Emotional Farewell: FBI: International Star Opens Up About Unexpected Cancellation

Jesse Lee Soffer joined FBI: International in its fourth season, which would also turn out to be the show’s last. He played Wesley Mitchell, the Fly Team’s new leader, following the previous leader’s departure. FBI: International aired its series finale on Tuesday, May 20, marking the end for the second scripted spin-off in Dick Wolf‘s FBI universe. The show’s ending was an emotional affair for the cast members, many of whom have been on it since its inception. It was no less emotional for Lee Soffer, who brought fresh energy to the show’s last outing. FBI: International allowed him to travel all over Eurasia playing Wes, giving him a whirlwind of a time. “What a year,” the actor said in his farewell message on his Instagram account after the show’s conclusion. He shared photos from filming episodes of the show with the caption below:

“What a year. What a journey. 6000 miles away. Over 25,000 miles traveled. New friends. Old friends. Loss. Love. Immense focus. Deep appreciation for the lessons that come with putting all of your energy towards a project. So much growth. I’m very grateful. Thank you for going on the journey with me. 💙 #fbiinternational”

‘FBI: International’ Was a Great Time for Jesse Lee Soffer

Many viewers are familiar with the actor from his time on the NBC drama, Chicago P.D. FBI: International reunited Lee Soffer with some people he had worked with before, since Wolf’s production company worked on both shows. “When the opportunity came up, it was obviously Wolf and Matt Olmstead, who wrote the beginning of [Chicago] P.D., who was the showrunner originally for the first five seasons of Chicago P.D. And so I was like, ‘Oh, this is going to be awesome. I get to carve out a new character with Matt. I get to travel to Budapest.’ There’s so much cool in this gig,” he told Screen Rant why he took the role.

Jay Hayden joined the show later in the season, playing Special Agent Tyler Booth. This addition was exciting for Lee Soffer because he and Hayden have been friends for a long time. “I got one of my best friends in the world, Jay Hayden, who was on Station 19 most recently, coming to do a big, fun arc playing a character from Wes’ past… Jay and I have a really fun dynamic that I hope comes through on camera,” he told TV Insider. Booth and Wes got into some run-ins before the show ended, some fun, others not so fun.