NCIS Kills Beloved Character After 18 Years — And Fans Aren't Happy

Popular police drama NCIS aired its landmark 500th episode on Wednesday night, and fans were in for a shock when series veteran Director Leon Vance was killed in an unexpected twist.

Vance—played by Rocky Caroll—has been a permanent member of the NCIS cast for eighteen years. He joined the cast in 2008 and quickly became a fan-favorite character, but the show's writers have now confirmed that he's gone for good.

It is never easy to say goodbye to any of our characters,” executive producer Steven D. Binder expressed in an interview with TV Insider. “But we wanted to honor Rocky and his legacy on the show as best as we could — in this case, giving his life so his agency could live.”

Vance was killed in the final moments of the milestone episode when a bomb threat that threatened to wipe out key evidence turned out to be a hoax—and the real threat was standing right beside him. Just when it looks like the day has been saved, a corrupt CID agent working for an underground smuggling ring turns and shoots Vance, leaving him dead.

"In the process of saving the agency, [Vance] loses his life [...] It's a great story," Caroll said when asked how he felt about his character's death. “It was basically presented to me that the studio and the network wanted to do something really spectacular, really big, and something that would really send shockwaves through the NCIS fan base and the community.”

However, NCIS fans have been less eager to accept Vance's death. The episode understandably took everybody by surprise; fans weren't expecting to say goodbye to any of their favorites last night, not least one that's been around for almost two decades.

"Killing off Leon Vance is another reason why I stopped watching NCIS. They've killed off SO MANY CHARACTERS! And it's so unnecessary," one X user wrote.

Thankfully, not everybody was so upset with the decision. Character deaths are hard, but most viewers agreed that Vance's departure was handled with respect and care.

"The worst part about what NCIS did is that it makes sense, I understand it, I see how it moves the show forward. but I still hate it," another X user wrote.

"It really was so well done and honored Vance as a character too. I’m glad he was given a proper send off. I will miss him so much though," said another.