Caitlin Todd's Shock NCIS Season 2 Death Explained
Actress Sasha Alexander left NCIS in season 2 after her character Caitlin Todd was killed in a shocking twist. Here's the story behind why she quit.
Though NCIS has had plenty of shocking moments throughout its 19 seasons and counting, NCIS Special Agent Caitlin Todd's death in season 2 still stands out as one of the biggest. Coming as a big surprise to both audiences and fellow cast members, Todd's sudden death and actress Sasha Alexander's subsequent exit were not originally planned. Here's the explanation behind why NCIS ended up killing off one of its stars early on.
Caitlin "Kate" Todd makes her debut in NCIS as a Secret Service Agent, but by the end of the pilot episode resigns her position because of an illicit romantic relationship with a coworker. She's immediately hired by Mark Harmon's NCIS Special Agent Gibbs and goes on to become a key member of the team. Todd's particular skills include psychological profiling and sketching, and she is also noteworthy for being a strong personality contrast with her partner, Agent Tony DiNozzo, played by Michael Weatherly. Todd and DiNozzo's love-hate relationship plays a big part in NCIS's first two seasons, with episodes showcasing how much they care about each other nearly as often as how much they get on each other's nerves. In fact, it was even intended that DiNozzo and Todd would have a relationship later on in the show, but Caitlin Todd's death put an end to that plan.
NCIS's Caitlin Todd's death happens in the season 2 episode "Twilight," when she is shot in the head by double-crossing Mossad Agent Ari Haswari, who happens to be the half-brother of Todd's later replacement, NCIS Special Agent Ziva David. It's a particularly shocking moment, as it comes right after Todd takes a bullet in the chest for Gibbs, but is saved by her bulletproof vest. As Gibbs and DiNozzo help her up, everything seems to be fine until Ari's sniper bullet finds its mark. While this ending for Todd wasn't originally planned, Sasha Alexander's NCIS exit was ultimately spurred by the show's grueling filming schedule.
WhySasha Alexander Left NCIS
While Todd's NCIS death was quite a sudden shock, Alexander's departure actually was, too. As other members of the show's cast have shared, filming NCIS is a much more demanding task than it might appear to audiences. Shooting 24 episodes per year can mean months of work on end without a break, with workdays that can be 17 hours long, or even 21, as may have been the case with NCIS' very first episodes. In fact, even Mark Harmon almost quit NCIS in season 4 because the shooting schedule had gotten so brutal.
This was also the case in Sasha Alexander's exit. As season 2 was wrapping up, she asked NCIS creator and then-showrunner Don Bellisario to write her out of the show so she could catch a break. He obliged, agreeing that Alexander couldn't handle NCIS's workload, though this pivot was so sudden that even Michael Weatherly didn't know Caitlin Todd's death was coming until he saw a blood pack being attached to Alexander's head on the day they shot the scene. Since Sasha Alexander's NCIS exit, she's been replaced with Cote de Pablo's Ziva David, Emily Wickersham's Eleanor Bishop, and most recently Katrina Law's Jessica Knight. Even when beloved characters are killed off of CBS's hit crime drama, the show continues to move forward with fresh faces, although NCIS's future without Mark Hamon's Gibbs may be a bigger question mark than most.
The Most Shocking NCIS Deaths
Over the course of 19 seasons, NCIS has featured plenty of gut-wrenching character deaths besides Kate Todd's. One of the foremost among these is Qasim Nassir's death in NCIS season 14 episode 11. Ripped through the chest suddenly with machine-gun fire while at the library, Qasim's death is not only surprising but tragic as well, as he had only recently struck up a sweet romance with Bishop. The sadness of his death also lingered for a while, as the couple's relationship continues to be elaborated via flashbacks even after Qasim's life support cord is unplugged.
Other notably shocking deaths in NCIS's nearly 20 seasons include Special Agent Ned Doreneget in NCIS season 12 episode 23. A sweet and lovable member of the Cyber Operations Division, Dorneget goes down protecting civilians from an explosion, and his death is particularly difficult because it's hinted at first that he might still survive his injuries. Lastly, IRS Special Agent Diane Sterling (Gibb's ex-wife) being fatally shot in NCIS season 12 episode 11 was another one of the show's most surprising deaths.
