Austin Stowell on Recreating the Gibbs and Franks Scene via Pedro Hernandez (Exclusive)

(Warning: The following contains MAJOR spoilers for NCIS: Origins Season 1, Episode 7 “One Flew By.”

NCIS: Origins has featured some firsts and moments that fans have come to expect from Gibbs (Austin Stowell) – like stopping an elevator and even some woodworking, building a birdhouse in this episode – and in the latest episode, it revisits a large part of his past her: what sets him apart on the path to killing the man who murdered his wife and daughter.

To NCISWe briefly saw the moment Franks (Watson’s muse on the mothership) left the file on Pedro Hernandez (Shannon and Kelly’s killers) on his desk for Gibbs (Mark Harmon, now narrating and executive producing the prequel) to use could read. NCIS: Origins expands on this scene in “One Flew Over.” There was “a lot” of discussion about recreating this, Stowell told TV Insider when he stopped by recently. Watch the full video interview above.

“We tried to do exactly what they did so that fans of the show got what they were looking for. I think it’s our duty to pay homage to the show that ran 20 years before us and certainly had a moment as big as this. I mean, this is the information that – this is all for Gibbs. He believes that at this point this will be the key for the rest of his life to untie himself and untie all these knots that lie dormant within him,” he said.

“This episode is full of that where we see the van where Shannon and Kelly were killed. We get to see the folder for the first time. We witness the moment when Mike Franks (Kyle Schmid) meets Gibbs. All these firsts. I mean, that’s what’s so fun about this show, recreating these moments that I hope are really special for the fan base.”

Stowell quickly reminded us that “this is a reminder of Gibbs, that this is all a diary entry, and that there’s a reason witnesses are questioned immediately after a crime, because your brain starts playing tricks on you.” And so the memories may not always be exactly as they were the first time. And you can see that I’m being diplomatic with my words right now, because maybe there are things coming in the future where significant events unfold in a way that maybe isn’t quite the way fans remembered, but maybe just as Gibbs remembers it. ”

Could this include Gibbs killing Pedro? We know this is coming, and at the end of this episode’s flashbacks, Gibbs now has a reason to begin his recovery. Stowell promised that we will see this great moment.

“What I know was a very small moment that almost flashes out of the mothership, fans will finally get to see a fuller version of this incredibly significant event in Gibbs’ life,” he shared.

Watch the full video interview above to hear more from Stowell on Gibbs’ recovery, the origins of Gibbs and Franks’ bond, what sets his younger version apart from Harmons, more on the friendship between Gibbs and young Tobias Fornell (Lucas Dixon) and to find out more. And what aspect of Gibbs is he most excited to explore the origins of?

NCIS: OriginsMondays, 10/9c, CBS