NCIS season 17: Maria Bello confirms filming start date

When does NCIS season 17 start filming in Los Angeles? Everyone has been wondering about this, but now we’ve got a firm answer via Maria Bello. Before we dive into that we want to take a moment to give a massive kudos to Maria, who has really been the big ambassador for the show this summer! She’s done the bulk of the interviews we’ve seen, (save for Rocky Carroll over on The Talk) and has really kept us up to date on what’s going on while some of the other cast members have been enjoying a well deserved break.

Speaking in a new interview from Premiere while over at the Monte Carlo TV Festival, Bello both confirmed the start date for production, and also told a story about how she was first convinced to come on board.

“We start shooting July 15 … When my agents first offered me this role, I immediately said no because I didn’t think I [wanted] to do a show that was 24 episodes, that was a procedural. I was always such an adventurer and I like to travel. [But my son] turned to me and was like ‘mom, why wouldn’t you do that show? That’s the greatest show! That’s like the #1 show in the world!’. He pushed me to start investigating it, and so I did, I met with the [then] showrunners Frank [Cardea] and George [Schenck]. I was sold. It was one of the best career decisions I’ve made.”

For some recent NCIS video discussion, check out our video discussion on the future of Ziva below! Be sure to subscribe to CarterMatt on YouTube so you don’t miss out on our up coming NCIS videos and also view our show playlist! We’ll have more scoop there throughout the summer.

Bello also makes it clear in the interview that she would like to revisit a story from her character’s past in season 17 — she doesn’t specify what she is talking about, but odds are, this is a reference to Sloane’s biological daughter, who we first met this spring at the hospital. She also expresses a hope to work with Cote de Pablo, which she had suggested in a previous interview earlier this summer. There’s a good chance that Sloane and Ziva will get a scene or two together — it just makes sense to pair Cote off with every other capable performer, given both her talent and the excitement around bringing new character pairings to the table. We understand that there isn’t a whole lot of time in the premiere, and that may be the only thing that keeps something from happening if we don’t get Cote for more then one episode. So far that’s the only other confirmed appearance in NCIS season 17, but we are hopeful for more.

Now that we know when NCIS is going to start filming, go ahead and mark it on your calendar! We’ll have more news along the way — remember that mention earlier of Rocky Carroll on The Talk? You can watch video of it now over at the link here.

What do you want to see in regards to Sloane’s story on NCIS season 17, and are you psyched to have a production start date? Be sure to share in the comments. (Photo: CBS.)

This article was written by Jessica Carter. Be sure to follow her on Twitter!