'NCIS's' Michael Weatherly Talks Contracts, Season Finales and More

Michael Weatherly is one of the most popular actors on CBS, playing agent Anthony DiNozzo on the hit series 'NCIS' ... and happy to be doing so. However, as of this writing, Weatherly is not signed for next season, a fact that has many fans worried about Mark Harmon's wise-cracking, movie-reference spouting sidekick. Despite the limbo, Michael Weatherly talks like a man who's returning to the fold, and as you'll see, he's sharing some crucial information about the season finale on May 25.

What's the current status of your contract?
I am still optimistic. I assume that there are people working very hard at making sure I'm back next season.

The fans don't want the team broken up ...
I think the thing that makes 'NCIS' so special is the team and the group. And there's our fearless leader, Mark Harmon. We all really enjoy working together, so it would be a shame if we weren't all there having fun together. But I'm not in charge of everything. I'm just eager and excited to show up and do the work. This has been the fastest seven years of my life.

Your character, Anthony DiNozzo, is very idiosyncratic. How much of that is the writers and how much of that is you?
When we first started, [creator] Don Bellisario made sure that I brought myself to the character. We talked about 'Magnum, P.I.' and how Don really encouraged Tom Selleck to make use of his sense of humor, his playfulness, as opposed to a strict rendering of a hotshot private eye living in Hawaii. Bellisaro allowed me the same freedom and encouraged me the same way.

Are all the topical references to pop culture you or Tony?
It's me, because I do have a movie fetish. I'm in the process of trying to organize my DVDs into some kind of order and it's taking me weeks. I have everything from obscure Antonioni to 'Terminator Salvation.'

There are a lot of pop culture references on 'NCIS' ...
When we were first doing the pilot, we went to the naval base near San Diego and I was able to hang out with a few NCIS agents, and what I found really interesting and useful is that they talk about all of pop culture. They talk about cop shows and movies, where this happened or that you could never to this or that ...

What was it like working with Robert Wagner when they brought him on 'NCIS' as your father?
That was a dream. He is such a gentleman and such a professional. What really surprised me when I was working with him was the give and take and how closely he listens and how much he plays during the rehearsal period. He really dug in once we were doing the scenes. He's a stellar guy, and I thought his performance in that episode was really something. I hadn't really seen it from him before in that way. When he gave Gibbs a hard time in the conference room, he leaned forward and said, "I ought to tell you to piss off." I was like, "Wow, that's a tough Robert Wagner!"

And they've left the door open for him to return ...
I really hope he comes back. I had lunch with him on Saturday and he said to me, "Hey, get this contract thing straightened up, I want to come back."

What really happened with Tony and Ziva in Paris?
I'm of the mind that it's more about what almost happened that's more interesting than what happened. It might just be that there was a moment where something nearly happened and it made them both uncomfortable. Maybe they both slept on the couch at different times.

Tony also had a 'bromance' with Phil, who was like Tony's alter ego, wasn't he?
That was interesting and, of course, if you really look at it, Tony becoming best friends with someone just like him is the ultimate act of narcissism.

What was that friendship really about?
Tony had hurt feelings. He felt like McGee was drifting away from him as a friend. Phil was Tony's effort to straighten it out, and by the end of the episode, Tony and McGee were back to their bickering.

How do you describe Tony's relationship with Gibbs?
I think Gibbs is a father figure for DiNozzo. Tony becomes more aware with regards to Gibbs of what their destiny is, how they're sort of inextricably intertwined. They're two sides of the same coin.

How's your relationship with Mark Harmon?
Tony and I both very much look up to Jethro Gibbs and Mark Harmon, in the same way, as a mentor, as a great example of how to be professionally and personally. Mark's been very helpful to me over the years in getting my act together. It's been a real privilege and honor to work with him. I think Tony would say the same thing about Gibbs.

What do you remember about starting out on the ABC soap 'Loving'?
It's funny you mention that, because I did 'Regis and Kelly' yesterday and seeing Ripa again brought me right back there, because she was on 'All My Children' when I was doing 'Loving.' We were young actors in New York and it was a great time. We had a lot of energy. Soaps taught me the fundamentals of the game. You know, how to show up, hit your mark, how to be on time. That soap opera world is a microcosm of the entertainment culture.

What did you learn from that experience?
You have to keep things in perspective and not take yourself too seriously. Those three years on 'Loving' were instrumental in helping me move through the next few years of work, where it was hit or miss. I was on series that would get canceled, then I would be a movie that wouldn't come out or do as well as I hoped. You learn that you have to just keep plugging away and never take anything for granted.

What's it like when you get to do scenes with David McCallum?
David is a guy who works his scenes down to the finest detail, like a paleontologist with a fine brush digging up some fossil. He examines everything he's saying and doing, the props that he's using, which light is going to be on the x-ray screen, which table, which body will be on it, he's very, very detail oriented. He's fastidious and it's just incredible to do a scene with him. They're the fastest scenes we shoot because David just knows what he's doing all the way around and he's got it figured out.

What can you tell us about the season finale ... I hear it's going to be dramatic.
I was watching Mark Harmon in a couple of scenes because it's a Gibbs-centric finale, and I think that what Mark does in these episodes is something outside of the normal Gibbs comfort zone. I think the fans are going to be really curious and interested in the way he portrays these challenging moments. There's almost a feeling of dread that starts to happen in the last three episodes. You know, like a large dark cloud on the horizon. I can't give away anymore specifics because of the nature of it, but it is a usual twist, and tragic. It will be very surprising.