Tom Selleck’s Magnum P.I. Influence on NCIS Character Tony DiNozzo
Tom Selleck’s character in MAGNUM P.I. had a significant influence on NCIS’s Tony DiNozzo. In a recent episode of Michael Weatherly and his co-star’s podcast, “Off Duty: An NCIS Rewatch,” they recalled a scene where DiNozzo gets excited over finding an authentic MAGNUM P.I. Hawaiian shirt.
“Well, his enthusiasm for pop culture and particularly shows produced by Donald P. Bellisario in the ‘80s,” Weatherly explained about his character. “But the MAGNUM P.I. piece of DiNozzo is really important because MAGNUM P.I. is about a kind of overgrown kid who has all these enthusiasms. He wears his Hawaiian shirt, gets excited about the Ferrari, lives on a Robin Masters estate in Hawaii, and has his buddies. He’s almost like a kind of teenager in a sense.”
In one NCIS episode, DiNozzo realizes Carson’s bed is a model of Magnum’s Ferrari and thinks about getting one for himself. Another reference occurs when he runs away from two dogs, naming them Zeus and Apollo after Magnum’s pets. Both NCIS and MAGNUM P.I. were created by Donald Bellisario, which explains these connections.
“He’s like a very young energy, MAGNUM P.I., but he also has PTSD as a Vietnam War veteran. He has lost people very close to him,” Weatherly shared. “I think that DiNozzo, as a kid, watched MAGNUM P.I. His mother died, his father was not present, and he was running around.”
“So when you see DiNozzo…it’s not really silly to him. This is really an emotional part of his childhood that made him feel safe,” Weatherly said. “He knows the minutiae and details because it’s meaningful to him.”
Weatherly is set to star in the NCIS spinoff, NCIS: TONY AND ZIVA, and Cinema Blend wagers that the MAGNUM P.I. connections will continue in the new series.
Movieguide® reported on the spinoff last month:
The new NCIS spinoff, NCIS: TONY & ZIVA, has fans buzzing. “We’ve been talking about this story for many years, and now with John McNamara at the helm, we are ready,” said Michael Weatherly (Tony) and Cote de Pablo (Ziva). “The world of Tony and Ziva (and daughter Tali) promises to be an action-packed roller coaster fueled by love, danger, tears, and laughter.”
TONY AND ZIVA just started production in Hungary this week, but the release date has not yet been announced.
