NCIS: Origins Ended Season 1 With A Shocking Lala Twist. I Had To Know What It Means For Season 2
When NCIS: Origins premiered last October, Mark Harmon’s older Leroy Jethro Gibbs informed viewers that the story he was telling in the prequel was about “her,” i.e. Mariel Molino’s Cecilia “Lala” Dominguez. Considering Lala wasn’t mentioned once during Gibbs’ time on the original NCIS, there must have been a pretty good reason why he didn’t feel comfortable telling this story until now.
Now we finally have context for this thanks to the NCIS: Origins Season 1 finale having just finished airing on the 2025 TV schedule. After watching the episode early, though, I had to know what this devastating twist for Lala means for Origins Season 2, which is officially on the way. Fortunately, showrunners David J. North and Gina Lucita Monreal were able to shed light shortly thereafter on this shocking moment.
In the final minutes of “Cecilia,” Lala Dominguez crashed her car to avoid hitting a little girl who ran out onto the street to chase after her dog. It was unclear if Lala was still alive in the overturned car or if the crash had killer her, and North and Monreal were unwilling to clear things up with me when I interviewed them. What they did tell me was why they decided to go in this direction rather than have Lala get hurt while out in the field, with Monreal saying:
