#Is Linda Hunt, Renee Felice Smith leaving NCIS: Los Angeles after finale?

Is Linda Hunt leaving NCIS: Los Angeles after the season 12 finale? What about Renee Felice Smith? We understand having questions about either one! The episode tonight has a lot of mystery around it, largely because of the way the writers have written the story.

Let’s set things up here by making the stakes clear. During tonight’s episode, Kilbride is going to make something rather clear to Nell — either she takes on Hetty’s role or resigns altogether. There’s no telling when Hunt’s character is going to return, and since Nell hasn’t heard from her, she’s hesitant about taking on the responsibility and all that implies. What if Hetty wants to come back?

We’re optimistic that, in the end, Nell will end up signing on the dotted line here — and much of that has to do with Hetty herself. The photo above serves as a reminder that Hunt will be back for her first on-set appearance this season! (She’s previously filmed remotely outside her house.) We like to imagine that she will give Nell permission to take on her job, and with that, this could be a proper farewell for the Hetty character. We hope that’s not the case, but it’s been clear for a couple of seasons now that we’re probably close to the end of Hetty as a permanent fixture on the show. If we’re wrong, we’re happy to celebrate that!

Even if either character does leave tonight, we still remain hopeful that we’ll see a handful of appearances for them moving forward. NCIS: Los Angeles is a show that has an excellent stable of guest stars, and we tend to imagine that the writers will continue to lean on them whenever they feel like they can deliver great story.

We’ll have some more news on Nell and Hetty’s status during the episode — be sure to check back as it airs!

Related – Be sure to get some more news on NCIS: Los Angeles, including a look towards season 13

Do you want to see Linda Hunt and Renee Felice Smith stick around on NCIS: Los Angeles?

Be sure to share right now in the attached comments! After you do that, remember to stick around for some other updates. (Photo: CBS.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVlGFHmUtrk