Robyn Lively Appears on ‘NCIS: Origins’ in New Role Years After ‘JAG’: Breaking Down Her Return

NCIS: Origins brought in Robyn Lively to play a key role after she previously portrayed a different character in the NCIS universe.

During the Tuesday, November 18, episode of the CBS prequel, Lively, 53, made a surprise appearance as Randy’s mother, Maxine, in several flashbacks. Randy’s birthday in the current timeline triggered him to remember a past birthday from when he was a child.

In the scenes, Randy’s mother had to work on his special day to get enough money to buy him a present. They weren’t able to raise enough even with Randy’s help, but they still celebrated his birthday together — in both the past and the present.

Lively’s cameo might come as a surprise for NCIS fans who remember her previous role as Special Agent Vivian Blackadder, the third agent on the team with Leroy Jethro Gibbs (Mark Harmon) and Tony DiNozzo (Michael Weatherly) in JAG’s two-part backdoor pilot for NCIS in 2003.

JAG aired on NBC from 1995 to 1996 before making the move to CBS and remaining on the network until 2005. From there, the TV franchise expanded to include spinoffs NCIS, NCIS: Los Angeles, NCIS: New Orleans, NCIS: Hawaiʻi, NCIS: Sydney, NCIS: Origins and NCIS: Tony & Ziva.

Ahead of Lively’s return in Tuesday’s episode, Harmon, 74, reprised his role as Gibbs during the NCIS: Origins crossover episode where a present-day version of the character reflected on his life.

“Three decades, it’s a hell of a long time. That’s how long I put in on the job. Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about those early days,” he reflected. “Back when I was still cutting my teeth. Over the years, the outside changes, but inside, you still feel all the same thing.”

Gibbs continued: “A long time ago, I worked with a dog that had a first and a last name. He’s a good guy, just like you. I was lucky. I worked with a lot of good guys.”

Harmon, who is an executive producer on NCIS and NCIS: Origins and narrates the prequel, hasn’t played Gibbs on screen beyond Origins‘ 2024 pilot. The actor made his NCIS debut as Gibbs in 2003, going on to play the lead role for 18 years. His final appearance aired in late 2021, and Harmon later worked on the prequel alongside his eldest son, Sean.

“Four years ago, Gibbs disappeared to Alaska to live a life of solitude,” executive producers David J. North and Gina Lucita Monreal said in a statement before this month’s episode aired. “We know how much fans have missed seeing Mark and have wondered what Gibbs is up to today. Well, on November 11, we’re so excited to announce that Mark Harmon will return as Leroy Jethro Gibbs in the Origins hour of the NCIS crossover event. We don’t want to give too much away, but let’s just say Gibbs is no longer alone.”

Harmon also addressed his return, saying, “I’m very proud of the storytelling that David and Gina are doing on Origins. They continue to push boundaries and dive deeper into the characters’ backstories. They came to me with an idea for Gibbs that I liked, and it seemed like a good time to check in with him. I hope fans enjoy it.”

NCIS: Origins airs on CBS Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET.