The Surprising NCIS Mistake That Turned Sean Murray’s McGee From Guest Star Into A 21-Year Regular

One legendary NCIS character was originally slated for a guest appearance, but one small editing mistake turned it into a full-on main character role. Originally, Timothy McGee was brought on for one episode, but a mistake necessitated calling the character back and seeing him work alongside Michael Weatherly’s Anthony “Tony” DiNozzo. Although the characters would work together on the show for over a decade, the return of him as a guest character wasn’t evident until they officially joined the NCIS cast at the beginning of NCIS season 2. The actor has built up their character to be one of the most important characters in the franchise.

Now airing NCIS season 21, the iconic police procedural has been on air for over two decades. This character has seen every single season of NCIS as a cast member in one form or another. Although their beginning on the show was uncertain, the character has become one of the most important characters in the NCIS universe and has the longest track record on the show, with characters like David McCallum’s Dr. Donald “Ducky” Mallard and Brian Dietzen’s Dr. Jimmy Palmer as the actor’s only rival.

Timothy McGee Was Brought Back To NCIS To Fill A 3-Minute Show Gap

In an interview with Parade, Sean Murray revealed that Timothy McGee was originally slated for a guest appearance. He was brought back when airtime needed to be filled later in the season, when they edited the show and came up three minutes short. This required a whole “c runner” that saw McGee’s return alongside Michael Weatherly’s Anthony DiNozzo. According to Murray, showrunners suggested he return alongside DiNozzo because “it worked the first time.”

Murray noted that at the end of his guest appearance, his character wasn’t “a bad guy” or killed, which meant he could return. NCIS regularly hosts guest appearances on the show, either from other NCIS agencies or from other sectors of the government, but sometimes characters depart the NCIS series on terms that are difficult to amend when the character is a villain or gets killed in action. Murray’s revelation that his character was able to reappear on the show is significant, and it paved the way for his historic NCIS run.

There Had Been Talk Of The Character’s NCIS Return (But This Made It Official)

There had been talks of McGee returning before, to date Pauley Perrette’s Abby Sciuto character, but bringing back McGee for the c-runner made his return official. Although there had been talk of Sciuto’s character drawing McGee’s character back to MCRT, the character that would draw Mcgee back was Tony DiNozzo, who would continue to work alongside McGee for a dozen seasons until Michael Weatherly’s Anthony DiNozzo departed the show at the end of season 13. Even though Abby and McGee’s relationship never took off, some hold out hope that the pair will end up together, though McGee married someone else.

McGee and Abby did end up dating on the show, and it was one of the NCIS relationships fans could get behind. The pair started dating in season 1, episode 7, “Sub Rosa.” However, the pair would only end up dating for half a season, with McGee’s run in the series outlasting their relationship. There is a moment in season 8, however, where McGee suggests that he still has feelings for Abby and wants to protect her. Although Abby was originally a reason that McGee might stay on NCIS, his character far outlasted their relationship.

Timothy McGee’s NCIS Role Expanded To A 21-Year Track Record

McGee grew from guest star to now being the series’ longest-running character. During his historic 21-year run on the show, Murray’s character has evolved from NCIS rookie to Senior Field Agent. McGee joined the show more and more frequently throughout the first season, and now that the show is airing season 21, McGee has officially been on NCIS for over two decades. His stay on the show is far and away the most impressive.

Sean Murray’s time on NCIS surpasses even the show’s favorite character, Mark Harmon’s Leroy Jethro Gibbs, who was the face of the show from season 1 to season 19 when his character retired and moved to Alaska. McGee started as an NCIS agent assigned to the Norfolk Naval Base. He appeared in episodes 7 and 11 of NCIS season 1, then joined regularly at the end of the season for episodes 18 through episode 23.

In NCIS season 2, McGee joins the team as a probationary agent. He held the position for six years before his status as an NCIS Special Agent became official, upon Cote de Pablo’s Ziva David and Emily Wickersham’s Eleanor Bishop stepping up and becoming probationary agents themselves. McGee then evolved into Senior Field Agent with the departure of Tony, who left the show upon the apparent death of his partner, Ziva. Then in season 20, McGee steps up as temporary NCIS Director when Parker and Vance are out of the country.

Timothy McGee’s Return Didn’t Guarantee His Spot On The MCRT

Sean Murray’s Timothy McGee has faced uncertainty on NCIS, and it’s a trend that started during his earliest days on the show. Although the character was brought back for a c-runner, and that was the catalyst for his joining the cast, McGee’s character was never guaranteed a permanent position on the MCRT roster. Many guest characters from different NCIS teams were featured in the first season of NCIS, like NCIS Pearl Harbor Special Agent Richard Owens (David Ramsey), who’s guest appearances began and ended with his feature in season 1, episode 5, “The Curse.”

Likewise, NCIS season 1 featured Stanley “Stan” Burley (Joel Gretsch), a former Washington NCIS Special Agent who worked with Gibbs for five years. The character was featured in NCIS season 1, episode 6, “High Seas,” after Burley requests that Gibbs join him in an investigation. NCIS sees Burley appear in seasons 1, 9, 10, and 13, but his recurring role didn’t catch on like Tim McGee, who would jump onto the end of NCIS season 1 in half a dozen episodes.

Timothy McGee’s Future And Potential NCIS Director Position Explained

Sean Murray states in the Parade cover story interview that he wanted the character of Timothy McGee to be a constant evolution, and McGee’s character has continued to evolve in season 21 of NCIS. Murray credits the evolution of his character as the reason that he’s been able to stick with the character of Timothy McGee for so long. He said that, while other actors from the show have left to pursue other roles that would expand beyond their NCIS character, that he doesn’t feel held back in the character of Tim McGee:

“I voiced pretty early on that I did not want the character of McGee to just revert to the same thing every week—I wanted him to grow,” Murray said. “Luckily, they wanted the same thing. I’ve always felt that there was a constant evolution. I think that’s part of why I’m still so interested in doing this 21 years later.”

In the NCIS 1000th Episode, viewers saw McGee step into the role of temporary NCIS director for the second time in the series. It’s clear that McGee is the natural choice for current NCIS Director Leon Vance (Rocky Carroll) for next-in-command, and McGee’s performance makes it clear that he is capable of stepping into that role. With McGee acting as temporary director in the 1000th episode with no end to his temporary position laid out, it’s a signal to viewers that McGee is capable of the highest leadership at NCIS.

Murray’s track record, as well as McGee’s, indicates that Murray has succeeded in his quest of creating a character that was constantly evolving with NCIS. Just like his guest appearance, McGee’s temporary role as NCIS Director could become permanent, which would nearly complete Murray’s evolution. Climbing the ranks from rookie NCIS agent to Probationary Agent to Senior Field Agent, and being trusted as the team’s second-in-command, signals that Murray is destined to continue to grow with NCIS.