head during the last few seconds of the season-two finale, "Twilight". The official explanation for the her departure was that "she asked to be let out of her contract to pursue other opportunities". In statements made by Alexander since her departure from NCIS, she has made clear that her problem with the show was that she felt the workload was too physically demanding for her. In subsequent television series work, episode counts were considerably smaller, and her character portrayals required less physical effort than her role on NCIS. In her final appearances in the two-part episode "Kill Ari", Alexander was credited as a special guest star. Her character Caitlin Todd reappeared in a "what if" scenario with Anthony DiNozzo for the NCIS 200th episode "Life Before His Eyes" in 2012, however, Alexander did not return to film new footage for the episode; rather footage from the second season episode "SWAK" was recut to incorporate her into the new episode. She also had a small role in 2006's Mission: Impossible III. She joined the cast of The Nine in the role of Nick's ex-wife. From 2010 to 2016, Alexander played Dr. Maura Isles for seven seasons on the TNT series Rizzoli & Isles – the Commonwealth of Massachusetts' Chief Medical Examiner, who works with the Boston Police Department. Alexander costarred with Angie Harmon, who played Boston Homicide Detective Jane Rizzoli, Isles's best friend on the show. In 2015, Alexander began a recurring role on Showtime's Shameless portraying Helene Runyon, one of Lip Gallagher's college professors. Her character Helene maintains an open relationship with her husband Theo (played by Michael Reilly Burke) which allows her to sleep with Lip. The relationship between Helene and Lip is both romantic and one which provides him with guidance in his college career, but the affair blows-up in season six (2016). Alexander was cast opposite Ludacris in the 2018 drama film The Ride. In 2018, Alexander guest-starred in the Law & Order: Special Victims Unit episode, "Caretaker" (season 20, episode 8), as villainess Anna Mill. Alexander played Detective Chesler in the 2020 Netflix film, Dangerous Lies. Since 2020, she has voiced Addie in the animated web-series Deathstroke: Knights & Dragons, based on DC Comics. In 2021, Alexander directed the 9th episode "Red flags" of season 3 of the Netflix show You. Personal life On September 18, 1999, Alexander married Luka Pecel, but this marriage later ended