 19 on NCIS Filming
The pand3mic of 2020 had an impact on not one, not two, but three NCIS seasons. If you look at the last ten seasons of NCIS since 2012, you’ll notice a consistent pattern that came to a halt when the c0r0na v1rus struck.
Each season had twenty-four episodes: Season 10 (2012-13), Season 11 (2013-14), Season 12 (2014-15), Season 13 (2015-16), Season 14 (2016-17), Season 15 (2017-18), and Season 16 (2018-19). The network planned to air twelve episodes in the fall and the remaining twelve in the spring. They followed this schedule to the letter until the end of Season 17. When the pand3mic struck, filming was halted immediately. As a result, Season 17 had only twenty episodes rather than twenty-four. This Radio Times.com article discusses how difficult it was for the cast and crew to film during the pand3mic.
Sean Murray, who plays Tim McGee on the popular show, discussed the abrupt change. “I remember walking onto set that first day and seeing everyone wearing masks and face shields,” he recalls. “You’ve had 17 or 18 years of associations in your head – how you walk from the trailer to the set, how you get breakfast – and everything has changed completely.” It completely threw us for a loop. We had to adjust; there was a lot of nodding and pretending to hear each other.”
And as the pand3mic progressed, things got worse for Season 18. Season 18 (2020-21) featured only sixteen episodes. However, as conditions improved, the previous season was able to produce more episodes than Season 18. There were twenty-one episodes in Season 19.
However, with pand3mic restrictions loosening and most Hollywood projects resuming production, fans may see a return to the traditional twenty-four episode format. We’ll keep you updated as we wait for an official announcement.
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