NCIS: Origins finale will address one key Gibbs plotline that will change his character, reveals star Mariel Molino

As NCIS: Origins approaches its eagerly awaited season 1 finale, fans are about to experience a game-altering moment in Leroy Jethro Gibbs' life — a moment that reshapes the future character we come to know through the flagship NCIS series.

As revealed by star Mariel Molino, who stars as Agent Lala Dominguez, the episode would unfurl a pivotal plot that even Gibbs himself is oblivious to, drastically changing his story for years to come.

The NCIS: Origins episode, named "Cecilia" after Molino's character, will air Monday, April 28, on CBS. It will focus on Gibbs confronting the consequences of his most clandestine action: Pedro Hernandez, the drug dealer who killed Gibbs' wife and daughter, was murdered by Gibbs.

As the cover is about to be blown, tensions are escalated within the team, and loyalty is challenged at the most inopportune time.

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NCIS: Origins: Mariel Molino teases a big reveal

During an interview with TV Insider last week, Molino teased the size of what's to come in the upcoming finale, suggesting Lala Dominguez will be a much bigger part of Gibbs' life than was ever known before.

The audience will learn something so central to who Gibbs turns out to be — that future Gibbs, the one we met and adored on NCIS — that even he is unaware, Molino disclosed.

“The viewer will find out something so integral to who Gibbs becomes — that future Gibbs, who we saw and loved on NCIS — that even he does not know. Lala does something in the finale that he doesn’t know she did. It is the reason that Gibbs becomes who he becomes years later. It’s a question that is brought up in later seasons of NCIS that Gibbs himself doesn’t know the answer to.”

It's a question raised later in seasons of NCIS that Gibbs himself doesn't know the answer to. This statement implies that the finale won't simply wrap up season 1 — it will forever link Lala's behavior to Gibbs' legendary behavior and secretive nature in the initial series, played by Mark Harmon.

Since the first episode, when it was written that Origins is "the story of her," there have been theories about just how much Lala would affect Gibbs. The finale appears to be going to finally live up to that hype.

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NCIS: Origins: The investigation into Hernandez heats up

The plot accelerates with the introduction of Lara Macy (Claire Berger), a military police investigator and close friend of Lala. Macy, a character rooted in the NCIS franchise, assists Lala on several occasions throughout the season, walking crime scenes and fighting the battle of being female in a historically male profession.

Macy's probe focuses on the case of Hernandez, one that could expose Gibbs' vigilantism.

But, unbeknownst to Macy, Lala had already found Gibbs' guilt mid-season. She threatened him in private, precipitating a heartfelt revelation about his pain and vulnerability — and cementing her intense, complex love for him.

Now, with her friend Macy hot on the trail, Lala is caught in an impossible situation: protect Gibbs and the team, or remain loyal to her principles and the investigation.

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What's at stake in the NCIS: Origins finale

The season 1 finale guarantees an action-packed mix of personal turmoil, ethical struggles, and character-defining moments. We can anticipate the episode to strip away another veil of Gibbs' psychology, providing essential information regarding how the stoic, unyielding agent we all know and recognize from NCIS was made.

With Molino's hints and the show's consistent downplaying of Lala's significance, "Cecilia" is quite possibly one of the most emotional, defining chapters of the NCIS history to this point.

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Get ready to see the final episode of NCIS: Origins on Monday, April 28, on CBS.