Spoilers ahead for Episode 3 of FBI: International Season 4 on CBS, called “Nothing Sudden About It.”
The fourth season of FBI: International wasted no time in the fall 2024 TV schedule before adding Chicago P.D. alum Jesse Lee Soffer to the Fly Team as SSA Wes Mitchell. His first episode was designed to feel like a pilot and the character was a headache for his new coworkers to start, but the team seemed like a well-oiled machine on the case of a missing girl in Portugal by “Nothing Sudden About It.”
After watching this episode and its reveal about Mitchell in the final moments, I flashed back to what Soffer told me about filming in Portugal. First things first, though!
An Emotional Reveal About Wes Mitchell
The earliest scene featuring Mitchell in this episode (which will be available streaming with a Paramount+ subscription) featured him at a tattoo parlor, charming the artist while lying about the job that brought him to Budapest. To be honest, my first thought was that Wes Mitchell was making some questionable decisions if he’s getting permanent ink on his arm in Hungary before he even found an apartment, but his reasoning became clear by the end of the episode after Vo gave a nice speech encouraging him to open up to her and the rest of the Fly Team.
Back in the tattoo parlor, the episode gave a quick look at the numbers that Mitchell was having inked onto his arm, and he was more honest this time when the artist asked some questions. He explained that they’re badge numbers of “fellow agents that [he] used to work with, friends of mine.” The first was in honor of Alana Greggs from two years earlier, and the second was for Mike Brooks, who died in the Season 4 premiere.
I hadn’t seen this episode when I spoke with Jesse Lee Soffer about why Chicago P.D. fans should watch FBI: International, so I couldn’t ask at the time if he’s now obligated to have fake tattoos on his arm every time he films in short sleeves from this point forward. He did drop some details that were clearly about “Nothing Sudden About It” now that I look back, though, and they’re definitely easy to get.
What Jesse Lee Soffer Told Us
Coming to FBI: International after more than 200 episodes in NBC’s One Chicago as Detective Jay Halstead was a bold move for Jesse Lee Soffer, and even he was asking what he was getting himself into. It involved moving to Budapest to film, so when I spoke with the actor, I asked about his experience with the relocation. He shared:
The relocation has been so interesting and fun. Budapest is an amazing city. I’m learning Hungarian so that I can pick up little things here and there on set. I can curse up a storm. I’m not going to do any of that here today, but I’m really enjoying that stuff. The only tricky part is finding your kind of creature comforts. Amazon doesn’t really work here, so you can’t get the normal stuff that you get ordered to the house. [laughs] It’s a little trickier.
The actor didn’t drop any of the curse words that he’d picked up since joining FBI: International, but apparently he’s learning more Hungarian the longer that he stays in Budapest. While there are tricky elements to making the move to Europe, he cited a filming experience that I now know was a reference to Epsidoe 3. Soffer went on:
Getting to film in Portugal and then Paris, there’s moments where you’re like, ‘I can’t believe I’m at work right now. My god, I’m on the coastline of some beach in Portugal. How is this real?’
The characters didn’t exactly get to fully appreciate that beach in Portugal while they were on the case of a missing teen girl on a trip from the United States, but that wasn’t the case for FBI: International‘s newest leading man. Having now seen the episode, I totally get what Jesse Lee Soffer meant about marveling that visiting a gorgeous beach in Portugal was part of his job. Talk about a change from the chilly temps that he’d be experiencing filming Chicago P.D. this time of year if he was still in One Chicago!
See what’s next for SSA Wes Mitchell with new episodes of FBI: International on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET, between FBI at 8 p.m. ET and FBI: Most Wanted at 10 p.m. ET on CBS. You can also watch episodes streaming next day with a subscription to Paramount+.
