Is Nick Torres (Wilmer Valderrama) going to have a new love interest in NCIS Season 22? It certainly sounds like that could be the case.
Valderrama was on The Talk on Thursday (October 10) to promote the new season (premiering Monday, October 14 at 8/7c and moving to its usual 9/8c time slot the following week), and host Sheryl Underwood suggested that the reason his character is “so grouchy” is because he needs love in his life (and she even has ideas about that herself).
“I will tell you that obviously you know somebody because it is happening this season,” Valderrama said in response. “I feel like he’s been through enough of a turmoil, and I think he’s learned a lot of hard lessons, and I think he’s ready to open up himself to something else.”
Torres hasn’t had the best luck with love; just look at the fact that he and Bishop (Emily Wickersham) didn’t kiss until she was leaving in the Season 18 finale! But given all that turmoil, something tells us that any love interest right now wouldn’t be without its challenges.
When NCIS returns, the premiere will “answer a lot” of the questions last season left fans with, Valderrama promised on The Talk. “It’s also going to set a tone for the theme of this season as well. You know that Torres has it in him, so he’s going to be a bad guy when this season opens.”
Torres is also dealing with the fact that Jessica Knight (Katrina Law) took a job on the West Coast as Chief REACT Training Officer.
“Poor Torres. Every time he gets a family member, they leave. So he’s like, ‘I’m going solo Torres again,’” executive producer Steven D. Binder told TV Insider as part of our Fall Preview. “He goes undercover with some bad people and it doesn’t work out well. He gets into a lot of trouble. He’s on this road of undercover loner, not really having relationships. Where does that road lead? We pair him up with a grizzled, hard-boiled private detective who is at the end of that road and is about to leave humanity behind and retire to some beach and drink himself to death. Is this Torres’ future or is he able to bring this guy back from the brink?”