Final On-Screen Appearance of Ziva David
Ziva David last appeared on screen in the NCIS Season 10 finale titled "Damned If You Do," which aired on May 14, 2013. In the episode, she resigns from NCIS and leaves the team to pursue a new life in Israel, officially ending her regular role on the show. The decision was driven by actress Cote de Pablo's departure, and the storyline framed her exit as a voluntary return to her roots rather than a forced dismissal.
After the Season 10 finale, Ziva did not appear in any subsequent NCIS episodes until a guest return in Season 11, Episode 22, titled "The Missionary Position," which aired on April 30, 2014. That appearance was a brief flashback sequence, not a present-day storyline, confirming that her final ongoing arc concluded in Season 10. No further regular or recurring appearances followed in the main NCIS series.
Ziva's Departure and the Show's Response
NCIS showrunner Gary Glasberg confirmed in interviews that Ziva's exit was designed to give the character a definitive, heroic conclusion rather than an ambiguous one. The Season 10 finale ranked as the second most-watched episode of the entire NCIS series, drawing approximately 19.85 million viewers, according to Nielsen ratings reported by Forbes. The episode also received a 12.3 rating in the 18–49 demographic, placing it among the highest-rated finales in CBS history.
Following Ziva's departure, NCIS continued with Tony DiNozzo and McGee as the lead agents, and the show introduced new characters to fill the team gap. The series maintained its position as the most-watched television drama in the United States for multiple consecutive seasons, as reported by Forbes. Ziva's exit did not negatively impact the show's ratings, and NCIS remained the #1 scripted series on broadcast television in the 2013–2014 season.
Ziva's Return in NCIS: Tony & Ziva
Ziva David returned in the digital spinoff series NCIS: Tony & Ziva, which premiered on Paramount+ in 2024. The series is a direct continuation of the NCIS storyline and features Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo reprising their roles as Tony DiNozzo and Ziva. The show's plot centers on the couple's life together after the events of the NCIS Season 10 finale, effectively retconning Ziva's death from the original series timeline.
NCIS: Tony & Ziva is produced by CBS Studios and Belisarius Productions, with Shane Brennan returning as executive producer. The series is available exclusively on Paramount+ and represents the first time Ziva has appeared in new NCIS-branded content since her Season 10 exit. As of the latest public data, NCIS: Tony & Ziva is the only canonical continuation of Ziva's story, and no further appearances in the main NCIS series have been announced.