[Spoiler alert for the finale of NCIS season 22…you've been warned!]
NCIS season 22 ended with an explosive finale that resulted in at least one emotional death for one of the special agents.
The long-running CBS police procedural's latest season finale, "Nexus," aired on May 5 and ended with the shocking death of Roman Parker (played by Francis X. McCarthy), the father of NCIS Supervisory Special Agent Alden Parker, played by Gary Cole.
© Getty ImagesWhile the finale was being teased as something "earth shattering" and "heartbreaking" by fellow cast member Wilmer Valderrama in several previous interviews, viewers were left divided on whether that death actually provided as much gravitas as it was intended to.
A death in the family
However, NCIS showrunner Steven D. Binder told TVLine that it indeed was that kind of loss, at least for Alden. "Well, clearly, Wilmer has become more attached to Parker's father than you have," he pointed out. "I think that he, to be more precise, meant it would be 'earth shattering' for one of our team members."
Alden's longtime nemesis Carla Marino (played by Rebecca De Mornay) was responsible for his murder, which Steven elaborated on, adding: "I think that's where [Wilmer] was going with that, and that is what this is for Parker. His father's been murdered by his long-time nemesis– possibly something more, the way [he and Carla] keep looking at each other…"
© CBSWhile he shut down the fan theory that Carla was in fact a grown up version of Lily, a vision Alden has been having all season long involving a little girl, the showrunner did add that Rebecca's character will be poised to make further returns in season 23.
Season 23's start
However, one thing he did clarify was that there will be no standard time jump in the season 23 opener. "I don't think we're going to time jump," he explained. "We're going to keep the heat going. That's something we're deciding right now, but we want to keep the momentum going."
© Getty ImagesGary spoke to Parade as well about the storyline and its gruesome culmination, deeming it surprisingly satisfying. "I thought certainly it was jarring. But I thought it was certainly a dynamic ending."
"As an actor, I really like working with Francis," the actor, 68, continued. "Now that's not to say, especially in the world of television, that we won't work again, because there's always these things called flashbacks."
© CBS via Getty ImagesHe also reasons that Alden's guilt over his father's death is further amplified by the realization that he potentially had a hand in Carla's own son's death. “In his mind, that’s part of the cruelty of the act, aside from the fact that it's just murder."
"It's murder with an intention towards him," Gary continued. "There's no other way you can think of it other than the fact that he's responsible, or at least mostly responsible. If it wasn't for him, his father never would have been in that circumstance in the first place. So that's added ammunition for his desire for revenge on some level."
