Eva-Jane Willis was just as excited as Us when this FBI: International alum returned to help catch a murderer on the latest episode of the CBS series.
Warning: Spoilers below for season 4, episode 11 of FBI: International.
“It’s so fantastic when relationships like that — important relationships — are continued and not forgotten throughout the seasons,” Willis, 40, exclusively told Us Weekly, referring to her character Megan “Smitty” Garretson’s mentor returning for the Tuesday, February 11, episode.
During “Veritas Fidelis,” Smitty stumbled upon a murder case at her former university in the U.K. When the Fly Team discovered the killer’s identity, the college student managed to escape on his dad’s private plane. To continue the pursuit, Smitty called in a favor with former Fly Team Europol liaison Katrin Jaeger (Christiane Paul) to detain the murderer in Germany, where she is now stationed.
“To have Jaeger sort of sweep in at the last minute and save the day for Smitty is not only fitting but wonderful to read and to play, because that relationship is so important,” Willis shared.
She noted, “Jaeger was such a mentor to her and is the kind of agent that Smitty wants to be, and she’s always looked up to her.”
The actress, who joined the cast during season 2, noted that when Smitty was introduced to the team, it was Jaeger who showed her the ropes and eventually recommended she take over when Jaeger got a different gig. (Paul exited the series in July 2022 after one season.)
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“At the time, Smitty was a much younger, much more inexperienced agent and definitely felt that she had very big shoes to fill,” Willis recalled.
When Jaeger returned for her cameo, it was clear that she and Smitty were both excelling at their jobs. Although Smitty’s hands were tied when the murderer fled the country, she was quick on her feet and enlisted Jaeger’s help.
Jaeger detained the criminal and his father on the tarmac in Germany before Smitty’s crew ultimately figured out how to force him back to the U.K. where he was arrested for murdering his fellow Covington Club member Emma, the first woman in more than 100 years allowed to join.
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“It’s almost like three generations of powerful women, who work as a team,” Willis said of the episode’s conclusion. “Emma first, then Smitty and then Jaeger to take down this boy’s club. It is a boy’s club in every sense of the word. It has all of the worst attributes of what we know boys club to mean.”
Willis told Us that Smitty not only felt like she had an ally in Jaeger but she felt like a “kindred spirit” with Emma, since they were both victimized by the university.
“She wants to take on Emma’s mission and complete what Emma wasn’t able to do because her life was cut short,” Willis explained. “She takes it personally, obviously even more so because of what happened to her. It’s that bond that she feels with Emma, she almost sees her younger self in her.”
As the case unfolded, viewers learned that like Emma, Smitty was mistreated by the elite group that ran the school. Smitty wasn’t part of the Covington Club, but she was expelled when a friend left a bottle of gin in her room when she was on track to be a doctor.
Smitty discovered that she was removed from the institution because a wealthy donor didn’t like that she reported their kid for misconduct and the gin bottle was actually planted — and the headmistress looked the other way.
At the end of the episode, Smitty handed the headmistress a bottle of gin as a parting gift, and as the school advisor was removed from her office for her part in the murder coverup.
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“I loved that,” Willis told Us of the moment. “Giving her that little dig at the end was her own justice. She needed to let that headmistress know that she hadn’t managed to pull the wool over her eyes.”
Willis teased that Smitty’s closure and the fact that she was OK with blurring a few lines during the episode will rub off on her as the season continues.
“Everything that’s happened over the last four episodes has definitely deepened [FBI leader] Wes (Jesse Lee Soffer) and Smitty’s relationship. They have a deeper understanding of each other, a greater mutual respect and hopefully a blooming friendship,” the actress told Us. “But that is not to say that they will not butt heads again because I’m certain that they will simply because [Wes] has a chaotic streak and Smitty’s all about order.”
She teased that while coloring outside the lines is “hard” for Smitty, she “may try to step a little bit more into the rebellion [and] her rebellious nature as well, thanks to [Wes].”
FBI: International airs on CBS Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET.
