NCIS didn’t become TV’s most authentic military franchise by accident. In this exclusive roundtable and video, veteran advisors Leon Carroll, Alan Burghard, Michael Smith, and R.J. Cline reveal how they correct scripts, shape storylines, and honor real service members to keep every salute, uniform, and funeral scene true to life.
The NCIS franchise has been on TV long enough to feel like part of the cultural furniture. It began as a JAG spinoff, grew into a ratings titan, and expanded into an international ecosystem with NCIS shows in Los Angeles, New Orleans, Hawai‘i, Sydney, and now Origins. And if you can believe it, the main series NCIS is approaching its 500th episode, set to air on Tuesday, March 3, 2026.
But the real secret weapon behind the brand isn’t only the cast chemistry or the case-of-the-week machine. It’s the real-life veterans and law enforcement pros who keep the uniforms squared away, the procedures credible, and the human cost of service from turning into empty set dressing. It’s because of these experts that the franchise became, and has remained, one of the most accurate on-screen portrayals of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.
Military Advisors Explain How The Show Stays Accurate
Real NCIS agents and military veterans break down how they keep NCIS, NCIS: Origins, and the wider NCISverse accurate for millions of fans. In this in-depth interview, technical advisors Robert "RJ" Cline, Leon Carroll Jr., Michael "Mike" Smith, and LtCol Alan "Al" Burghard share how their real-world Marine Corps, Navy, and NCIS experience shapes what you see on screen.
In a wide-ranging roundtable (embedded in the video above), NCIS expert consultants and veterans Leon Carroll, Alan Burghard, Michael Smith, and R.J. Cline walk through how they joined the franchise, what the job actually looks like, and the behind-the-scenes moments that reminded them the work is bigger than TV.
The ‘OG’ NCIS Technical Advisor Who Built the Show’s Authenticity
Leon Carroll’s path to becoming the franchise’s technical advisory anchor is almost comically humble—he admits he once assumed TV episodes were filmed in a day. That illusion evaporated fast.
When the original NCIS was gearing up, Carroll was back on duty as a rehired annuitant post-9/11, helping recruit new agents so others could rotate into counterterror missions. A colleague asked if he’d be willing to consult a couple days a week.
His first day on set turned into a marathon. The day wasn’t just long—it was 21 hours, and he walked away thinking, What did I get myself into?
That initiation gradually became a career-defining role. Carroll’s relationships with the show’s leadership and performers helped set a tone that later rippled across the spinoffs. He described early moments where he learned how to assert authority without derailing production—and how important it was to introduce actors early so corrections didn’t feel like ambushes.
It’s a surprisingly delicate tightrope: the goal is authenticity, but the method is collaboration.
How NCIS Keeps Its Military Realism Consistent Across Spin-Offs
Burghard—who served three decades in the Marine Corps and spent 25 years with NIS/NCIS—framed the consultants’ work as a mix of script vetting, on-set oversight, and anticipating problems before they hit a shooting day.
For NCIS: Los Angeles, that meant being present for everything from concept drafts to weapon handling to how a team moves through a space. When the show matured, he could step back from routine ops center scenes. Early on, though, a new series is “from call to wrap.”
His work on NCIS: Sydney adds a twist: different time zones, different cultural rhythms, and a franchise template that must fit another country’s law enforcement reality. He’s not physically on set there, so he watches the finished product like any other viewer—while still trying to protect the core credibility of the brand.
Carroll also noted the broader truth many viewers still don’t fully absorb: NCIS is a worldwide organization, with offices far beyond what the shows spotlight. The franchise may treat each city as a distinct flavor, but the real agency’s global footprint makes international storylines less of a reach than they seem.
The Art of Fixing Mistakes Without Killing the Scene
Michael Smith brings a slightly different angle. He’s a retired Navy Master-at-Arms Command Investigator who worked closely with NCIS long before walking onto a set. He stepped into technical advising after the loss of Dwayne Swear, who had been a key advisor for NCIS: New Orleans.
Smith’s description of learning the job is one of the most vivid snapshots of how TV and real-world practice collide. He was told to sit quietly and wait until asked. He knew instantly that wasn’t going to be his style.
In the early days, he’d see something off on a ship set, sprint up stairs, interrupt blocking, correct procedures, and then sprint back to his monitor. The lesson wasn’t to go silent—it was to learn timing and tone. As Carroll later put it, you don’t say people are wrong; you offer an option that gets them to the right outcome.
Smith also revealed a key ethical boundary: he aims for realism, but he’s careful not to hand over precise, real-world tactical information that could be misused. The show can look cool without becoming a how-to guide.
That balance—authenticity without operational exposure—has become a defining philosophy across the franchise.
When NCIS Storylines Hit Close to Home for Veterans
If you want an instant master class in what veterans notice, Carroll’s example is perfect: a sunset sequence with the American flag descending in darkness. The flag wasn’t properly lit.
That’s the kind of detail civilian audiences might never catch, but veterans will. Carroll stepped in and flagged the issue before it went to air, because mistakes like that can fracture trust and make viewers feel the show isn’t respecting the culture it’s borrowing.
Burghard echoed the bigger point: the goal is respect. Even when a story needs a “bad Marine” or a corrupt figure to power a plot, the show can still avoid portraying service members as sloppy caricatures.
When NCIS Storylines Get Personal for Veterans
R.J. Cline, advising on NCIS: Origins, occupies a unique lane: his show’s temporal setting forces him to think historically, not just procedurally. He served through key shifts in uniform culture and policy from the early 1990s onward and can draw on that lived timeline to keep the period details grounded.
But the part he seemed proudest of wasn’t a single prop or uniform fix. It was the show’s willingness to depict service members’ home lives—showing the psychological toll of the work rather than keeping everything locked inside an office or a crime scene.
For him, Origins has the chance to remind audiences that the job doesn’t end when the case ends.
The Proudest “Saves”: Honoring Service on Screen
Burghard shared one of the most moving behind-the-scenes moments: an episode centered on a veteran who dies without family. The production wanted the funeral detail to feel right.
So he pulled in real Marines and an experienced warrant officer to lead the honors. The group didn’t need rehearsal. The ceremony came together with the quiet competence that only people who’ve lived the ritual can bring.
Even an actor known for comedic energy reportedly approached the day with a new seriousness, telling Burghard, in essence, that there would be no messing around.
Smith recalled another deeply respectful sequence from Hawai‘i, involving the return of remains and full military honors. The production used real honor guard personnel, and the team insisted on getting details right—even down to who should deliver commands. When a real petty officer suddenly had to perform on mic in front of cameras, he discovered what many tough professionals learn the hard way: the lens can intimidate in a way the field never did.
The result, though, was worth it.
Why NCIS Is Quietly One of TV’s Most Veteran-Friendly Franchises
One theme surfaced again and again: the franchise doesn’t just depict service. It employs it.
Smith and Burghard both described the way veterans in background roles often become force multipliers—not just extras filling a hallway, but people who instinctively understand movement, posture, chain-of-command cues, and how a uniform is worn on a real base.
Carroll called the entire universe “veteran-friendly,” and even when he pivoted into a sad memory—describing a former service member who appeared in an early episode and was tragically killed not long after—his point remained clear: these aren’t abstract story beats to the advisors. The military community is personal.
Advice for Veterans Who Want to Work in Film and TV
Smith offered some of the most practical guidance in the conversation for transitioning service members.
His recommendations were refreshingly grounded:
- Write your story. Books and firsthand accounts still spark a huge percentage of adaptations.
- Get on the lot any way you can. Background, PA work, apprenticeships—proximity creates opportunity.
- Build relationships the same way you would in the field. The industry runs on trust, competence, and reputation.
Cline added that the film and TV ecosystem can feel strangely familiar for veterans—the hierarchy, the mission focus, the speed and coordination. People know their roles. Teams assemble, execute, and reset.
In other words, the culture shock might be smaller than many assume.
The Franchise’s Real Superpower
When you step back, what these four advisors describe is more than a checklist of uniforms and acronyms. It’s a values system.
NCIS succeeds because it remembers that authenticity isn’t only factual accuracy—it’s attitude. It’s the tone of respect, the willingness to consult real people, the effort to depict service members as professionals rather than props.
Yes, TV compresses reality. Lab results don’t come back in minutes. Cases don’t resolve cleanly in 42 minutes. Everyone in this roundtable understands that.
But the advisors’ job is to help the franchise choose where to bend and where not to. As NCIS heads into its 500th episode on March 3, 2026, that quiet line between drama and respect is what keeps people coming back. And for the millions of veterans and military families who still tune in, that difference is everything.
