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David McCallum, beloved on “NCIS” for his role as eccentric chief medical examiner Dr. Donald “Ducky” Mallard since 2003, finally received his emotional farewell on Monday’s episode.
The Scottish star of the 1960s NBC series “The Man from UNCLE,” who became famous again on the long-running CBS procedural, died Sept. 25 at age 90.
The tribute to the last member of the original “NCIS” cast, hit by production delays caused by the Hollywood strikes, was fittingly co-written by Brian Dietzen, who played Ducky’s protégé, Dr. Jimmy Palmer, during Two decades.
“We wanted to honor a life well lived, 60 years in this business and 20 years on our show,” Dietzen tells USA TODAY. “This allows fans to grieve with us. We have all experienced this loss.”
Dietzen spoke at McCallum’s funeral in January in New York City and has been in frequent contact with his wife of 56 years, Katherine Carpenter.
“Both his TV family and his real family are feeling pain and grief right now,” Dietzen says. “The small consolation we can all have is that David was 90 years old and lived many lives to the fullest during those 90 years. He made the most of every last breath.”
Here’s what you need to know about the “NCIS” episode titled “The Stories We Left Behind” (now streaming on Paramount+).
Ducky needed to solve one more ‘NCIS’ case
Although Ducky dies in the episode, having one more success on NCIS was crucial for the dedicated medical examiner.
“The best way to honor Ducky was to ask him to solve one last case with the team,” Dietzen says. “Even posthumously, he’s the one who solves the case.”
Using detailed notes that Ducky had kept hidden, the NCIS team exonerates a veteran who was mistakenly given a dishonorable discharge.
“It ties into the themes of loss and what we leave behind when we pass away,” Dietzen says. “The stories we leave our loved ones are very important.”
Jimmy finds his beloved mentor Ducky.
Last week’s Season 21 premiere set the stage for the episode when NCIS Special Agent Alden Parker (Gary Cole) received a frantic call from Jimmy in the final moments.
The mystery of the phone call ends when the tribute begins, a little earlier in time, when Jimmy cheerfully enters his mentor’s house with two cups of coffee. His smile turns to horror when he finds Ducky in his bed, after dying peacefully while he slept.
Because? “We wanted to let our audience know the pain of losing (Ducky),” Dietzen says. “Recognizing and honoring that grief is important in the process to be able to move forward.”
Filming the scene with a blacked-out extra playing Ducky, seen with a “DM” monogram on the sleeve of his pajamas, was “a difficult scene to film, that’s for sure,” says Dietzen, 46.
“DM stands for Ducky Mallard and it also stands for David McCallum, so there are parallels,” he says. “There are shots of that scene where I was a mess.”
Michael Weatherly’s Anthony DiNozzo reappears to say goodbye to Ducky in ‘NCIS’
The biggest surprise in the tribute episode is the reappearance of Michael Weatherly as Special Agent Tony DiNozzo. Weatherly left “NCIS” in 2016 after 13 seasons to star in the CBS drama “Bull,” but DiNozzo comes in to offer support and a Ducky-inspired bow tie to Jimmy just before Ducky’s funeral.
“We all realized that DiNozzo is the perfect character for this last scene,” says Dietzen. “So writing a Tony DiNozzo scene was a real pleasure.”
Weatherly has imitated Glasgow-born McCallum’s accent and way of speaking before. In this episode, DiNozzo plays Ducky.
“David is an icon. So even when we’re just talking as friends, (Weatherly) will do his best David McCallum impression,” says Dietzen, who was impressed that Weatherly’s impression was performed while tying Jimmy’s tie. “Michael said, ‘I went to boarding school, I’ll be fine. I can make a bow tie.’ But we definitely practiced a couple of times and it turned out really well.”
Weatherly’s appearance is unique to Ducky’s flashback-filled episode of “NCIS.” “(Michael) was eager to help with what was essentially an in-person flashback,” Dietzen says. “It was a nod to previous iterations of this ‘NCIS’ team as Michael was also a member of the original cast. But there are no plans for a return.”
Jimmy turns off the lights in the final moments
Weatherly’s appearance also brightens the mood in the final moments. As the group enters the elevator for Ducky’s funeral, Jimmy returns to the autopsy room to turn off the lights, a slight smile on his face.
“With the deaths of Ducky and David, it’s important that in the end we show that the stories we left behind aren’t everything,” Dietzen says. “The people he left behind will carry on. That’s his legacy. It’s what Ducky has meant to them that will propel them forward and make the next chapters.”
