AGAINST THE TYPE: HOW ZEEKO ZAKI BECAME THE HERO HE ONCE NEEDED TO SEE

INTERVIEW BY IRVIN RIVERA

PHOTOGRAPHER: HANNAH ROZELLE, STYLING: MERSI KASEMI, MAKEUP: JOJO MCCARTHY, HAIR: MICHAEL ZAMBRANO, PRODUCER: PHIL LIMPRASERTWONG, PHOTO ASST: CHLOE COPPS

Jacket: SANDRO, Turtleneck: HUGO BOSS, Pants: GSTAR, Jewelry: ALEXANDER MCQUEEN, shoes: THE ROW

ZEEKO ZAKI knows a thing or two about standing outside a door that refuses to open. For years, Hollywood seemed to see him through a keyhole, offering only a narrow glimpse of who he could be. Just as he was about to walk away from acting, that door finally opened. On the other side was a badge, a leading role, and the chance to redefine what an American hero looks like. In CBS's FBI, the acclaimed crime procedural created by Dick Wolf and Craig Turk, Zaki stars as Special Agent Omar Adom “OA” Zidan alongside Missy Peregrym, Jeremy Sisto, Alana de la Garza, and John Boyd. What began as a career-changing opportunity became something far more meaningful: an Egyptian-American Muslim actor stepping into the spotlight as the hero, challenging stereotypes while quietly rewriting his own story. Perhaps the most remarkable part of his journey is not how far he has come, but what surprised him most along the way: “That someone actually did imagine me differently.”

Nearly nine seasons later, the badge fits like a second skin, but Zaki knows that even the most familiar roles leave room for discovery. He can clear a room, shout “FBI, stop!” without missing a beat, and decipher the subtle hand gestures of longtime costar Missy Peregrym, which, he jokes, mostly mean she wants him to shut up. Beneath the action sequences and easy humor, however, is a man still learning to navigate the delicate balance between confidence and humility, ambition and gratitude, conviction and compromise. As OA ventures into morally uncertain territory, Zaki reflects on his own evolution, the enduring responsibility of representation, the beauty of friendships that defy romantic expectations, and the strange vulnerability of finally having everything you once hoped for. He playfully calls this chapter of his life “Don’t F*ck It Up.” Yet behind the laughter lies a quietly profound lesson from someone who nearly surrendered his dream before it came true: “If you are about to give up, you might be just where you are supposed to be.”

Jacket: SANDRO, Turtleneck: HUGO BOSS, Pants: GSTAR, Jewelry: ALEXANDER MCQUEEN, shoes: THE ROW

Before this show, you've spoken about being typecast and reaching a point where acting wasn't necessarily reassuring you that it would work out. Then this role arrives, and suddenly you're leading a network series. When you look back at the actor who was still trying to convince the industry to imagine him differently, what would surprise that version of you most about the life you're living now?

That someone actually did imagine me differently. I took a bet on myself and believed that someone would one day take a bet on me. I was close to giving up, but I have always heard stories about actors hitting rock bottom and being about to give up, then hitting their big break. So if you are about to give up, you might be just where you are supposed to be.

Zeeko: Full look: SANDRO, Ring: ALEXANDER MCQUEEN, Watch: GRAND SEIKO, Missy: Dress: BOTTEGA VENETA, Gloves: ARITZIA, Ring: BUKGARI, Earrings: KHAITE, Boots: CHANEL

When FBI began, there was enormous significance in seeing an Egyptian-American Muslim man at the center of a major network procedural as the hero rather than the threat. You spoke very consciously about that responsibility at the time. Nine seasons later, has that responsibility become lighter because we've seen more representation, or do you feel it differently now?

I think the responsibility is as great as ever. We have seen more, but not enough. And the world has a beautiful way of taking one step forward and two steps back. So the fight for representation is as great as ever.

Do young Arab or Muslim actors ever tell you they grew up watching OA? And what is it like realizing you've now become something you didn't have when you were growing up?

There have been a few, but even more messages from fans about watching and feeling so much pride in seeing someone who looks like them. It’s an honor to be able to be that.

Full look: SANDRO, Shoes: CHURCH, Ring: ALEXANDER MCQUEEN, Watch: GRAND SEIKO

There's something unusual about your relationship with OA because FBI was your first major leading role at essentially the same moment OA himself was finding his footing within this team. How much of the confidence we've watched OA acquire over the years is actually the confidence Zeeko acquired as an actor?

All of it. I was so lucky to get a show where I could grow the character at the same time I got to grow as an actor. But if people want to just think it’s because I was good at acting new, then that’s okay too.

You've now performed hundreds of hours as this character. What part of acting has become instinctive for you that used to require real concentration in season one and what are you still trying to get better at?

The character is second nature at this point, and so are things like clearing houses and yelling, “FBI, stop!” But at the same time, every day feels like the first, and it’s so exciting to try new things and see if they work. So we’re always trying to find places to do that, which keeps everything fresh for us and the audience.

One of the defining things about OA has always been his very clear sense of right and wrong. But the end of Season 8 deliberately pushes him into a world where people in authority aren't necessarily behaving ethically. As an actor, is OA more interesting to you when you're allowed to put cracks in that certainty?

Getting to play those cracks, sure, but the interesting part is holding onto the values no matter what and trying to do/act that. That was super fun. If there are cracks, they are not that deep.

Missy: Trench Coat: BALENCIAGA, Earrings: KHAITE, Shoes: DIOR, Zeeko: Jacket: SANDRO, Turtleneck: HUGO BOSS, Pants: GSTAR, Jewelry and Scarf: ALEXANDER MCQUEEN, Shoes: THE ROW

Now he's undercover with the very people whose methods he rejected. How do you play someone who has to convincingly become something he despises without losing the part of him that knows it's a performance?

We are pros at compartmentalization, so getting to play that and carve out places to show the struggle and others to show the strength were exciting to find.

When this began, you said that Missy's experience was invaluable to you. You were learning not only how to lead a show but how to survive the pace of making one. Looking at your relationship with her now, what has changed most between those two actors who met in season one?

Well, now I teach her things. Like how to flip the camera around to take a selfie and what videos on Instagram are A.I. So we have found our balance.

After nearly nine years beside someone, you stop noticing the obvious lessons and start absorbing smaller things. Is there something about the way Missy works, how she prepares, how she treats a scene, how she handles a set, that has quietly become part of the actor you are?

All of the above. She is really such a pro at this, and everything I do now was truly learned by watching her.

Jacket: SANDRO, Turtleneck: HUGO BOSS, Pants: GSTAR, Jewelry: ALEXANDER MCQUEEN, shoes: THE ROW

By now, you two have spent an extraordinary number of hours running, fighting, arguing, sitting in cars, interviewing suspects, and simply standing beside one another as Maggie and OA. Do you ever get into a scene now and realize that you and Missy are communicating almost entirely through shorthand?

I’ve spent more time with Missy than anyone else ever… so of course. It’s mostly her using her short hands to tell me to shut up, but I think that’s the same thing, right?

You've described Maggie and OA as loving each other without needing to turn that love into a sexual relationship. What does their relationship allow you to say about friendship between men and women that television sometimes forgets to show?

That there is a massively unexplored realm in non-sexual friendships. Think about it. There’s a lot you tell your friends that you don’t tell your partner… so getting to see that played out on screen is needed.

Missy: Trench Coat: BALENCIAGA, Earrings: KHAITE, Shoes: DIOR, Zeeko: Jacket: SANDRO, Turtleneck: HUGO BOSS, Pants: GSTAR, Jewelry and Scarf: ALEXANDER MCQUEEN, Shoes: THE ROW

You entered this show at a moment when your career was essentially beginning a completely new chapter, and you've now spent almost a decade inside it. If you had to title the chapter of your life you're in today—not OA's chapter, yours—what would you call it?

This would be the chapter “Don’t F*ck It Up.” We have a really good thing going, and now I just have one job… not to f*ck it up.

And lastly, if you were a book, what book would you be, and why?

I’m not sure, but if my life were a book, I just hope the reader enjoys it.