A kidnapping begins in Rome on Tuesday, April 4, in a three-hour program with all three “FBI” teams banding together. Jeremy Sisto’s character, Special Agent Jubal Valentine, jets from the New York field office to Italy to help “FBI: International” star Scott Forrester, played by Luke Kleintank. Meanwhile, Stuart Scola (John Boyd) goes undercover and teams up with Remy Scott (Dylan McDermott) from “FBI: Most Wanted” to prevent a mass-casualty terrorist attack in New York City.
Ahead of the episode, Sisto tells TheWrap what to expect from Jubal being a “fish out of water” overseas without his usual team around him, his theory on why his character speaks Italian, and which actors he’s working with. wants to play Jubal’s Italian grandfather. Should a future story require it.
The crossover begins with “FBI: International”, then goes back to “FBI”, ending with the Fugitive Task Force on “FBI: Most Wanted”. It was written by “FBI” showrunner Rick Eid and Sisto described it as “a really well-crafted story that’s emotional and moving.”
TheWrap: We see Jubal out on the field this episode, how does he play?
Jeremy Sisto: Jubal gets to do some things that you usually don’t see him doing. He’s in Rome, so while you’re chasing down bad guys, he’s chasing them down cobblestone streets and over 1000-year-old tunnels and ruins. He’s using weapons we’ve never seen him use before. It’s quite an exciting world to put Jubal in. He is definitely a fish out of water. But, he is not afraid to cross the boundaries. because of his recent challenges [including relapsing after several years’ sobriety earlier this season]He really feels driven to play up to the authority of being a great leader in this position.
How well does it work with Forrester and the international office?
Jubal is used to having 50 people around him who are there solely to help him connect the dots and outwit criminals and suddenly he’s in a different country where he doesn’t have the same level of access. Fortunately, Forrester and his team are more accustomed to this. But there’s definitely some arm wrestling that goes into trying to figure out how far they can push those boundaries to do their job. It really shows how the FBI works, how this complex web of people is assessing threats around the world. They are protecting American lives. And a lot of those threats originate from overseas. That’s why we have an international team and so it made perfect sense for me to add that team to the New York office.
Nina (Chantel VanSanten) also goes to Rome regarding this case., How dynamic is that?
This is an interesting story as she is pregnant with Skola’s child. It’s similar to what happened to Maggie (Missy Peregrym) and OA (Zeiko Zaki) when she came back after being exposed to nerve gas. How can you care about someone’s safety while respecting that their job is at risk? That they put themselves in danger voluntarily and you can’t demand that they be overly cautious?
Does Jubal speak any Italian?
He did, and it was kind of on the fly and I was hoping the higher-ups wouldn’t hate me for it. But it felt right. I thought it was cool that Jubal spoke a little Italian in specific situations.
What’s your theory on how Jubal knows Italian?
He is smarter than me. I think she picked up one of those apps on the way back to play on the long plane ride. I think he studied it. I have Italian heritage, so I guess Jubal can too, considering we share the same body (laughs). It seems to me that there is something Italian in it. He has an Italian relative somewhere in his family and he learned this by spending time with that person. But I try not to go too deep into the backstory. I try to give them little hints and then, who knows? Maybe there’s an episode with an old Italian guy and suddenly I have a nice Italian grandfather.
Since we’re on this tangent, who would you cast as Jubal’s grandpa?
Rocco Sisto. He is a great actor. He did “Donnie Brasco” with Al Pacino and Johnny Depp. And I actually worked with him for a while… I don’t remember what. But he told me all this about our Sisto family and that he should definitely play my grandpa.
Are you really related to him?
Well, we don’t think so. But there are a lot of sistos in Southern Italy. Maybe distant cousins. He is the only other Sisto I know in the industry.
Have you read “The White Lotus?” Seen season 2 of? Were you related to Italian Americans trying to trace your ancestors?
I did I have gone to Bari, where my family is from. I played Jesus in a [1999] Mini-series that was partially funded through Italian production and therefore involved the Roman Catholic Church. I met the Pope and the mayor and we shook hands and walked through town. I’ve been there a few times. When I’m around Italian people, they feel like family.
The three-hour crossover event, “Imminent Threat,” airs Tuesday, April 4 at 8:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT) on CBS and is available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+.