I just found out that one of the NCIS regulars was asked to kill after joining a major sitcom, and it’s funny what they think about the request now

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Sean Murray and Matt Jones on NCIS. — Source: CBS

If you’ve been around for a long time NCIS viewer or if you are catching up on the program Paramount+ subscriptionyou may remember actor Matt Jones as Ned Dorneget, a probationary agent who was introduced in the season 9 episode “Sins of the Father” and became a full-fledged agent in season 12’s “Troll.” Sadly, Ned died just one episode later, although Jones made such a request so that he could star in the comedy series alongside Anna Faris and Allison Janney Mother. But looking back, Jones regrets making the request, which is kind of funny.

While talking to a friend NCIS alums Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo on their podcast Off Duty: NCIS RerunMatt Jones told how, during the period in which he appeared sporadically as Ned Dorneget, he also appeared in pilot episodes for various television networks that were not picked up. As such, these guest roles were necessary for him to pay the bills, another notable example being his 12-episode appearance on Breaking Bad as Badger. Then Motherwhich can be streamed via file Hulu subscriptionwas picked up, giving Jones his biggest appearance on the small screen to date. As the actor told Weatherly and de Pablo:

And that’s how I ran into (then-showrunner) Gary Glasberg at a CBS event. I think I literally stood with Emily Wickersham and Brian Dietzen on Upfronts because I hung out with the NCIS people because everyone at CBS went to parties together back then. It was great fun, I was hanging out, and Gary came up and said, “Oh, you have to come back.” And I said, “I’m on this sitcom now.” I can’t go back. I want to, but what do we do? And he said, “I don’t know, what do you want to do?” I thought, “Kill me!” I thought, “Let’s kill me!” And he said, “Oh my God, yes, we should kill you.” So it was my idea to die on the show. Stupid idea by the way.

Matt Jones appeared in six episodes NCIS in season 9, 10 and 12 and if Gary Glasberg, who died in 2016had his way, Ned Dorneget would still show up. But because Jones was preparing for this Motherhe believed then that it was necessary to ensure that Ned could never be brought back. So, in the penultimate episode of Season 12 of “The Lost Boys,” Ned was killed in an explosion caused by Daniel Budd, the leader of the terrorist group known as The Calling. Leroy Jethro Gibbs Mark Harmon’s Gibbs later saw Dorneget along with the spirits of other dead people NCIS friends from his life (Paula Cassidy, Mike Franks, Kate Todd, Jenny Shepard and Christopher Pacci).

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When joining Mother was obviously a great victory in Jones’ career, as you can see from the last sentence of the quote above, he regrets having permanently closed the door on Ned Dorneget. WITH NCIS is running its 22nd season in TV schedule for 2024AND Mother after its eight-season run ended in 2021 (Jones did not appear in the final two seasons), the character could have easily returned to that point and reunited with characters like Sean Murray’s Timothy McGee, Brian Dietzen’s Jimmy Palmer, and Rocky Carroll’s Leon Vance.

However, when Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo said they would like him to come to Hungary with them to take photos their upcoming spin-off, NCIS: Tony and ZivaMatt Jones mentioned that since he “doesn’t have anything anymore” like he used to, he might still be able to return to the series as a new character. He also thought about Ned’s reappearance as a ghost (what de Pablo would like to deal with Ziva’s half-brother, Ari Haswari). Even though Ned’s story among the living has long since come to an end, perhaps there is hope for him to one day reconnect with this procedural universe in a different role.

If this happens, CinemaBlend will let you know. Until then, catch new episodes NCIS on Mondays at 9 p.m. EST and NCIS: Tony and Ziva will one day premiere exclusively on Paramount+ TV program for 2025.