More than a half-decade since she left, fans are still reeling over Pauley Perrette's Abby exiting NCIS.
Perrette's iconic forensic scientist was a part of the hit crime procedural for nearly 16 years, joining the series as a part of its original cast.
As with any series that goes on as long as the hit CBS drama, cast departures are a regular occurrence, and NCIS is no different. Over the years, audiences have said goodbye to several fan favorites, including the relatively recent departure of Emily Wickersham's Bishop.
Abby's NCIS Exit Explained
After 16 years on NCIS, Pauley Perrette's Abby said goodbye to the series in 2018, but some fans have never recovered.
Perrette played her spunky NCIS character for its first 15 seasons, serving as one of the last remaining members of the show's inaugural cast to continue appearing in the series well into the 2010s.
However, Abby's time on the CBS drama ended with Season 15, Episode 22. In the episode titled "Two Steps Back," Abby decided her time was done working with the high-stakes forensic unit, as things got a little too close to home.
Abby had been put in danger before, but the consequences of this danger hit her heavily in the Season 15 finale. Her final episode saw a contract killer, Kent Marshall, hired by Abby's on-screen nemesis, Robert King.
While Abby made it out of the episode alive, her colleague, Clayton Reeves (played by Duane Henry), did not, as he was shot by Marshall while trying to protect the forensic scientist.
Abby then resigned from the NCIS team, announcing she was leaving to bury Reeves and start a charity in his mother's honor — something the former NCIS liaison officer had always wanted to do.
This was the last time the character appeared on screen in the hit series. It is assumed she is now living overseas and operating the non-profit as a tribute to Reeves.
The Real-World Reason Why Abby Departed NCIS
While Abby's story came to a touching end in 2018, there was a real-world reason for Pauley Perrette wanting to leave NCIS.
Typically, in these situations, a particular character being written off of a show comes down to extenuating circumstances outside the universe of the series itself, usually due to contract disputes or something behind the scenes.
The character of Abby and Pauley Perrette is no exception to this, as, according to reports around the time of her departure, the actress believed she had a good reason for leaving the series.
In a September 2023 interview with The Hollywood Reporter, executive producer Charles Floyd Johnson pulled the curtain back on Perrette's NCIS exit, citing that she began to clash with longtime co-star Mark Harmon.
Harmon (who played NCIS team commander Leroy Jethro Gibbs) reportedly started to bring his dog onto the set, eventually leading to another co-worker's injury.
According to Johnson, "Pauley was a huge, huge SPCA [Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals] animal person," and this incident made her feel "it wasn’t safe for the show."
This caused the Abby actress to rethink whether she wanted to continue on the series, deciding "it was time to move on:"
"In Pauley Perrette’s case, there was an incident with the show with a dog. The dog was Harmon’s, and apparently the dog bit someone. Pauley was a huge, huge SPCA [Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals] animal person. And then the dog kept coming with Harmon, and she felt it wasn’t safe for the show. By the end of that year, she just felt like it wasn’t working for her anymore, and it was time to move on."
NCIS is streaming on Paramount+. The series also just released its annual Christmas episode, focusing on the team looking into a case of potential military leaks from a hot new book.
