CBS’s NCIS is an American military police procedural television series and one of the longest-running shows on the network. The show follows a fictional team of special agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.
Considering its lengthy run, the show has seen its fair share of characters leave. One such character whose exit left the fans heavily heartbroken was Special Agent Paula Cassidy.
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Played by Jessica Steen, Cassidy’s character was killed in a suicide bomber tracking mission in NCIS Season 4. Let us explore her character and her exit from the show in detail.
Who was Agent Paula Cassidy on NCIS?
Paula Cassidy was an NCIS Special Agent originally assigned to Guantanamo Bay as an interrogator. Following that, Cassidy became the agent aboard U.S.S. Kennedy.
Cassidy was temporarily assigned to the main Major Case Response Team following the murder of Special Agent Caitlin Todd. She was then reassigned as an agent to the Pentagon.
In the Pentagon, she led her own team till she died on the field. Nothing much is known about Cassidy's history before joining the team, but as per the records on her file, she was probably born in Canada and then immigrated to the US and gained citizenship.
She debuted in the first season in the episode titled Minimum Security. There, she first met agents Anthony DiNozzo Junior, Leroy Jethro Gibbs, and Caitlin Todd, who had arrived regarding the investigation of the death of Navy Petty Officer Khalil Sa'id.
What happened to Agent Paula Cassidy on NCIS?
While leading her own team at the Pentagon, Cassidy met an unfortunate end. Toward the end of season 4, Agent Paula Cassidy lost her life while tackling a suicide bomber through a door.
In the episode titled Grace Period, which marked her exit from the show, Cassidy and her team received a tip regarding some terrorist activities but the tip turned out to be a trap.
Due to the decision to investigate the tip, two agents from the team die and Cassidy blames herself for their death. Gibbs and his team are also sent to look into the deaths and Cassidy joins them in their investigation. While Ducky says with certainty that the man who sent the tip must have died at least a day before the explosion, Abby and Cassidy insist that it cannot be true.
Eventually toward the end of the episode when the investigation is wrapping up, Malik, who previously claimed to be a part of the Muslim Coalition for Peace but is a suicide bomber, comes out from behind the trick wall with explosives tied on his chest.
Cassidy swiftly goes forward to tackle him and throws him behind the wall, which leads to the door automatically closing on them, preventing the other team members from entering.
Due to her sacrifice, the lives of nearby agents are saved. Cassidy's death makes her former lover Tony confess to Jeanne Benoit that he was in love with her. This confession had set in motion one of the messier romantic arcs of the show.
Who plays Agent Paula Cassidy on NCIS?
Canadian actress Jessica Steen plays the role of Paula Cassidy on NCIS. Besides being a recurring cast member in this CBS show, she has also worked in various other films and shows like Threshold, A Judgment in Stone, Question of Privilege, The Sound of Willie Nelson's Guitar, When We First Met, Easy Prey, C.B.C.'s Magic Hour, and Herman's Head, to name a few.
NCIS can be streamed on Paramount+.
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