NCIS: LA guest star Alexander Bedria on his breakout performance

NCIS: Los Angeles guest star Alexander Bedria stole his episode, and told Precinct TV how he brought a spark to FBI agent Randall Cejudo in Watch Over Me.

TV crime drama fans saw a different kind of FBI agent in the NCIS: Los Angeles episode “Watch Over Me,” when Alexander Bedria guest starred as Randall Cejudo.

Cejudo joined forces with the NCIS: LA team to investigate his partner’s murder, and Alexander made sure the character was well-developed, beyond the stereotypical federal agent who shows up to meddle in someone else’s investigation.

How did he make Cejudo so memorable? Precinct TV caught up with him to discuss his guest appearance on NCIS: Los Angeles, as well as his recently released short film. Meet Alexander in our interview, and if you missed his episode, you can find “Watch Over Me” here.

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Precinct TV: How did you land this particular role on NCIS: LA?

Alexander Bedria: interestingly enough, I’d actually auditioned for NCIS: LA a couple of times over the years, and I knew the casting directors pretty well. Over the years they brought me in, and I’d met with them and the producers on different roles, and nothing quite really clicked in terms of landing the right role on the show. When this one came along, I thought, man, this just feels right.

It had all the elements of what I felt like I could offer something to the role, and I could really elevate this particular…I had a feeling about this guy Cejudo. He was complex, and wasn’t exactly what he appeared to be at first glance. And I felt I could offer something to that.

When I left the audition, I thought oh, [that] went pretty well. But I’ve auditioned a few times for them, and I’ve generally felt pretty good, and I let it go. I just figured whatever happens, happens, and [was] just really grateful that they kept inviting me back. Then I got the call the next day that I got the job, and it almost felt like a relief in a way. Like finally, we found something that really fit me, and I felt that I could really bring to, and they apparently agreed.

PTV: The challenge that you face is that unless it’s a show about FBI agents, most TV crime dramas have the FBI agent as almost more of an antagonist, getting in the way of the main characters or being totally clueless. How would you describe Cejudo’s dynamic with the NCIS agents?

AB: I wouldn’t choose either of those. I know exactly what you mean, and Cejudo is a little more sympathetic. My partner is killed at the onset, and I work with the NCIS team to track down the criminals responsible. Also, there’s an undercover agent we were tracking and we lost him, so we’re trying to solve this problem together.

I think and I hope that the audience initially feels sympathetic toward him, because he’s in a really difficult place. We hope that the audience leans into the character. He’s, from the beginning, anxious to work with the NCIS team and have a good working relationship with them. He’s not trying to make any waves.

PTV: Cejudo’s arc has to have a distinct beginning, middle and end within this one episode. So knowing that you have a limited amount of time with him, how did you approach figuring out who you wanted him to be?

AB: I saw an interview recently with Ty Burrell, and he talked about how doing episodic television, or episodic crime television, is one of the toughest jobs as an actor to do, because of that reason. You have to fill in the holes. You have certain details of the character that you’re given for the scenes that you’re in, and the other scenes where they’re talking about your character. But it’s really the actor’s responsibility to come in as full-blooded and [with] fully realized a depiction as possible.

That really is left up to my imagination and the preparation that I do, always in the context of the tone of the show—understanding the function that the character serves in a procedural. But at the same time, being able to let that go and offer something that feels unique. And also trusting them, because they cast me. They know my vibe, my energy, my essence. If they cast me, they must’ve felt that I did something in the audition that worked. You don’t want to do the audition, and then show up to set doing something totally different.

There’s a bit of just trusting myself, that my instincts were right for the character, that I am enough for this character. And at the same time, throwing all that away and being completely open on the day to what happens. Because things on the day are never quite as you expect them to be in your preparation. You have to be open and malleable to what’s available to you. And often, that’s, I think, where the better work comes out of.

PTV: Did having those prior NCIS: Los Angeles auditions under your belt make you comfortable when you stepped on set to film this episode?

AB: Yes and no. I had been in front of Jason Kennedy and Susan Bluestein, the casting directors, and various producers on the show, who often are in this small little room at Paramount when you audition for them. But I’d never met the cast, I’d never met the crew, so it was a totally brand new job.

It’s almost like the first day of school, where everyone knows each other, has known each other for years. They have all this social dynamic that is set. And you just kind of stumble onto set, and try to immediately get your bearings.

That’s one of the reasons why doing guest-starring roles is challenging. It’s not just for the work itself and for the pace of the work; it’s also kind of getting your bearings socially, and trying to meet everybody, remember their names, make a positive impression, and all that. That takes a lot of energy and focus and can be a little anxiety-inducing at times.

But I have to say, on this show, it was maybe the most welcoming cast that I’ve ever worked with as a guest star. And it’s just a testament to the amazing family that they have over there. I think the show’s been on 11 years now and you really feel it, from the camera crew, from the makeup department, the hair department, to the cast.

Out of all the regulars, I worked primarily with Daniela Ruah. She was absolutely lovely. I’ve worked with some great people, but she was just so sweet, and so disarming, and lovely, and I can’t say enough kind things about her.

PTV: Before NCIS: LA, you also played an agent in a recurring role on Mayans M.C. The two shows couldn’t be more different in terms of tone. So how different was it to work on both shows, in similar job descriptions?

AB: You’re right, the tone of the shows are pretty different. And I think with NCIS, there was a lot more to Cejudo. Cejudo really does have an arc, and there’s a turn in him, and there’s a lot more dynamic tension within the character in terms of what happens in the plot in the episode. So there’s a lot more for me to play with.

It’s a little lighter, it’s a little more fun. There’s a lot of heavy stuff that’s dealt with on NCIS, but Mayans is a darker show. Maybe there aren’t as many laughs. Really, I credit the director, Dan Liu, who really encouraged me to find the lightness and the humor in the character and give him options in different takes—to kind of play up a little bit of the kind of the charm of the man. He’s got a lot of color to him. He might, in certain situations, be a little more like a smart-ass. He might, in certain situations, be more serious.

I felt with Mayans, it was pretty clear that my character was there to give information to characters and the audience, and to support the main cast. But in NCIS, I felt a lot more central to the plot and [had] a lot more freedom to bring out certain aspects of my personality that we definitely didn’t see on Mayans.

PTV: Aside from playing Cejudo, you also have your film The Zim getting a digital release. What do fans need to know about that movie which you wrote, directed and starred in?

AB: I had been inspired by some of these extraordinary stories that were coming out of Southern Africa, Zimbabwe, South Africa, about these land seizures that were going on, and the intricate generations-long racial turmoil in politics that existed in a region that was so alien to me as an American. I thought to myself, there really hasn’t been a film made about that subject matter. And it sort of all gelled from that idea.

From concept and vision was four years of writing the script, and casting, and bringing together the crew and raising the money, which is sort of crazy for a short film, but I had a very clear vision in mind of the story that I wanted to tell—in the vein of an American western, but very much based on a challenging subject matter.

We premiered at L.A. Short Fest here in Los Angeles, which I believe is one of the biggest short film festivals in the world. We won the whole festival, and we ended up qualifying for the Academy Awards, and went through the whole festival circuit and picked up some incredible accolades. It was great to see an instinct that I’d had, that people would respond to this story in the way that I would tell it with my collaborators, and it did so well.

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NCIS: Los Angeles airs Sundays at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.

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