Former 'Ncis' Co-Stars Brian Dietzen and Pauley Perrette Post Mini-Reunion Photo

The procedural drama NCIS has run for over two decades, breaking viewership records along the way. NCIS was the highest-rated broadcast TV series for five consecutive years, from 2019 to 2024, according to The Television Academy. Since the show's premiere in 2003, the hit series has spawned seven spin-offs, like NCIS: Los Angeles, NCIS: New Orleans, and NCIS: Origins.

One character that NCIS fans hold close to their hearts is Abby Sciuto, the quirky forensic scientist who often wore jet-black pigtails and carried a large caffeinated drink as she helped solve cases. Abby's long-time coworker, medical examiner Jimmy Palmer, stayed on the series after Abby's departure. Actors Pauley Perrette and Brian Dietzen, who play Abby and Jimmy, respectively, had a mini-reunion.

Brian posted a photo to Instagram in June 2026 that showed himself and Pauley Perrette hanging out together. He wrote, "Got to see @ellavos, @tinangelband and @cloverlin07 at @thehotelcafe and hang with @thepauleyp. That’s two shows we saw together in a week! Music is the best. So are good friends."

Pauley was part of NCIS from the start of the series, and Brian joined as a guest star during the first season, according to TV Insider. Brian's character, Jimmy, eventually became a series regular. He worked closely with Pauley's character for years. Abby left the show during Season 15, to fans' dismay. As of 2026, Brian still plays the Chief Medical Examiner in the series.

In addition to acting in NCIS, Brian began writing for the show in Season 19. He told TV Insider that Abby is one of the characters he wishes he got to write for, in addition to Tony, Gibbs, and Ziva.

"To have Abby’s energy in there but also her heart that is as big as the sky ... Being able to work with any of them again, I would welcome it. It would be wonderful," Brian shared.

Pauley said that she left NCIS because of "multiple physical assaults" while on set. CBS released a statement to People at the time explaining that Pauley had come to them a year earlier about a workplace concern. They said that they worked with her to find a solution.

In 2019, Pauley called her alleged attacker out by name in a tweet, saying that she would never come back to NCIS for fear of Mark Harmon attacking her. " I am terrified of Harmon and him attacking me. I have nightmares about it," she wrote.

Pauley later said that she has retired from acting altogether. She told Hello Magazine, "I'm not ungrateful for the benefits that it [acting] gave to me. But I’m a different person now, and I want to be here for it – the good and the bad and the painful. I want to be me all the time, and it takes a good amount of courage for me to say that to myself, but it’s authentically how I feel."