“NCIS: LA” viewers were alarmed this week when the Season 14 premiere of the CBS procedural did not include Linda Hunt’s Hetty, the character whose last known location was Syria. In the episode, the team received word that a body had been a body found in Syria. By the end, they learn that it was a child’s body but they had Hetty’s IDs attached to them — likely because she wanted to stage her own death.
While it hasn’t been determined what exactly she’s up to, there are plans for her to return to the show this season, confirms executive producer R. Scott Gemmill, especially with Callen (Chris O’Donnell) and Anna’s (Bar Paly) nuptials.
“Hetty has been an integral force within the agency and an especially important part of Callen’s past,” Gemmill told Variety in a statement on Tuesday. “As Callen starts thinking about his upcoming wedding to Anna, he would want Hetty present. The plan is to go and rescue her at some point and find out what she’s gotten herself into in Syria, but we’re just trying to figure out when we can pull it off. The goal is to make it happen this season.”
Hunt last appeared in the Season 13 premiere, titled “Subject 17,” which aired in October 2021. Gemmill confirmed last year that, amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Hunt’s role was made smaller in order to keep the 77-year-old actor safe.
“NCIS: Los Angeles” airs on CBS Sundays at 10 p.m.