‘NCIS’ season 11, episode 1 preview: Insight into Cote de Pablo’s Ziva as exit nears

As we prepare to say goodbye to Ziva David on “NCIS” starting with tomorrow night’s premiere, there are of course a floodgate of questions. How will the character leave, why will the character leave, and what sort of closure will there be for Tony – Ziva fans? These are just some of the questions that have flooded fans as of late.

What we can tell you for now is this: While much of Ziva will intentionally remain a mystery, you are going to find out much more about the character in the next two weeks. Speaking to TV Guide, executive producer Gary Glasberg promises that there is going to be more insight into her motivations, especially when it comes to what she has done, and what she is planning to do in the future:

“People are going to get some real insight into psychologically what makes Ziva tick, and it’s insight that goes all the way back to her childhood. It’s insight in terms of what happened when she joined NCIS regarding [her brother] Ari … [and] not only what’s caused her to do a lot of the things that she’s done leading up to this point, but looking forward and where her head is.”

While there will be a debate that wages as to whether or not it is enough payoff, we can at least promise you that there will be some sort of payoff between the two characters that answers the “will they or won’t they?” question. After she leaves, Tony will then have a hard time moving forward, though Michael Weatherly tells the website that there are a few things that he will learn about himself thanks to this experience:

“Tony might begin to step into a new, maybe a more authentic, version of himself, a more connected version of himself, because he’s not in a constant holding pattern emotionally. I think the floodgates open.”

Don’t expect a new love interest for Tony anytime soon, and while there is going to be at least a possible new permanent addition to the team in Bishop (read more here), Glasberg for now considers her and all others to be auditions of sort; they are not trying to replace Ziva, but to fill a different role in the team.

We have a sneak peek for the premiere at this link, and of course, we’ll have a full review of all that happens come tomorrow night.

Photo: CBS