NCIS used to generate the highest ratings in all of television at the peak of its popularity. But Weatherly felt being the country’s number one show could come with some significant drawbacks. Michael Weatherly quipped that ‘NCIS’ was better off being the number 3 show on television NCIS met and perhaps even surpassed expectations when it became the number one show on television.
The show’s former star Mark Harmon once confided that the series took a while to find its footing. At first, NCIS was just getting by. “We were able to keep it afloat a couple of years because we weren’t good enough to get all the attention and we weren’t bad enough to get canceled,” Harmon once told Seattle Times .
“And the biggest thing: We shoot in Santa Clarita. Nobody from the network wanted to drive out there!” The show’s first couple of seasons were met with lukewarm reception and ratings. It wasn’t until its third season that NCIS started to find both itself and its audience.
Soon, the show climbed the ranks to being the most watched program in the country. But in a resurfaced interview with TV Fanatic , Weatherly somewhat longed for the days where NCIS wasn’t as successful . “I just don’t want anything to change,” Weatherly said.
“No. 3 is kind of better. They’re still not gonna cancel you if you’re No.
3. But now everyone’s looking. It’s kind of like when they give you the ball in football.
” Michael Weatherly wondered if audiences thought ‘NCIS�.