‘NCIS’ season 12 spoilers: One more update on filming

When is “NCIS” season 12 going to start filming? This is a frequently-asked question, but also one that has not always had a concise answer. Most of the cast and crew keep the exact date and details under wraps until the day actually arrives.

Earlier this summer, we first reported that filming would begin around the middle of the month, but then some evidence started to mount that it would come earlier. After all, production on some other shows like “Criminal Minds” started up this week.

Well, we’ve now got some further confirmation that “NCIS” will be back to work soon … but it’s not there yet. As cast member Brian Dietzen confirmed on Twitter today, filming starts next week after the cast gets together for their first table read. This means that we still have a little while to wait, but it’s really not too bad. After all, it’s not often that the show leaks a whole lot of big-time scoop early in production anyway. They like to get things going a little bit, and then make some announcements later. This is probably especially true this year, given that the show is not going to feel any pressure to really build off of some sort of cliffhanger.

As for Dietzen’s Jimmy Palmer, we’re hoping for some happy times for him this year after having some family struggles in season 11. He did finally receive some good news in “The Admiral’s Daughter,” and hopefully the story will build on that and he will get some substantial screen time. We expect more character-based stories throughout season 12 after the show had to adjust so much on the fly last year.

Just as you would expect, we’re going to be here throughout “NCIS” production with more news and updates on everything that lies ahead. Also, sign up to get some other TV updates via our newsletter.

Photo: CBS