WARNING: The following contains spoilers for NCIS Season 19, Episode 6, “False Start,” which aired Monday November 2nd on CBS.
Last season, NCIS fans were faced with some of the biggest casting changes in a while. After solving a case in Afghanistan, Special Agent Sloane stayed overseas to continue a friend’s humanitarian work. Then, in the last episode of the season, Special Agent Bishop decided to move on from NCIS and go undercover as a CIA spy. Now fans have become increasingly worried that Special Agent Torres could be the next agent to leave the series. Here’s why fearful speculation is high.
In “False Start," Torres briefly opened up about his feelings to a young Navy petty officer. The sailor was an elite athlete, but he was reeling after the murder of his track coach. Torres could see that the kid was being tempted to restart old, bad habits that the coach had helped him escape. So, seeing himself in the kid, Torres shared that he had also recently lost some of his family. Then, Torres went further and told the sailor that he needed to channel his feelings into something positive, saying that’s what he had done. However, what Torres did hasn’t been made clear. In fact, if anything, the show has made it seem like Torres is headed down a path of isolation.
Ever since Bishop’s dramatic exit, Torres has been a bit off. He hasn’t been at the forefront of many episodes, but there have been a few times that Bishop’s name has come up in conversation around him. Whenever that has happened, Torres has been quick to move on and act like nothing’s wrong, even though it’s been very clear that Bishop’s departure left him feeling alone and abandoned.
Then, when Gibbs left, things only got worse. Torres saw Gibbs as the father he never had, and was floored when he found out that the NCIS team leader wasn’t coming back from Alaska at all. On top of that, he was very opposed to Agent Parker taking Gibbs’ job, heavily preferring that McGee take the position instead. All in all, Torres has been the one to most heavily oppose the changes happening around him.
While all of this could turn out to be simple character development, it could also be the makings of a Torres exit, one where he simply won’t be able to take any more changes. In fact, some real-world news has only added fuel to that rumor mill. Deadline recently reported that Wilmer Valderrama, who plays Torres, has a new project in the works. He will be the executive producer for a new CBS comedy called Mexican Beverly Hills.
While that’s great career news for Valderrama, it could be a problem for Torres. It’s possible that Valderrama will be able to maintain both roles, since he won’t be acting in the new series, but it could prove to be a difficult task. Either way, fans should enjoy Torres while he’s still on NCIS, just in case his time is drawing to a close.
To see more of Special Agent Nick Torres, watch CBS’ NCIS on Monday nights at 9 pm. ET.