FBI Post-Mortem: John Boyd Breaks Down Scola and Nina’s Complex Relationship

September 27, 2022 by Marisa Roffman

Courtesy of Universal Television and CBS Studios.

[Warning: This post contains spoilers for the Tuesday, September 27 episode of FBI, “Love is Blind.”]

Surprise! (Ish.) FBI’s Scola (John Boyd) and Nina (Shantel VanSanten) have rekindled their relationship.

The duo first hooked up prior to working together, but had (seemingly) kept things professional since. But it was revealed in the opening of the Tuesday, September 27 episode, “Love Is Blind,” the agents had reunited…and it instantly caused mayhem while working together.

At first, the conflict was small-scale: Scola wanted the duo to drive to the crime scene together; Nina declined. But then Scola went above and beyond to cover Nina during a gunfight…and strongly objected to her going undercover, going as far as trying to volunteer himself.

After a traumatic end to the case—a young girl was killed after going on a crime-spree with her boyfriend, which culminated in her taking hostages—the duo quietly held hands at the crime scene.

Later, Nina apologized to Scola. “It was really tough today, watching those kids throw their lives away,” she said. “It’s like you said, they’re doubling down and just making bad decision after bad decision.”

“Love will do that,” Scola acknowledged. But, they both admitted, the day had started out fun.

So what comes next? Boyd talked with Give Me My Remote about “Love Is Blind,” Scola’s struggling with this new possible relationship, and more…

Scola and Nina! At this point, what are his feelings toward Nina, and how is that potentially complicating their relationship?
If there’s anything we know about Scola, it’s that the last thing he planned for would be to be smitten over another agent at work. I mean, that is not the life that he built for himself. I think it’s really interesting at the beginning of the episode, when she wants to take separate cars to the crime scene, I think he’s very much, “Okay, fine. No problem. Of course, yeah, I get it. No pressure.” But as the episode progresses, he’s sort of more finding himself more instinctually protective.

It’s a different situation to be caring about someone, in that way, in those situations, which is just such new territory for him. It’s such an interesting storyline for him, because he’s just not the guy who ever planned to open his heart that way.

We saw a couple of moments in the episode where he prioritized Nina over protocol. How is he going to balance his head versus his heart going forward?
I think that’s something that the episode really explores: Is there such a thing as balancing that? Can you do that? It’s really about the things that we do for love. And we’re teetering in this place, having feelings for someone—it’s such an interesting the final scene…[with] them talking about the case, but they’re talking about themselves.

Going forward…he thinks he’s a good enough agent that he’s not worried about taking some risks here and there, and being protective. I think that’s something that people kind of have to do all the time. The only difference is that he’s doing it for this thing that he’s feeling. [Laughs.]

One of the moments where he was protective was private. The other…not so much. How much is the team becoming aware of the changing dynamic between Scola and Nina?
[Laughs.] Gotta love your team. I mean, the team is so supportive. I think the team knows exactly what’s going on in that moment. Which I love that—I love when one of us is kind of [does something], and then everyone knows. “Okay, yeah, we got something going on. He’s got something going on with this one. Okay, we got your back, dude.”

The team is background supportive, but, obviously, they’re not up to date on the exact, nitty gritty detail.

As you noted, he’s not the kind of guy to normally do this. Is he concerned at all about their reaction?
He’s sort of not thinking about that. I think he has feelings and he’s reacting. I think he’s reacting in the moment with his heart, which is such an interesting place to see him, because he’s just not that way. He’s not that way.

Courtesy of Universal Television and CBS Studios

Looking to that final moment, Scola and Nina talk about love in the context of the fugitive couple, but there’s obviously the parallel at play to their own dynamic. In your mind, does he think it’s love, yet, or is that just something they might be bumping against?
Yeah, I think he’s bumping against, “I don’t know what this is.” When his heart starts opening, I don’t think he knows what that is. He’s finds himself doing things and saying things and wanting things that he never has before, really.

But it’s so interesting, the way that this show tells stories of these agents that do this job. Something about him is that he’s always felt that that life—[with] a full, a real, intimate loving relationship—is something that’s reserved for other people. Like so many of us, it’s so relatable. And I think he’s one of those people that it’s like, “This is the job I chose. This is what I do. I do it well. I give everything to this. And that thing about human life is reserved for other people. I don’t really get to have it.”

How much will the Nina/Scola of it all be playing in the next batch of episodes? [Editor’s note: The October 4th episode will be the originally planned season 4 finale, which was pre-empted in May.]
We definitely have a major revisit. They will absolutely revisit “What is this? What is this about?” for sure.

The show has never been shy about doing action scenes, but you’ve had a couple of intense ones in the first couple of episodes…
The thing I love about our show is that our audience knows how hard we’re working in those scenes. They know. I always related [it] to fake eating—when you watch old films, and people were allowed to fake eat and fake chew; it was an accepted form of storytelling. And then there became a time where like, that’s not okay, we don’t do that; you actually need to eat. I feel the same way about action scenes.

If your blood is not pumping, if you’re running to chase a perp for a block, you need a run like you’re trying to catch him. We don’t jog around. I love doing the action scenes. It’s so fun. We just have an awesome team, stunt coordinators. And [the team is finding] new ways to shoot them, always. They’re always raising the bar of how to make it look interesting and put us in situations. It’s really fun to do them.

For you as a performer, do you have a different approach when it’s something more contained (a la the premiere with the bomb threat) or if it’s on the streets in public, when there’s also onlookers, etc., to contend with?
Yes. There’s two shows going on [when we’re in a public space], which I love. I mean, getting to do a Dick Wolf show in New York City—New York City is one of the characters. So the onlookers and the looky-loos and the people stopping and watching everything we’re doing, it just makes it so it’s like getting to do live theater of a show. I love that part.

FBI, Tuesdays, 8/7c, CBS

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