Tony DiNozzo Is Officially The New NCIS Director In Season 24

CBS Published Oct 7, 2026, 11:38 AM EDT Jeff Dodge (he/him), a published author and graduate of Western Washington University, has been a TV news editor for many years and has had the chance to interview multiple reality show stars, including Randy Jackson, Nick Cannon, Heidi Klum, Mel B and John Cena. Fun Fact: he’s been to every single Idol Live! Tour. Sign in to your ScreenRant account This article covers a developing story. Continue to check back with us as we will be adding more information as it becomes available.The NCIS season 24 premiere featured a major twist involving Tony DiNozzo, and now CBS is teasing what comes next in a promo for the next episode. NCIS came back for its 24th season this week, with Michael Weatherly reprising his role as Tony DiNozzo. The actor was an original cast member on the CBS procedural but left after 13 seasons. He went on to star on the legal drama Bull, which aired for six seasons. Weatherly then made a guest appearance in NCIS in 2024 before starring on the one-season spinoff NCIS: Tony & Ziva. It was announced over the summer that Weatherly would be returning to the original NCIS series for the 2026-2027 TV season, and the season 24 premiere, which aired on October 6, saw Tony become the director of the agency. Initially, Gabriel LaRoche replaced Leon Vance in that role following the latter's death, but it turns out LaRoche only landed the position because Tony rejected an offer to take over. After a rocky start to LaRoche's tenure, Secretary of the Navy Helen Marsh confronted Tony about the situation and told him, in no uncertain terms, that he will be the new NCIS director, a role he can no longer turn down. Now CBS has shared a promo for NCIS season 24, episode 2, "Clean Slate." In the teaser, Tony tells the team that their job "is to solve cases," while his job is to ensure no obstacles get in their way. Special Agent Jessica Knight throws away Tony's coffee, which the new director objects to. But according to his co-worker, "That was your third of the day, and you're capped at one." That causes Alden Parker to quip, "This could be fun, actually." Check out the promo video below: More to come...