Interview With Cote De Pablo From 'NCIS: Tony & Ziva' At NYCC 2025
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Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David are back in their very own show, NCIS: Tony & Ziva. The show follows the two after they leave NCIS, where Tony, Ziva, and their daughter, Tali, are on the run in Europe, but must also uncover who is after them. Michael Weatherly (Tony DiNozzo) and Cote de Pablo (Ziva David) were both at New York Comic Con to promote their show, and I had the opportunity to participate in a roundtable interview and speak with both of them about the show and the return of their iconic characters.
Q: What was the expectation going into this, and then how did it live up to or exceed your expectations?
Cote de Pablo: We went into it knowing that it was going to be special because Michael (Weatherly) and I really wanted to work together. What it was going to turn into or if everything that we hoped was gonna be sorta done, we kinda had to trust, it’s a game of trust in a way. And funny enough, ironically, the entire season 1 journey was into a relationship that explored trust and honesty. So, much of what we were living in our lives and trying to trust, and see where this was going, was also happening within the relationship of Tony and Ziva.
Q: All of the women in the show are totally badass. Did you have something to do with that?
CDP: You can say that again! You know very little as far as sort of writing characters and stuff, I know we’re part of the casting process, and I remember when episode 6 came out, which was the big Tali and Sophie episode in the safehouse, I remember calling Lara Rossi who plays Sophie, and just being like “my god you were so good!” and her performance was so grounded. I felt at this moment, like, where does Ziva-where did we know each other from? I’d love to be able to explore, like, how come you’re so loyal to her, how come you’d do anything for her daughter. I started questioning things about loyalty, like what loyalty is and what it means to you, and why you are loyal. What did I do to earn that? So there are all of these questions that are going on from a storyline, but they were being informed and brought forth by performance. So, Lara and her performance made me question, oh wait a minute, what’s going on here, like why are they friends, what is this loyalty about? But it starts with that performance and with that grounding. She was just perfect. Also, Isla knocked it out of the park. She was so so so good. But it was heavy, Isla and Laura show, and I felt it was the first time we departed from Tony and Ziva, we went into these characters and explored that side of a familiar dynamic. In fact, it was a fan favorite episode.
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CultureSlate Q: What was it like coming back to playing Ziva?
CDP: Awesome. There aren’t a lot of actresses in the world that get to go back and revisit a character that is one, beloved, two, kickass, and three, very strong, and has gone through a lot in life. So the idea is that she keeps encountering these really challenging circumstances and then keeps getting up and fighting. It’s inspiring to me, but I also feel like there are a lot of women who come up to me and respond to the character. They respond to that, the very thing I respond to. I try to honor her the best way I can.
Q: There’s a powerful scene in episode 8 where Ziva gets to use the tools she learned in therapy to calm herself and continue. Can you tell me about being so intentional with the mental health aspect of that?
CDP: The mental health aspect was brought forth by John McNamara. They felt that it was very important for us to understand where she was at. The sacrifices she had made, giving her daughter away and all that, and how that affected her. Also, how that impeded her ability to connect to the love of her life, and so you needed to go into it to have a payoff. You need to go into it to understand that she has been doing a lot of work to get to a place where she can be honest with herself and also recognize that maybe Tony’s not being so honest and maybe something is missing here. Can we move on? Can we move on together? I thought it was very cleverly done, and I am not responsible for that; that’s a team of writers.
Q: Speaking of that, what is John like as a collaborator?
CDP: John is-you know, he’s just a funny, brilliant man. What I love about him is that he thinks of something, and then he elevates it. Never in a million years did we think the show would look the way it looks, that we would explore all of the emotional stuff that we got to explore. He would want to explore who Tali is. It’s the weirdest and most beautiful thing in the world because she is so much Tony and Ziva. She really is the perfect casting, not only physically but emotionally. What you guys don’t know is that the actor who plays Tali comes from the theater, but she’s also a gymnast. So she actually loves action sequences and wants to twirl and do all sorts of crazy things, but for insurance reasons, we can't allow her. She is like Game on and then she’s so much Ziva’s daughter, it’s crazy. I kept on looking up at the Universe and was like You sent us this, thank you! It just kinda aligned with the vision. She was the perfect person to play her.
Q: With everything that has happened, have Tony and Ziva considered teaching Tali some things to help defend herself?
CDP: I think that's something we’ve talked about potentially exploring, if we get to go further. I think Ziva comes from a place of extreme paranoia. I think that paranoia will feed into the teaching. I think it's going to come from a proactive place, not a place of fear. So I think it’s going to be a very proactive and empowering thing. She just wants her daughter to be as prepared as she can be for any kind of thing that may come her way. I don’t think Tony, as a father, would allow talking about potential scenarios that his daughter could encounter because I think he’s right about not bringing a child up in a world of absolute fear, which is where Ziva comes from. Ziva is reactive, and she’s trained in all of that. There’s a veil of don’t reveal, don’t show, don’t tell anything because it could all be interpreted as something they can read you, because the less they can read you, the better. I think this kid is definitely a mix of both. I think she’ll have dad’s wits, and I think she’ll be ready because mom's paranoia will feed into that.
CultureSlate Q: Tony and Ziva have always had a great dynamic. Was it easy getting back into it?
CDP: Yes! It’s something we talk about all the time. There is something that happens when you’re on camera, and sometimes off camera, it used to happen to we just die laughing, and we just have this thing. I don’t like to really mess with it, to question it; I just kinda respect it for what it is. It’s a kinda magical thing. It may not always happen. I know plenty of actors who have really good chemistry with one person, and they only wanna work with that one person, and have these great dynamics on screen, Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn, and Elizabeth Taylor. There are all of these wonderful partnerships; I’m not going to say Michael and I have that, but we have a modern version of whatever that may be. Which is something that we respect, that we love and treasure, and not mess with. It just is what it is.
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