X

Join or Sign In

Sign in to customize your TV listings

Continue with Facebook Continue with email

By joining TV Guide, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy.

Keck's Exclusives: NCIS Casts Star Wars Veteran

NCIS is getting a new Leroy Jethro — who'll look a lot like Lando Calrissian! Don't worry, TV's top series isn't replacing uber popular lead Mark Harmon in his role. Rather, Star Wars veteran Billy Dee Williams will appear as another Leroy Jethro — who Leroy Jethro Gibbs was named for. In an October episode, Williams will play LJ, a World War II veteran and close friend of the Gibbs clan.

William Keck
William Keck

NCIS is getting a new Leroy Jethro — who'll look a lot like Lando Calrissian! Don't worry, TV's top series isn't replacing uber popular lead Mark Harmon in his role. Rather, Star Wars veteran Billy Dee Williams will appear as another Leroy Jethro — who Leroy Jethro Gibbs was named for. In an October episode, Williams will play LJ, a World War II veteran and close friend of the Gibbs clan.

"This is a very rich, emotional story and we couldn't be happier to have Billy Dee Williams bringing this character to life," executive producer Gary Glasberg tells me exclusively. "Mr. Williams appeared in some of my favorite films from Lady Sings the Blues and Brian's Song to the Star Wars saga [The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi]. Watching him work with Mark Harmon and Ralph Waite [as Gibbs' father, Jack] will be a real treat."

Subscribe to TV Guide Magazine now!