Mark Harmon has officially made his semi-return to the NCIS franchise with NCIS: Origins, a prequel series centering around his character, Leroy Jethro Gibbs.
The 73-year-old acts as the series’ producer and narrator, but doesn’t star in it, with franchise newcomer Austin Stowell stepping in to play the young Gibbs, with the series officially premiering on Monday, October 14.
The actor, 39, spoke with People about the “tremendous honor” of filling Gibbs’ shoes and his relationship with Mark as the show finally hits the air.
“I knew that I had something that I could bring to the role and I knew I had something inside me that felt very Gibbs-esque, and so to be tapped to play the guy is absolutely a confidence booster,” he shared. “It’s something that I take a lot of pride in.”
Austin spoke about diving deep into NCIS lore to pick up certain “Gibbs-isms” and fully embody the iconic character. “There are certain things that Mark does, and they are different to his other characters that he’s portrayed.”
“And so I wanted to embody as much of that as I could and decide, okay, if this is day one with Gibbs, how many of these behaviors are innate to him, and how many of them get learned over time? And so that was fun.”
© Getty ImagesAustin also shared insight into what the actor is like behind-the-scenes, showcasing a more nurturing side to him outside of the tough and steadfast character he brought to life on screen for over a decade.
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“He always starts off his conversations with, ‘Do you need anything?’ That is so disarming,” Austin remarked. “The guy is a global superstar. He could make it very uncomfortable for people to be around him. Certainly.”
© Getty Images“I mean, for me, a guy who is stepping into the shoes of the character that he created and has become beloved and for everybody else that’s around here. That goes for the crew. He treats everyone with such respect.”
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Mark, for his part, immediately felt the star power radiating from Austin. “I felt the room jump a little when Austin came in, before he said anything. He walked out and someone said, ‘I’ll just say it, that’s a movie star.'”
© Getty ImagesWhen asked what he considered his favorite thing about creating the show, Austin gushed: “We’ve all worked really hard at this and we’re trying to get it right. It looks beautiful. I [am] just really happy for all of our crew, that it’s going to be something that we’re all going to be proud of… I’ve gotten to know them, so many, really intimately, I know about their kids and their plans for the weekends.”
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© Getty Images“It’s not lost on me that a big part of that responsibility is to keep everybody at work. I like that responsibility. It gives me great purpose. I don’t just go to work for me, I go to work with everyone… I’ve been able to concentrate on what I need to concentrate on because I do feel like I have a safety net.”
