Pauley Perrette played forensic scientist Abby Sciuto on NCIS for years. But how many episodes in total did she appear in?
There is no question about what Pauley Perrette is best known for. She was a fan-favorite on NCIS for an astounding 15 years, from 2003 until 2018. 15 years! That’s a long time for any one character to be a part of any show. Perrette starred on the show alongside other staples like Mark Harmon as Leroy Jethro Gibbs, David McCallum as Medical Examiner Dr. Donald “Ducky” Mallard, and Sean Murray as Special Agent Timothy McGee, among others. However, she and most of the original cast of the show have since moved on.
In total, though, Pauley Perrette is listed in the credits of NCIS for 354 episodes. That’s according to IMDb. However, there were two of those episodes in which she didn’t actually make an appearance as her character, Abby Scuito. So, the official number of episodes we see her in stands at 352. Pretty impressive, right? Most actors out there would be lucky to hit the 350 episode mark in their entire acting career. Perrette was able to hit that milestone on NCIS alone. And it starts to look even more impressive when you realize that there are a total of 426 NCIS episodes to date.
What Happened to Abby Scuito in ‘NCIS’?
If you are a diehard NCIS fan, then probably recall what happened to Pauley Perrette’s character in the show. There was an attempt on Abby’s life by a hitman at the end of Season 15. She was able to survive the attack, thanks to an M16 agent named Clayton Reeves (played by Duane Henry) who sacrificed himself to save her. But even though Abby survived, the entire experience was too much for her.
So, she decided to move on from her position with NCIS. Her new plan was to move to England and start a charity in honor of agent Reeves and the sacrifice he made for her. Obviously, Abby was an integral part of the NCIS family and nobody wanted to see her leave. Dr. Palmer spoke for all of his colleagues when he said the following:
“The thought of you not being here, I just can’t imagine.”
“You guys are my family and this is my home, but you have to go with your gut and my gut is telling me I have to go,” she explained.
Meanwhile, hopeful fans can hang on to one tiny hint she left about a possible return.
“It’s not goodbye for good,” she said. “It’s goodbye for now.”
In typical Abby fashion, the episode ends with her back in the lab. She is packing up her dolls and before she leaves, she made sure to leave a copy of Abby’s Lab for Dummies for the next forensic scientist.
