‘NCIS’ creators wanted this star on the show — and the actor went on to star in the series for 20 seasons. Here’s who it was.
Fans of NCIS are eager to learn more about season 21, but we’ll be missing one of the show’s most important characters. David McCallum outlasted Mark Harmon as Leroy Jethro Gibbs by playing medical examiner Dr. Donald “Ducky” Mallard for 20 seasons. There were significant disagreements regarding McCallum joining the crew before he was cast in the series. Here is what a series director had to say regarding the threat to axe NCIS because to McCallum.
‘NCIS’ creators were ready to cancel the show if Ducky actor David McCallum wasn’t cast
Fans of NCIS cannot picture the show without Ducky Mallard, played by David McCallum. Although it seems as though no one else could play the doctor-turned-historian, there was a lot of controversy about McCallum’s casting at the beginning of the series.
James Whitmore Jr., a former NCIS director, described the drama to The Hollywood Reporter. “When they cast David McCallum as Ducky, the studio said, ‘No way, we’re not casting this old character actor in the role,'” he claimed. Don Bellisario, a producer and screenwriter, responded by threatening to discontinue NCIS. “And Don proclaimed, ‘If you don’t, we’re not doing the show.'” He took it that seriously. The studio adopted it, and David McCallum is unquestionably brilliant.
Peter Golden, the former head of CBS casting, said he believed there was disagreement over McCallum’s casting because of where McCallum was from. “I think it was because David McCallum was British,” he told the publication. “The feeling was, ‘Can you do that?’ This was such an American show.”
Along with Pauley Perrette and Michael Weatherly, Golden added that McCallum’s audition made him the “undeniable” right choice for the role. “Pauley Perrette, David McCallum, Michael Weatherly, they all came in and read, and when they read, it was undeniable,” he said.
The Ducky actor recalls how he was cast
David McCallum, a fan of NCIS, once described how he acquired the role of Ducky. During his interview with The Television Academy Foundation, he recalled getting a call one day asking him to come to casting director and movie producer Bonnie Timmermann’s office to record a tape for a program called NCIS. McCallum received a call telling him to fly to Los Angeles to try out for the part of Ducky after performing an unconventional audition in the office with the camera slanted toward the floor to represent him staring at a dead body.
After a few more auditions, McCallum met Don Bellisario. “Afterwards, Don came out and put his arm around me, because he’s a great deal bigger than I am, and said, ‘David,’ … and I realized I might have the charm,” McCallum recalled. He then got a flat tire in his rented car in LA, and as he was making a quick fix with the tire, he received a phone call. He got the job.
“And I said, well then, I’m gonna go get a car that works,” McCallum joked.
‘NCIS’ Season 21 will have to include a tribute to David McCallum
NCIS hasn’t faced cancellation despite several big names leaving the show. While fans are excited to see what’s in store for season 21, they’ll miss Ducky. David McCallum died in September 2023.
The new season won’t feature Ducky, but we’re sure the showrunners will include a tribute to the character and late actor. The new season will likely air at the beginning of 2024. And we’d love to see some vets from the show’s past seasons return for the occasion.
Steven D. Binder and David North, executive producers of NCIS, said in the aftermath of his passing, “For over 20 years, David McCallum endeared himself to audiences around the world as the smart, eccentric, and often enigmatic, Dr. Donald ‘Ducky’ Mallard. But despite the fact that he may have had admirers, those who collaborated with David adored him much more. He was a scholar and a gentleman, always polite, the epitome of a professional, and never one to turn down a good laugh.