‘People still want to know our back stories’

Actor Mark Harmon is back on the tube with the ninth season of his television drama NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service. The show, currently on air on Big CBS Prime, revolves around a fictional team of special agents who conduct criminal investigations involving the US Navy and Marine Corps.

Actor Mark Harmon is back on the tube with the ninth season of his television drama NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service. The show, currently on air on Big CBS Prime, revolves around a fictional team of special agents who conduct criminal investigations involving the US Navy and Marine Corps.

HT Image

Mark, who has been playing the role of supervisory special agent Gibbs, claims the show has gotten better over the years. “The two new writers this year have brought a new energy and spin to the storyline and the characters we have been playing for a long time.”

With many other crime shows airing on TV today, what will be the USP of NCIS in this new season? Mark replies, “Nine years on, the four characters are probably more important than anything else. People want to know about the back stories and learn about these characters, whom they spend a lot of time with.”

The 60-year-old actor, adds, “There are certainly things that I question daily regarding Gibbs. Yet, I enjoy the complexities of this character, which has some darkness. He’s a rough guy to figure out away from the job, and that’s fun to play. It’s fun to realise that most of that torment is stuff that probably will never get answered.”

The actor credits the success of the show to the writers. “I think Gary (Glasberg, writer) tried to push some limits here . He wanted to give the fans something that they could really sink their teeth into.”

He adds, “If you look at the ratings, you would have to say that people like the show better now than they did in the past. Whether it’s supportive or negative, they are interested and their reactions are good.”

Ask him if he plans to visit India, and he replies, “To come there and just be able to walk around would be special. I’ve never been to India, but my wife has. She went twice before she met me, and she loved it.”