‘The Equalizer’ Star Liza Lapira Looks Back on Her Memorable ‘NCIS’ Guest Role

Liza Lapira may play a sniper-turned-bar owner on CBS’ The Equalizer now, but before that, she was on another procedural on the network: NCIS. In the long-running show’s early days, the actress portrayed lawyer Michelle Lee in Seasons 4 and 6 and ended up turning against the agency in a plot twist not many saw coming. From being a trusted agent on Gibbs’ team to being a mole and framing a fellow agent all to save her sister, the role remains a memorable one, and Lapira is looking back at that time in an interview with TV Insider.

“It was great to have that twist. It was a surprise because I had just been written to be the lawyer. I was with the team for a tiny bit, and then I moved into the law portion of NCIS, and then I was going to be Brian [Dietzen]’s love interest,” Liza Lapira shared. “I got a call in [the sixth] season telling me what it was going to be. And it was just really exciting to come back and to get to do a big arc like that.”

The arc brought some damage to the team, especially to Mark Harmon’s Gibbs, as it took him a while to trust any more people after what had happened. It’s just one of many storylines that shocked fans, and to be bringing it back around just shows that it’s still a storyline that many can’t believe. Plus, the arc brought some special memories for Lapira and her mother, which is very sweet.

Discussing how genuine two of the stars are, Liza Lapira said, “Rocky Carroll is a gem. He’s just a gem. Mark Harmon is. I brought my mom to set, and as a birthday surprise for her, I just told her we were going somewhere, and Mark and Rocky said happy birthday to her and greeted her and just welcomed her with open arms.”

While Lapira is playing a more likable character these days alongside Queen Latifah, her role as Michelle Lee will forever be one of the best arcs and plot twists in NCIS‘ 20 seasons, and that is saying a lot considering how many twists and turns that show has had. It’s been well over 10 years since she was last on the series, and despite her character’s tragic fate, it sounds like the actress had the time of her life appearing on the show. Who wouldn’t?