‘Ncis’ Star Cote De Pablo Opens up About Her Relationship with Mark Harmon – This Is Why She Left the Iconic Show

Cote de Pablo sent NCIS fans into a state of shock when she returned to the show at the end of season 16. However, the Chile-born actress started her career as a television host.

De Pablo has had a long and successful career, and starring as Ziva David on NCIS became her big breakthrough. She stayed on the show for 12 years before moving on to new adventures.

Today, Cote de Pablo is still working as an actress, but the mystery surrounding her disappearance from NCIS is still alive to this day. One clear thing was that she and Mark Harmon had a unique relationship. This is all you need to know about Cote de Pablo – and why she left the iconic show.

Cote De Pablo was born María José de Pablo Fernández on November 12, 1979, in Santiago, Chile. When she was only ten years old, her family decided to leave South America and settle down in Miami, Florida.

Cote de Pablo – early life & move to the US

For de Pablo, the move from Chile was, of course, a significant change. Especially since she moved to a country where they spoke a new language, where the children in her new school couldn’t pronounce her name. Therefore, she changed it to “Cote,” which according to de Pablo is a common nickname in Chile.

Speaking with Prevention in 2012, de Pablo explained that moving to Miami was very tough for her. She missed her country and friends a lot. It became a time in her life that was “defining.”

“But I was raised here. And I found my niche because I went to a performing arts high school. I had always been interested in the arts, but performing became even more important because it was a way to communicate with people in my new country,” she said. “It wasn’t till I got to the United States that I learned to speak English.”

“Those were defining years for me. I always describe myself as sort of a hippie. Deep inside, I’m not a glamorous person,” de Pablo added. “I come from a traditional, conservative world. But this kind of hippie world at school allowed me to explore the creativity and imagination that live inside all of us.”

Cote de Pablo might have been destined to become a television personality from the beginning. When her family moved to Miami, her mother got a job at Telemundo, a Spanish-speaking television channel.

As mentioned, she became very interested in arts herself, and de Pablo began studying at Carnegie Mellon University.

First work in television

She wanted education in music and theatre, and while at Carnegie Mellon, she appeared in several plays. It included roles in productions such as The House of Bernarda Alba, And The World Goes’ Round, and A Little Night Music.

In 2000, she graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in acting and musical theater.

Cote de Pablo went straight into show business and followed in her mother’s tracks. She became the host of the Latin-themed television talk show Control, and further appeared in some smaller theatre productions in the New York City Public Theater.

De Pablo moved on to television not long after, and after some smaller parts All My Children and Fling – as well as in commercials – she got her massive break. In 2005, Cote de Pablo was cast in the crime drama series NCIS, appearing as Officer Ziva David.

Starring as the butt-kicking female agent, de Pablo became a very popular character straight away.

Knowing your character’s feelings is essential – and for de Pablo, that wasn’t a problem at all. For her, the character of Ziva David shares many of her traits and history as well.

“My character’s strength is like mine, to a completely different degree. Losing family members because of a war,” Cote de Pablo explained. “I have moments when I just have to hold my heart. But I also have to remember that if I played the character from my point of view, she’d be falling apart all the time. She has to keep it together–it’s the world she grew up in.”