NCIS star Emily Wickersham has teased fans could finally see Sloane and Gibbs get together before main cast member Maria Bello makes her exit in the middle of season 18.
Jackie Sloane star Maria Bello will be departing NCIS midway through the series’ 18th season. Thankfully, in a recent chat with her CBS co-star Wilmer Valderrama on Instagram, Emily Wickersham hinted there’s still a chance of some romantic moments between Sloane and Leroy Gibbs (played by Mark Harmon) in the upcoming episodes.
Emily Wickersham has hinted Jackie Sloane and Leroy Gibbs will still have a chance of love before Maria Bello takes her leave from NCIS.
Just over five years after Sloane’s debut in the 15th season of the show, Bello was confirmed to be leaving the team eight episodes into the ongoing instalment.
However, in an Instagram Q&A with Wilmer Valderrama to mark the flagship show’s 400th episode, Wickersham hinted Sloane’s much teased romance with Gibbs could finally come to fruition.
The two co-stars took questions from fans and Valderrama kicked off the discussion when he stumbled across some tantalising speculation about Gibbs and Sloane’s burgeoning relationship.
The excited star then exclaimed: “Oh, this is a juicy question! We’re not even… it’s above our paygrade, right?”
“It kind of is,” Wickersham responded. To which Valderrama added: “I don’t know if we should even go there.”
NCIS’s huge ensemble cast are known for keeping spoilers close to their chests, especially when it comes to potential romances.
Many fans believed some of the show’s potential pairings could come to light in last year’s Valentine’s Day episode, Lonely Hearts, including Wickersham and Valderrama’s own on-screen flirting as agents Bishop and Nick Torres.
Sadly, the best Gibbs could muster up was a kiss on the cheek, and viewers arrived at the end of season 17 rather disappointed.
However, both co-stars expressed enthusiasm for the pairing, implying Sloane could end her time on the show on a romantic high.
Wickersham indicated something was definitely in the air and said: “I mean, it’s percolating, right?”
Plus, Valderrama hinted the pairing was all but inevitable and added: “It’s no surprise, right?”
Maria Bello is tipped to make her exit eight episodes into season 18, meaning she’ll still be part of the cast until February 2021 at the earliest.
Only three episodes of NCIS’s current outing have aired on CBS so far, though the series will return for a double bill tonight, Tuesday, January 19.
With just three episodes to go after this week, there could still be just enough time to wrap up Sloane’s storyline before Bello’s contract expires.
While some fans have speculated Sloane will be completely out of the picture following season 18, she could end the series by settling down with Gibbs, leaving the door open for future guest appearances.
In the meantime, Wickersham and Valderrama assured their followers they are both fully on board with their hopes for Sloane and Gibbs.
Valderrama played coy and said: “I don’t know dude, I don’t know.”
“I love it,” Wickersham replied. To which her co-star agreed and confessed: “I ‘ship’ it!”
Thankfully, even if Gibbs and Sloane decide to part ways as friends, Bishop and Torres are expected to stick around for several years to come so there could still be romance on the cards this year on NCIS.
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