FBI season 6, episode 9 sees Nina Chase crossover from FBI: Most Wanted to go undercover with John Boyd’s Special Agent Stuart Scola. “Best Laid Plans” is not the first time Shantel VanSanten has appeared in the franchise’s original series, with the actress making her debut in FBI season 4, episode 17. While Chase and Scola have overcome their fair share of obstacles, the show’s recent installment challenges their relationship in new ways.
Boyd admits that the couple is on different pages about how to mitigate risks now that their family has welcomed an additional member. Chase and Scola’s careers put them in the line of fire, making it possible for Dougie to grow up minus one or both of his parents. The undercover assignment forces both characters to address their current conflict without blowing their cover, but Boyd believes the case’s subtext is what adds to the fun.
Screen Rant interviews John Boyd about Scola and Chase’s undercover operation, the characters’ differing viewpoints, and the future of their relationship.
Scola & Chase’s Undercover Assignment Is A Story Within A Story
Screen Rant: You already portray a couple in the show, but Scola and Chase pretend to be married for this undercover assignment. Did you play off of each other any differently?
John Boyd: What’s so cool about that is the episode is about them as FBI agents being on different pages about how to mitigate risk in order to make sure that their son grows up with two parents. So the whole theme is, “Let’s not put ourselves in a situation where we would both not come home.” And of course, we’re thrown into a diamond heist torture-murder case where we’re going undercover against really violent, dangerous people together. So there’s the conflict between the two of them that is, “How do we mitigate risk?”
We’re disagreeing on how to move through the case, but we can’t let the person that we’re with know that. So what we get to see is Stuart and Nina having a separate subtextual conversation with each other in front of the bad guy. That’s what’s cool. It’s the story within the story. How we’re playing that conflict with each other without blowing the cover. That’s what was so fun to do. How does a couple navigate conflict in a case without blowing their cover?
What about their personalities or pasts causes Scola and Chase to have such different viewpoints on the situation?
John Boyd: That’s a good question. What led them to take the standpoint that they’re taking? There’s a rule in the house that someone always comes home because there’s a third person now. We have to communicate as a couple and make sure that there’s always somebody that returns for this child. We can’t both, at the same time, go out and do something too risky.
So I think Scola is in a place of realizing that if the two of them were to disappear, that that’s just such a massive failure. I think he’s struggling with carrying the weight of really realizing that. I think Nina, as a mother, has always been more realistic, and she’s not struggling. She’s already dealt with that from what she’s been through physically, with being shot and everything else. This is what we do as agents to make a better world for this kid.
We just show up and do the job no matter what, and we’re going to do it well, whereas Scola has just as a little bit more trepidation about the fear. He’s fearful of his son not having parents because they were irresponsible, which I totally agree with. That’s the kind of parent I am. Do not mess this up. You have one job now. This job is now more important than the other job, so what are you going to do?
Boyd Would Like To Explore Scola And Chase’s Relationship Further
Scola does decide to book the flight at the end of the episode. What did you appreciate most about his arc?
John Boyd: I think he’s a changed man by the end. He comes around and understands that if they’re in communication as partners, they’re entitled to having a normal life, as well. They’re allowed to get on airplanes and go do what couples do. They’re allowed to be together. There’s a difference between the risks involved in the job and the risks outside of the job. We just have to trust that when we’re walking down the street, if we get struck by lightning—that’s just something we have to let go. That’s not something that we can control. I think he’s willing to let go of that by the end.
Scola and Chase have had their ups and downs, but it seems like they’re in a good place. What do you want for the future of their relationship?
John Boyd: That’s an interesting question. I really love whatever they throw at us—to just jump into it and see how it goes. There’s so much to explore with them. They’re so different. Their banter and their chemistry and their respect for each other and the way they hold each other accountable—it’s fun. There are a million ways to go. I’m always open to whatever the writers think of or what they want to do, but I would love to see them in the field more together. That would be cool.
About FBI
From Emmy Award winner Dick Wolf and the team behind the “Law & Order” brand, FBI is a fast-paced drama about the inner workings of the New York office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This elite unit brings to bear all their talents, intellect and technical expertise on major cases in order to keep New York and the country safe.
