The NCIS: Origins season 2 finale is shaping up to be one of the most emotionally charged episodes the prequel series has delivered — and a newly released trailer suggests fans may be bracing for yet another farewell to a familiar face on the team.
The NCIS: Origins season 2 finale trailer reveals that Mary Jo may be transferred to Barrett’s office — and the rest of the team, including Gibbs, is actively scrambling to stop it, setting up one of the most emotionally consequential exits in the prequel series to date.
According to a trailer shared via TV Insider, the character of Mary Jo appears to be at the center of a major storyline heading into the finale. The preview opens with Woody, played by Bobby Moynihan, rushing Gibbs (Austin Stowell) and Randy (Caleb Foote) into the lab — and what follows is a line of dialogue that immediately raises alarms for anyone invested in this team’s future.
Phil, played by Ely Henry, asks directly: “Is Mary Jo transferring to Barrett’s office?” Gibbs responds: “We’re trying to stop it.” Those six words may be the most tension-packed moment in the entire trailer — and they signal that the season 2 finale could leave the team significantly changed.
What the Season 2 Finale Trailer Actually Reveals
The brief but loaded exchange in the trailer confirms at least two things: Mary Jo’s potential departure is being treated as a real threat within the show’s narrative, and the rest of the team — Gibbs included — is actively working against it happening.
The mention of “Barrett’s office” introduces what appears to be an outside force pulling Mary Jo away from the unit. Whether that transfer is voluntary on Mary Jo’s part or something being pushed on her from above remains unclear from the trailer alone. Either way, it’s framed as something urgent enough that Woody physically rushes the team together to address it.
“Is Mary Jo transferring to Barrett’s office?” — “We’re trying to stop it.”
That kind of framing — characters scrambling to prevent a colleague from leaving — is a classic television device for signaling genuine stakes. It tells the audience this isn’t a quiet background development. It’s a plot point the finale is built around.
NCIS: Origins Season 2 — What We Know About the Casting Changes
Mary Jo’s possible exit would represent another casting change for NCIS: Origins in its second season. The show, which serves as a prequel exploring the early days of Leroy Jethro Gibbs and the founding of the NCIS team, has already navigated roster shifts as the season has progressed.
For a prequel series, character departures carry a particular weight. Viewers already know — at least in broad strokes — how the larger NCIS story unfolds, which means any character who doesn’t appear in the original series exists in a kind of narrative tension. Their time on screen is always potentially limited.
Here’s a quick look at the key characters confirmed in the season 2 finale trailer based on NCIS: Origins has spent two seasons building the chemistry between these characters — the humor Woody brings, the grounding presence of Gibbs, and the various relationships that make the unit feel like a real workplace with real stakes.
Losing Mary Jo, if that’s where this is headed, wouldn’t just be a casting change. It would alter the emotional texture of the show. And doing it in a season finale means the writers are clearly treating it as a moment that deserves full dramatic weight rather than a quiet off-screen explanation.
There’s also the question of what “Barrett’s office” represents within the show’s world. The transfer isn’t framed as Mary Jo leaving law enforcement — it’s framed as moving to a different part of it. That distinction matters. It leaves the door open for future appearances while still removing her from the core team dynamic fans have come to rely on.
⚠ Spoiler Watch
For viewers who want to go into the finale completely fresh: the season 2 finale trailer has been shared publicly via TV Insider and contains plot-significant dialogue about a main character’s potential departure. If you’re avoiding spoilers, hold off on watching until after the episode airs.
What Fans Should Watch For Going Into the Finale
The trailer makes clear that the team won’t go down without a fight. Gibbs saying “We’re trying to stop it” suggests the finale will spend meaningful time on this storyline — likely putting relationships and loyalties to the test in the process.
For viewers, there are a few threads worth tracking as the episode unfolds:
- Whether Mary Jo herself wants the transfer or is being pushed into it
- What role Barrett’s office plays in the larger season 2 story
- How the rest of the team responds if their efforts to stop the transfer fail
- Whether this exit, if it happens, is written as permanent or leaves room for the character to return
Prequel series often use character exits as a way to quietly explain why certain people don’t appear in later timelines. Whether that’s the storytelling logic at work here is something only the finale will answer.
What Happens After the Finale
As of now, no official confirmation has been made about Mary Jo’s fate beyond what the trailer suggests. The season 2 finale trailer has been shared publicly via TV Insider, but the show has not released additional details about the outcome of this storyline or what it means for a potential season 3.
What is clear is that NCIS: Origins is heading into its finale with real dramatic momentum — and the Mary Jo situation is positioned as one of its central emotional payoffs. Whether the team succeeds in keeping her, or whether they’re forced to say goodbye, the finale looks set to leave a mark on the series either way.
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