While some may still know Wilmer Valderrama best for playing Fez for the entirety of That ‘70s Show (plus a few episodes of the short-lived follow-up That ‘90s Show), at this point he’s been playing Special Agent Nick Torres on NCIS for a lot longer. He joined the series in Season 14, i.e. 10 years ago, to occupy the spot once filled Michael Weatherly’s Tony DiNozzo. But as it turns out, Valderrama could have joined this procedural franchise years earlier, as he was up for a key role in NCIS: Los Angeles.
The actor discussed this near-entry point while visiting Partners & Probies to speak with his NCIS co-stars Brian Dietzen and Diona Reasonover, who respectively Jimmy Palmer and Kasie Hines. While discussing his NCIS origins (not to be confused with the prequel NCIS: Origins), Valderrama shared these details about how the Los Angeles spinoff came into his orbit:
Maybe two or three years before that, I had an opportunity and I met with showrunners of NCIS: Los Angeles. I wasn't ready, and that show configuration, I think Chris O’Donnell and LL Cool J were doing such a great job. They were looking for somebody opposite Dani [Ruah].
Brian Dietzen then clarified that Wilmer Valderrama was referring to the role of Marty Deeks, who Eric Christian Olsen was ultimately cast to play. Valderrama’s timeline is a little off then, as Olsen first recurred as Deeks in two NCIS: Los Angeles Season 1 episodes in April 2010, and then was promoted to series regular in Season 2. Valderrama first appeared as Nick Torres in the NCIS Season 14 premiere, which aired in September 2016.
That aside, it is fascinating to think about a version of NCIS: Los Angeles where Wilmer Valderrama played Marty Deeks for 13 years instead. So what stopped him from taking the role? Valderrama continued:
And I had a meeting there. It was a beautiful meeting, really great. They had a really great creative [direction] for the character. There were some other things that I really wanted to see through. And so the timing was off for me to consider that. And then a year later, I said to myself, ‘If I'm ever going to do an NCIS, I just got to do the mothership.’… But that was my first reaction. So initially I was like, I feel like I’d rather go to a place where either they need me or I want to start something fresh and new.
I think most NCIS: Los Angeles fans would probably agree that this all worked out for the best. Eric Christian Olsen’s portrayal of Marty Deeks was one of the best aspects of the spinoff, particularly as viewers watched him and Daniela Ruah’s Kensi Blye go from bickering partners to a married couple with an adopted child. As for Wilmer Valderrama, him agreeing to star in NCIS was certainly “fresh and new” both for his career and the show itself. Joining the popular procedural helped people who were only familiar with his comedic work view him in a different light, and Nick Torres entrance marked a new era for the show following Michael Weatherly’s exit.
Continue following along with Nick Torres’ exploits on NCIS Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on CBS. Season 23 is in its final stretch of episodes, and Season 24 will premier sometime in the fall. If you’d like to revisit NCIS: Los Angeles, it can be streamed with a Paramount+ subscription alongside all the franchise’s other shows.
