Yahoo Lifestyle 'NCIS: Origins' Kyle Schmid on Mike Franks Being a Gruff Cowboy on the Outside but a Lover on the Inside
Fans of Mike Franks (Kyle Schmid) are in for a treat when tonight’s NCIS: Origins features a Mike Franks-centric episode that has the NIS Supervisory Special Agent revisiting an old case that has loose ends.
In the “Last Rites” episode, Franks races to extricate the location of a missing body from a death row inmate with only two days left until his execution in order to honor a promise he made to the victim’s sister before time runs out.
“Mike has promised a young woman that he's going to give her closure, he’s going to give her retribution, he’s going to find her sister’s body, so she can lay her to rest and say goodbye properly, and he has failed,” Schmid tells Parade. “He’s failed to do so, and he’s let her down.”
Schmid says it is easy to put himself into the sister’s shoes, where she’s given Franks her trust and he wants to be worthy of it. It’s what makes him act a little crazy as the deadline for the execution draws closer.
“The guilt and the weight that he feels when he’s unable to give her what she needs as a human being, it’ll eat you up inside,” he continues. “It eats Mike up inside and it becomes the only thing that he sees.”
Taking on the weight of the world is a trait that Schmid assigns to Franks and he says it is one of the reasons why he cleared Gibbs (Austin Stowell) to join his team as an NIS agent even though he failed his psych exam. But it’s not just Gibbs. It’s also why Franks pulled Lala Dominguez (Mariel Molino) into his world, and Randy Randolf (Caleb Foote), as well.
Related: NCIS: Origins Star Austin Stowell Reveals the Personal Tragedy He Used to Get Inside Gibbs’ Head
“When they sent me this episode, I read it and I just cried,” Schmid shares. ‘The weight of the responsibility that Mike takes on, it just feels so heavy. I was so excited. It’s phenomenal writing and that’s the beauty of working with [showrunners] Gina [Lucita Monreal] and David [J. North]. The whole writers’ room, their standards are high. We’ve got a great cast of actors, and we can deliver, and they know that. We’re lucky enough to be fulfilled. But this episode, in particular, for me, it hit so close to home. I’m able to empathize with Mike because Mike’s got a heart of gold. Mike loves deeply, Mike empathizes.”
Photo: Sonja Flemming/CBS
But of all the members of his ragtag team, Schmid says the one who really gets Franks is Field Operation Support Officer Mary Jo Hayes (Tyla Abercrumbie), aka “HSIC” (Head Secretary in Charge).
Schmid says, “Mary Jo’s the person closest to him that perhaps understands shouldering the weight of other people’s lives.”
During our chat, Schmid also revealed the discussion he had with Muse Watson about playing the role, the relationship between Franks and Vera Strickland (Diany Rodriguez), and the bromance between Gibbs and Franks.
I understand you had the opportunity to speak to Muse Watson. What advice did he have for you on being Mike Franks?
He’s such a generous person. He’s a good human being. I don’t think Muse is too far from Mike Franks himself, and I say that with the utmost love and respect because Muse has a big heart. He’s a very talented actor. Everything he does I think is 100 percent. To love with all your heart, that takes courage. Muse’s advice came kind of as career advice. He came to Hollywood as an actor who just wanted to do good work. For him that meant acting with the utmost integrity and passion and letting all the bright lights and crap disappear in the background. That’s very similar to how I try and live in this world and in this industry, so that rang true to me.
I approached Mike Franks from the perspective of just trying to take over that integrity and truth that Muse brought to the character as best I could. I was lucky enough to hear from him a few days ago. He’s very happy with the project.
Related: NCIS: Origins Showrunners on How Mark Harmon's Narration Takes Us Inside Gibbs’ Head
Was tonight's case responsible for Vera's decision to request a new partner? Or was it the fact that because it’s the ‘90s and men tended to be a little more misogynistic in that time, she had an issue with him?
It certainly wasn’t this case that destroyed his relationship with Vera. This case comes shortly after that. This would have been the icing on the cake that was the demise of their relationship sprinkled on top. The relationship between Mike and Vera is an interesting one, and I’ll be honest with you, it’s not one I know a lot about. I recognize misogyny is brought up consistently with Mike. It’s something that is very consistent with the ‘90s, it’s very consistent with the time period that we’re exploring. It is consistent with the gruff cowboy on the exterior that we’ve got in Mike Franks, who’s constantly just kind of like s--t kicking boots and he drives a million miles an hour and he’s going straight ahead all the time and whoever gets in his way is going to get in his way, but they’re going to get run over.
Photo: Art Streiber/CBS
We have this picture of what a man was defined as back then. I think the writers do a really, really great job at that. However, we also have a character who, from what I’ve seen, doesn’t think he’s above anybody else, loves consistently. I think the relationship between him and Lala in the first episode is an interesting one. I think we get a glimpse into his rhetoric isn’t always the best. He’s a little blunt for his own good. But, at the same time, I truly believe that Mike loved and developed Lala to the best of his ability to make her the best agent that he was able to. And he’s now moving onto his next project, which is Gibbs. There’s a little bit of the new kid in town jealousy in that.
It's an interesting dynamic. Family in general with NCIS is such a wonderful tool that the writers use because everybody in the world wants family, needs family, wants people to be close to. I think family dynamic is the most interesting thing to watch on television. Look at This Is Us, brilliant show. It’s great writing.
Related: NCIS: Origins Releases a First-Look Trailer as Leroy Jethro Gibbs Becomes a Special Agent
You mentioned that Gibbs is his new project. In this show, it’s the most important relationship. A lot of times shows have romances. It’s too soon for Gibbs to have a romance, so his most important relationship is the one that he has with Mike Franks. Talk a little bit about how that bromance is going to build over the season.
In the beginning, we see one human being recognize the strength in another human being. That is the beginning of a very complex and beautiful friendship between these two characters. Throughout the first season, we’re going to see ups and downs, we’re going to see important catalysts that create their brotherhood.
Working with Austin has been wonderful. He’s an incredibly committed actor; he’s a wonderful person. We go into these things as naked as possible, we really feel these characters. Austin’s a very courageous actor, he’s wonderful. I think the opportunity to build this brotherhood – you want to walk through fire together, you want to go to war -- overcoming obstacles together is what builds brotherhood, is what builds that bromance you’re talking about. We’re going to see a lot of that.
When are we going to find out what’s in that mysterious folder?
You’ll find out in a few episodes.
NCIS: Origins airs tonight at 10 p.m. ET/PT on CBS and streams next day on Paramount+.
