‘NCIS’ season 13 spoilers: Michael Weatherly officially leaving

The confirmation is in on Michael Weatherly’s “NCIS” future, and it’s not good news.

In a statement to TVLine, CBS confirmed that the actor behind Anthony DiNozzo is leaving the show at the end of the season after being a part of it from the first season, touting many of his various achievements along the way:

“After 13 years on NCIS, Michael Weatherly is leaving the show at the end of this season … He is a valued part of the CBS family, and the immense charm and talent he brings to the screen as ‘Very’ Special Agent Tony DiNozzo has helped make NCIS what it is today – the No. 1 drama in the world. 

“We thank Michael for all of his contributions to this successful franchise, and look forward to continuing to develop projects with him as part of our ongoing development deal.”

Michael also confirmed the news in a series of posts on Twitter, which you can see below. Fans initially caught wind on the news thanks to an interview David McCallum did recently with Vulture Hound, where he suggested that his co-star’s departure was common knowledge.

Weatherly’s exit means that the cast of familiar faces is getting smaller, and it does add more credence to why the show is reportedly bringing in some more cast members for the upcoming 14th season. Our personal hope was that this was going to be for a DiNozzo-led team, but that is clearly not going to be the case.

We’re going to be answering more questions and talking about this more over the course of the weeks / months ahead, but we are sad to see Michael go. Yet, at the same time we’re happy for 13 years, and hope that he gets the chance to do something else great soon.

For now, share your comments on his exit with a comment.