{"id":704589,"date":"2026-06-15T01:38:16","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T01:38:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/704589\/"},"modified":"2026-06-15T01:38:16","modified_gmt":"2026-06-15T01:38:16","slug":"zeeko-zaki-on-leading-fbi-as-an-arab-american-muslim","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/704589\/","title":{"rendered":"Zeeko Zaki on Leading ‘FBI’ as an Arab-American Muslim"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tAccording to \u201cFBI<\/a>\u201d star Zeeko Zaki<\/a>, it\u2019s no longer shocking that an Arab-American Muslim is the lead in a TV show.\u00a0\u201cWhich was the goal, of course. But then, at the same time, I\u2019m still the only one,\u201d he told journalists at Monte-Carlo Television Festival<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThere\u2019s still a bigger fight for representation on TV. And there\u2019s still a bigger fight for balance in the world as a whole.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tPortraying an FBI agent is a responsibility, he said.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI was invited to speak with the FBI. These agents communicate with us constantly, and we know they approve of our show. We\u2019re doing it in an authentic enough way that the real FBI is a fan of the show.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tHe added: \u201cThe exciting thing about our show is that we\u2019re the only window into the FBI. They don\u2019t post videos on Instagram; their kids don\u2019t see what their parents do at work. This window opens up every Monday at 8 p.m. on CBS.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tIt\u2019s important to represent them properly, he argued, and to keep up with the ever-changing world.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI take it very seriously: physically, emotionally, mentally. We\u2019re now stepping into parts of the series now where we\u2019re showing a little weakness. You see me getting beaten up. It\u2019s not always this \u2018hero\u2019 thing,\u201d he noted.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIn the last episode that we filmed, my first line is: \u2018It\u2019s a total mess. Things weren\u2019t this bad when we signed up.\u2019 We\u2019re dealing with biochemicals, AI and drones. It does feel like we\u2019re moving so quickly into this new realm of terror. But that\u2019s the thing: these writers get inspiration from real things.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tWould \u201cFBI\u201d and \u201cLaw & Order\u201d producer Dick Wolf<\/a> consider making a show about ICE?<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cCorrect me if I\u2019m wrong, but the birth of ICE is controversial. Also, I think it\u2019s maybe too new. I don\u2019t know if ICE is going to be around in the next generation, and Dick doesn\u2019t think about right now. He thinks about the show ripping on TV in 40 years.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tWhen Zaki first got the part, he was down to his last $300 and contemplating a career in real estate.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI was watching \u2018Property Brothers,\u2019 looking for the career that requires the least amount of schooling but can earn the most money, so that I can help my parents,\u201d he recalled.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cLater, I would sit with these CBS execs, asking: \u2018Are we coming back next year?!\u2019 They were like: \u2018Why are you stressing about this? The show\u2019s working, everything\u2019s great.\u2019 But I was the last to believe it would be on for 10 years \u2013 just out of self-preservation.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tNow, he\u2019s finally comfortable enough to consider the future.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cLook at what Mariska [Hargitay] did with 27 seasons [of \u2018Law & Order: Special Victims Unit\u2019]. She has her charities and it makes you wonder: How do we help?\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tDeveloping stories \u201cthat aren\u2019t being told\u201d might just be the answer, as might setting up his own production company.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThat\u2019s definitely the goal. I\u2019m really excited to be with Dick Wolf for probably the entirety of my career, regardless of what happens. We\u2019ve expressed that to each other. I\u2019m a loyal team player, but it\u2019s cool to see the things other actors have been able to do while remaining part of their teams.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tHe added: \u201cI come from a world where I\u2019ve seen people\u2019s careers start and end like this. I would still like to stay as undercover as possible, because I believe in the evil eye. I\u2019ve really enjoyed staying off social media and out of the public eye, and I like the idea of giving the audience the experience of seeing me only when that TV comes on.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIf you\u2019re making TikToks, you\u2019re not working. You\u2019re not doing what you\u2019re being paid to do. I pop on to post about the show, but I\u2019m not going to post [pictures of] my toast in the morning. When my phone tells me I\u2019ve been on it for eight hours, I go: What are you talking about?! That\u2019s crazy.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"According to \u201cFBI\u201d star Zeeko Zaki, it\u2019s no longer shocking that an Arab-American Muslim is the lead in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":704590,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57],"tags":[236,197827,88,2765,304381,304382],"class_list":["post-704589","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-celebrities","tag-dick-wolf","tag-entertainment","tag-fbi","tag-monte-carlo-television-festival","tag-zeeko-zaki"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/704589","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=704589"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/704589\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/704590"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=704589"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=704589"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=704589"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}