
Daniela Ruah earned her directing stripes on ‘NCIS: LA,’ and she’s bringing that to tonight’s episode of ‘The Equalizer.’
Daniela Ruah developed her directing chops on NCIS: Los Angeles and then expanded to NCIS and NCIS: Hawaii. But tonight, she’s broadening her horizons outside of the franchise that made her star and taking over the reins at The Equalizer for the upcoming episode “Deception.”
“It was actually a very seamless transition,” Ruah tells Parade. “We put the work in and made calls and told people, ‘I’m available, I’d love to direct on your show.’ Then for The Equalizer, we’re talking about a genre that is also procedural, so it’s definitely in my comfort zone. I would love to start working outside of that, as well as maintaining the procedural world because I love it. It’s what I know best obviously. So it wasn’t that far-fetched of a step.”
It didn’t hurt that Ruah had previously met Queen Latifah when she was hosting her talk show, and knew The Equalizer showrunner Joe Wilson from his days as a staff writer on NCIS: LA. But it was also a matter of timing and experience.
“People have to know they’re going to have another season. They have to put their list of directors together,” Ruah points out. “When they’ve never met you, as much as they may like you or hear good things about you, that doesn’t necessarily translate into you’re good at doing the directing part of the job. It’s putting in the work to show people that you know what you’re talking about and you’re perfectly capable of taking on the challenge.”
On tonight’s “Deception” episode, Robin McCall (Latifah) decides to take the day off equalizing and spend quality time with Delilah (Laya DeLeon), while the team suspects Aunt Vi’s (Lorraine Touissant) friend Evelyn (Michael Michele) is being taken advantage of by a con man.
“It is an episode that is dedicated to personal stories,” Ruah says. “It is a very character-driven episode, which I absolutely love. When I first met the writer, before I read the script, he told me there’s not a whole lot of action going on in this one. At first, I was disappointed. Then I read the episode, and I realized that I was touching upon the personal lives of multiple characters. There’s kind of a theme that goes throughout it of women being affected by different situations that leave them feeling ashamed of whatever that situation is. And then coming out of it on the other side. It’s quite a lovely episode.”
So, while Ruah was familiar with the procedural aspect of The Equalizer, the one thing that was different was filming in New York City after shooting on the streets of Los Angeles for NCIS and NCIS: Los Angeles.
“The East Coast is just something I adore,” says the Boston-born actor and director, who now makes her home in L.A. “To be filming on the streets of New York, I don’t care what anybody says, the natural light is just different than it is here. It’s just different. It’s grittier. You know you’re in New York when you’re filming there. Even if you don’t see buildings and architecture that establishes the location, you just feel like you’re on the East Coast, and I love it.”
And as much as Ruah enjoys directing, she is still committed to her acting career. One is not an alternative to the other. Although, she may not want to sign on to another series that runs for 14 years. That said, during her time on NCIS: LA, it was perfect for the stage of life that she was in at the time because it afforded her the chance to get married and start her family.
“I love them both deeply,” she says of acting and directing. “I love working with actors, whether it’s with them on camera or with them behind the camera. I’m just that silly person who loves this business. I don’t care if I’m holding a microphone or a boom or the camera itself. I just love being a part of making something magical that makes somebody at home feel something big or relate to or angry or sad.”