With NCIS now airing its 22nd season in 2024, the long-running CBS series has seen many key characters, both main and recurring, come and go. Among the notable figures from the latter category is Mike Franks, portrayed by Muse Watson. Franks, Leroy Jethro Gibbs’ mentor, appeared in 20 episodes spanning from Season 3 to Season 15. However, in his later appearances, Franks showed up as a ghost, having met his demise in the penultimate episode of Season 8. Jesse Stern, the writer who penned Franks’ death, recently reflected on the experience and how the decision to kill off the character came just before his own departure from the show.
Stern, who worked on NCIS from 2004 to 2011, wrote 33 episodes and served in various producer roles during his tenure. He shared his perspective during an episode of Off Duty: An NCIS Rewatch, hosted by Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo, who played Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David in the series. When Weatherly brought up Stern’s reputation for writing episodes that killed off major characters, specifically mentioning Mike Franks, Stern recounted:
“Oh my God, that was one of those ones. Gary Glasberg, rest in peace, handed me that assignment. He said, ‘We’re going to kill Mike Franks.’ And Franks hadn’t been in an episode that season. I was just like, ‘Are you kidding? We’re going to bring the guy in just to kill him off?’ Everyone’s going to see it coming. It’s not the way to do it. So I tried to talk him out of that decision, but he was determined. I was like, ‘OK, if I’m going to do it…’ That was my last script. I decided I’d write it as a swan song, in a way you don’t see coming, and in a way that allows the actor to come back.”
Franks made his return in the Season 8 episode “Swan Song,” where he met his end. In the scene, Franks stepped outside Gibbs’ house on a rainy night and encountered Jonas Cobb, the Port-to-Port Killer. Attempting to apprehend Cobb, Franks was fatally stabbed. His character received a full military funeral in the Season 8 finale, where it was also revealed that he had been battling cancer—an explanation for why Gibbs was building him a coffin. This finale marked Stern’s last episode with the show.
Despite initial hesitation, Stern made the most of the assignment, crafting what many fans consider one of the most memorable death scenes in NCIS history. Fortunately, this wasn’t the last we saw of Muse Watson as Mike Franks; the character occasionally appeared as a ghostly figure, guiding Gibbs in moments of reflection. Watson’s final appearance as Franks came in the Season 15 episode “Voices.”
Although the older Mike Franks’ story has ended, the character lives on in NCIS: Origins, where Kyle Schmid portrays a younger version of Gibbs’ mentor. NCIS: Origins airs Mondays at 10 PM ET on CBS, following new episodes of NCIS. Both shows, along with the rest of the NCIS franchise, are available to stream on Paramount+.
