{"id":4354,"date":"2026-04-05T17:58:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T17:58:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ncisnews.com\/?p=4354"},"modified":"2026-04-05T17:58:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T17:58:09","slug":"after-leaving-ncis-rocky-carroll-reveals-how-he-might-come-back","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ncisnews.com\/?p=4354","title":{"rendered":"After Leaving \u2018NCIS,\u2019 Rocky Carroll Reveals How He Might Come Back"},"content":{"rendered":"

After 18 years as NCIS Director Leon Vance, Rocky Carroll\u2019s departure from the long-running series came in dramatic fashion during the show\u2019s 500th episode \u2013 a moment that left fans stunned.<\/p>\n

Carroll admitted he didn\u2019t initially know his character would be k1lled off. When producers revealed the plan, he was surprised, but quickly came to appreciate the impact of the storyline. Vance\u2019s death \u2013 sacrificing himself to save the agency and expose corruption \u2013 offered a rare sense of closure, especially for such a central character in a series that has spanned more than two decades.<\/p>\n

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Watching the episode for the first time at a public screening, Carroll said he experienced it like any other viewer. His main concern was whether the episode would hold up \u2013 but he walked away impressed, calling it a powerful and well-executed installment.<\/p>\n

When Carroll first joined\u00a0NCIS<\/em>\u00a0in Season 5, his character wasn\u2019t immediately embraced. Vance was initially seen as an outsider, a strict authority figure stepping into an established team. Over time, however, both the writers and cast helped shape him into a more layered character. Storylines exploring his personal life \u2013 especially the loss of his wife \u2013 allowed audiences to connect with him, eventually making him a core part of the NCIS family.<\/p>\n

Carroll also revealed that the idea of k1lling off Vance had been discussed years earlier, but was repeatedly set aside as the character grew in importance, particularly through his strong on-screen relationship with Mark Harmon\u2019s Gibbs.<\/p>\n

Despite his character\u2019s death, Carroll isn\u2019t fully stepping away from the series. In addition to acting, he has directed episodes since 2015 and recently helmed multiple installments, including the return of Ellie Bishop. He\u2019s already been invited back to direct again, and he hinted that Vance could still appear through flashbacks or as part of the show\u2019s tradition of revisiting past characters.<\/p>\n

Looking ahead, Carroll says he\u2019s open to new opportunities but isn\u2019t in a rush to commit to another demanding role. After nearly two decades on\u00a0NCIS<\/em>, he\u2019s considering focusing on directing, or even taking time to travel and explore new creative paths.<\/p>\n

While Vance\u2019s death marks the end of a significant chapter, Carroll believes the character\u2019s legacy will endure\u2014perhaps even becoming more impactful in hindsight.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After 18 years as NCIS Director Leon Vance, Rocky Carroll\u2019s departure from the long-running series came in dramatic fashion during the show\u2019s 500th episode \u2013 a moment… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4355,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4354","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ncisnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4354","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ncisnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ncisnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ncisnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ncisnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4354"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ncisnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4354\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4356,"href":"https:\/\/ncisnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4354\/revisions\/4356"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ncisnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4355"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ncisnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4354"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ncisnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4354"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ncisnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4354"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}