Michael Weatherly
NCIS actor Michael Weatherly has been arrested for DUI. Here, he arrives at the 2014 People's Choice Awards in Los Angeles, California January 8, 2014. Reuters

"NCIS" Season 12 filming is about to begin, as confirmed on Twitter by one of the actors in the CBS series. Meanwhile, a year after Cote de Pablo left NCIS, fans are still urging CBS to bring her Ziva David back.

Spoiler alert: This feature contains minor spoilers on NCIS Season 12. More spoilers are expected in entertainment reports soon after the show's production begins filming.

"Not quite yet!" Brian Dietzen responds to a fan on Twitter, to clarify that NCIS Season 12 filming has yet to kick off. (Apparently, some report said filming has begun a day ago.)

"We start filming after our table read next week. I'll be sure to tweet out a pic or two!" The actor said Monday (July 7) on Twitter. Dietzen plays the cheery forensic assistant Jimmy Palmer. In NCIS Season 12, Palmer's family life will see some developments, as hinted in the NCIS 11 finale.

In another NCIS Season 12 spoiler, various reports are saying fans are likely to meet for the first time the mysterious, never-before-seen "second ex-wife" of Leroy Jethro Gibbs (Mark Harmon). Viewers have so far seen only two ex-wives: Diane Sterling (Melinda McGraw) and Stephanie Flynn (Kathleen York).

Meanwhile, fans of Cote de Pablo and her NCIS character Ziva David are still urging CBS to bring Ziva back to the series. NCIS newbie Emily Wickersham has expressed how she would feel if her character Ellie Bishop gets a scene with Ziva. (See this previous report: Emily's Take on an Ellie-Ziva Encounter.)

It may be recalled, however, that CBS has issued a statement saying they had tried to convince Cote de Pablo to stay. (Ziva was last seen in NCIS Season 11, Episode 2.)

"I really want to clarify: We offered Cote de Pablo a lot of money - and then we offered her even more money," CBS Corp. president and CEO Les Moonves told entertainment reporters at the Television Critics Assoc. summer press tour in Beverly Hills a year ago.

"(U)ltimately [Cote de Pablo] decided she didn't want to do the show. It was her decision," the CBS exec was quoted by TVLine in this report.

"The greatest thing about this last episode is that Ziva doesn't die," Cote de Pablo told TV Guide in this report. This is one of the reasons why many fans are convinced Ziva David would be seen again on the series. Still, some fans are still urging CBS on Twitter to work it out for NCIS Season 12.

Here is fan's tweet to CBS published July 5:

Just wondering when you were going to come to your senses & bring back Cote de Pablo to @NCIS_CBS? The show is completely boring w/o her.

— Lisa (@MetroMumsy) July 5, 2014

Here is another Ziva fan tagging CBS to hear out her petition:

You know, I quit watching @NCIS_CBS when Cote De Pablo quit. If they bring her back, I'd totally start watching again. — Ashley Holt (@HoltAshleyN) July 5, 2014

On the other side of the NCIS fandom, there is a sense of acceptance that Ziva David is gone and it is time to move on:

I really hope some of you really get over Cote de Pablo's departure some day. Has this not happened in various other shows as well?

— NCIS/NCIS LA (@ncisq) July 2, 2014

The NCIS Season 12 premiere is expected to air late-September. For now, NCIS fans are counting on Brian Dietzen to make good on his promise to post filming pictures. Cote de Pablo may or may not be seen in the next chapter, but fans know there is no way the show could advance Tony DiNozzo's (Michael Weatherly) story without making at least one more reference to Ziva David.

Related TV Stories, Episode Guides and Spoilers

NCIS Season 12 Speculations: Two Reasons Cote de Pablo's Ziva David Should Come Back to CBS Crime Drama [READ]
Castle Season 7 Spoilers: Nathan Fillion Engages Fans on Twitter; Stana Katic Posts 'Dorks' in Florence, Brett Dalton Jokes 'Hydra in Castle' [READ]