NCIS Star Jennifer Esposito on the Quinn/Gibbs Relationship, Season 3 of The Affair, Celiac and More

NCIS kicked up its female power quotient this fall with the addition of Jennifer Esposito to the team in the role of Special Agent Alex Quinn. Quinn became a member after Gibbs (Mark Harmon) had rejected all the candidates she proposed to fill the slot that opened following the departure of Tony DiNozzo (Michael Weatherly).

“It all happened so fast, to be honest,” Esposito tells Parade.com in this exclusive interview. “They gave me the job, I think, three days before I had to be in L.A., and I lived in New York. So it was pretty incredible. It’s always nice to go into something that’s well established and that’s a well-oiled machine. It also can be nerve-wracking because the sand is set, people don’t like change sometimes. But I didn’t have much time to feel any of those things. It was just about getting the work done, showing up and doing my best.”

In the past, new additions to the NCIS team have been “probies,” like when Ziva David (Cote de Pablo) resigned from Mossad to become an NCIS, or when Ellie Bishop (Emily Wickersham) moved over from the NSA.  What makes Alex different, is she has been an NCIS agent for a while and has a history with Gibbs.

“There was no one that really went head-to-head with Gibbs, and she does,” Esposito says. “Hopefully, we’ll see more of that. I think that she is someone that can really take him on and really speak to him in a different way, more of a peer rather than his worker. I think if there were anybody that he was going to go and have a drink and chat with, it would be her.”

But that doesn’t mean that they are going to be an “item.” In fact, Esposito puts to rest those rumors saying, “I think they have a nice friendship, I really do. I think that’s sometimes better than if you have a thing and things go sour. They have a nice friendship, and I’d like to see that stay that way.”

On tonight’s Willoughby episode, the NCIS team searches for new leads after an undercover operation to apprehend a businessman who uses acts of terror to manipulate the stock market is compromised, and Clayton Reeves’ (Dwayne Henry) true identity is in jeopardy of being revealed.

But first, Esposito talks more about being cast as a cop, her role on The Affair, as well as more personal subjects, such as her Celiac diagnosis, what she has done to combat her health issue, her bakery Jennifer’s Way, and more.

Alex is a federal agent and you also played Jackie in Blue Bloods, who is a cop. Is there something that the two women have in common?

You know, it’s funny. I don’t know why I get cast that way a lot, I really don’t. It’s fun to do. I think they’re both strong women. They handle themselves well in that arena and they’re able to take charge. That’s something that they have in common. But other than that, I think they’re different at the core of who they are.

You actually have two series on the air. On Showtime’s The Affair, you play Noah’s sister, Nina, which is a completely different role. Tell me what it is you like about Nina. And is she like everyone else on the show, does she have her own secrets?

I love that show and love that character. Yeah, there’s many secrets Nina has  with Noah. They have a very full life that we haven’t seen. We’ve seen pieces of it, but they had a tough childhood with the mother being as sick as she was. Watching someone deteriorate before your eyes is not an easy thing. I don’t think Nina’s happy in her life and her marriage. She said it last season when she basically said not everybody gets what they want and you live in the world that you live in. She says, “I want to be married to Brad Pitt but that’s not happening.”

I think there’s a level of acceptance that Nina has adapted into her life to save herself. I don’t think she’s particularly happy where she is, but she’s in it and she has this life and she’s going to take it and be responsible for it, unlike Noah, who she thinks has been irresponsible and self-centered. I think there’s a lot more to Nina that we don’t know.

What role will she play in Noah’s life going forward? Or will they give her a bit of her own storyline?

I hope. I hope. A lot of people have asked and a lot of people like her, so maybe. It’d be great. When I got NCIS, we worked it out as much as possible. We’ll see where it goes in the future. But they’re done right now for the season, so I know I won’t be going back. I’m in one or two more episodes.

You’ve also created a website called Living Free.  Can you talk a little bit about your inspiration and why you wanted to share your knowledge with people?

I started JennifersWay.org seven years ago actually when I was diagnosed with Celiac disease. I was sick on and off and got diagnosed with an extreme case of Celiac disease and, actually, almost died. I started to heal and realized there was a lot of misinformation out there, so I started to take matters into my own hands. I wrote a book that became a New York Times bestseller called Jennifer’s Way.

Then I opened a bakery for people like me who, not only can’t eat gluten, but can’t eat dairy and have all these other allergens. But it’s also for people who just want to eat clean, to be able to have a treat, have some bread that isn’t loaded with chemicals that was  made in a better way. So that’s what I did. It’s been going now for almost five years. We have online ordering, we ship around the country. It’s been crazy.

So I changed the blog over to give it a fresher look and it’s now called Living Free Jennifer.  Hopefully, we’ll just keep going along in that direction. I’d love to start giving cooking demonstrations because that’s one of my real loves. I have a second book coming out in September.

Tell me about the new book.

It is a follow-up to Jennifer’s Way, which is more about how I discovered the illness. The second one is all about how I eat. People always ask me, “What do you eat? How do you eat?” I eat everything. I eat bread, I eat pasta. I just make everything myself and in a way that I can eat it without the gluten, the dairy and the soy. There’s everything in the book from how to make grain-free, vegan French toast and cupcakes to a great, healthy salmon. It’s all a bunch of recipes that really talk about why you’re eating these things, how to get information down, but still be able to enjoy your food.

I love food. This is like a cruel joke, this disease. It was like the worst thing you could possibly give me this disease. So, yeah, that’s my love story with food and how I’ve learned to live in this situation but still eat well.

Since you cook so much, do you take your own food to the set, or is crafts services able to accommodate you?

For me as a Celiac, one-eighth of a teaspoon of gluten and I’m on the floor. So, yeah, I make sure I have my lunch and snacks every day. I’ve brought in cupcakes and stuff so now other people are always saying, “Do you have any cupcakes today?” Actually, on Fridays, I keep getting asked for these cupcakes I make, so I have to make them because people are demanding that I bring some cookies in and cupcakes, so I’ll be making some stuff for this week.

NCIS  airs Tuesday nights at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.