Like a lot of procedurals, NCIS has been through its fair share of casting changes over the years, from Jennifer Esposito leaving after one season, to series lead Mark Harmon bowing out early into Season 19. Among the higher profile exits was Pauley Perrette, who departed the hit CBS show in a heartbreaking way back in 2018. There’s no question her character, Abby Sciuto, was well liked by many of the fans, but after 15 seasons, the goth forensics specialist decided to start a new chapter of her life and resigned from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.
Within the show’s canon, Abby reached this decision in the episode “Two Steps Back” following the death of her colleague/friend Clayton Reeves, played by Duane Henry, as she wanted to honor his memory, and his mother’s, by starting a charity to help the homeless. So that accounts for Abby’s motivations, but were the circumstances behind why Perrette left NCIS in the real world? That’s what we’re here to go over.-
- What Pauley Perrette Initially Said About Leaving NCIS
- Pauley Perrette’s exit from NCIS certainly didn’t come as a surprise to fans, or at least the ones who followed along with the show’s news cycle, The actress confirmed in October 2017 that she would leave the show at the end of Season 15, though her final appearances ultimately ended up coming two episodes prior to the season finale. Considering Perrette played Abby for a over decade and a half, which also counts the character’s introduction in the JAG two-parter “Ice Queen” and “Meltdown,” it’s not like she hadn’t spent plenty of time in those platform boots and drinking all that Caf Pow. (Sidenote, a fun NCIS behind-the-scenes fact is that Perrette studied criminal science in graduate school before taking up acting professionally.)
