Watch Video: An Inside Look at Charlie's FBI Training
This week's
Numbers episode, "Checkmate" - written by Robert Port and directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal - finds Charlie Eppes sent to FBI training... finally. This is a storyline I've been anxiously waiting to perform since the inception of the series. When a show like this is pitched to an actor, the actor's mind races through all the possible storylines for his character. This is a storyline that I thought would have been written earlier in our run, and I've been encouraging our writers to flesh out the idea for four seasons now. Finally Robert Port was good enough to make an "old" actor happy. (I'll be 30 in five weeks - eek!)
Charlie's curiosity gets the best of him and he requests to be sent to FBI training in the hopes that he may learn more about the intricacies of FBI work, and thus form a greater kinship with his brother and the other agents. Factored in (no pun intended) is the fact that Charlie has been shot at twice, pursued in a high-speed car chase, and has faced general danger scenarios at different points throughout his consultation with the FBI. So it's high time that he learn to defend himself. What Mr. Port wrote was an absolutely hilarious storyline, true to what would probably happen if a young mathematician had a gun put in his hand.
The three scenarios are High Pursuit Tactical Driving, Prisoner Take Down & Escort, and the Gun Range. When you are one of the youngest cast members on an action-packed show and you never get to see your fair share of the action, it's a great release when it finally happens. Needless to say, your boy was super-psyched! This was the most fun I've probably ever had on the show, and I hope that spirit comes across in the performance.
To start, we filmed the High Pursuit Driving. A stunt double would film the exterior shot in my place... but no need. The interior shot with me at the helm and the FBI instructor in the passenger seat was filmed as I haphazardly navigated the actual driving course. I didn't hit a single cone or cardboard cutout (except when the scene called for it). It was awesome, high-adrenaline and way too much fun. Watch a clip:
Next we shot the Prisoner Take Down. I decided to do my own stunt, which required that I be flipped over an FBI agent's knee and slammed onto a gym mat. I thought I was being brave, but in retrospect I was just being plain stupid. That dude slammed me hard! My head snapped back and I saw stars, as is evidenced by the actual shot of the moment used in the final cut. Please enjoy my glorious moment of unadulterated shock, embarrassment and pain.
The Gun Range was Charlie's comeback. After being humiliated in the other events, he triumphantly rises to the occasion by shooting the hell out of his target à la "Gomer Pyle" in
Full Metal Jacket. Albeit exhilarating, guns are not my thing. I'm a pacifist... and hopefully so is Charlie. The whole experience was a blast. I hope it makes you laugh. Getting to do some comedy in the midst of crime-solving was a great opportunity. I hope they let me do it again.
Watch outtakes from the driving sequence (contains expletives):
