Key keywords: NCIS, Tony DiNozzo, Ziva David, Tony & Ziva spinoff, Michael Weatherly, NCIS Season 21, Cote de Pablo, NCIS franchise return First debuting as a core cast member on NCIS back in 2003, Michael Weatherly’s Tony DiNozzo quickly became a fan favorite for his playful banter, unexpected emotional depth, and slow-burn romantic tension with Cote de Pablo’s Ziva David, the Mossad agent turned NCIS special agent who joined the team in season 3. When Weatherly exited the main NCIS series at the end of season 13 in 2016, his character’s arc was tied directly to Ziva: Tony learned that Ziva was presumed dead in a mortar attack on her family’s farmhouse in Israel, and soon discovered that he and Ziva shared a young daughter, Tali, who had survived the attack. Grieving and determined to honor Ziva’s legacy, Tony turned in his badge and left Washington D.C. to move to Paris, where he planned to raise Tali and follow up on loose ends related to Ziva’s apparent death. Fans later learned that Ziva had faked her death to hide from a dangerous international terrorist group that had targeted her and her family, a twist that was revealed when she made a surprise return to the main NCIS series across multiple episodes in seasons 16 and 17. During that arc, Ziva worked with her old team to take down the terrorist cell that had been hunting her, confirming that she had spent years checking in on Tony and Tali from afar to keep them safe. Once the threat was eliminated, Ziva traveled to Paris to reunite with Tony and their daughter, giving long-time Tiva (the portmanteau for Tony and Ziva) shippers the happy ending they had spent years campaigning for. Ahead of Tony’s highly anticipated return to the main NCIS series in the season 21 finale, CBS has confirmed that his guest appearance will directly set up the upcoming *Tony & Ziva* spinoff series, which will see the couple pulled out of their quiet, semi-retired life in Paris when a ghost from their past casework threatens the safety of their family. The upcoming episode will fill in gaps about what Tony, Ziva and Tali have been up to in the years since their Paris reunion, including details about Tony’s post-NCIS career and Tali’s teenage years, and will feature nods to his long history with the remaining core NCIS team members, including Tim McGee and Dr. Jimmy Palmer. Network teasers have promised that the spinoff will retain the classic NCIS mix of crime procedural drama and warm character dynamics, with plenty of the iconic Tony and Ziva banter that made the pair a global fan favorite.