Sam Hanna (LL Cool J) finds himself on the wrong side of the law on Monday’s episode of NCIS: Los Angeles, when he’s arrested and charged with murder.

The victim is a woman who has a connection to Sam’s time in the military, but as Callen (Chris O’Donnell) and the rest of the team work to clear his name, they uncover some tidbits about Sam’s past — and start to question if it’s possible that he’s not innocent after all.

“We say, ‘There’s just no way,'” O’Donnell, who directed the episode, tells TVGuide.com. “But then, as they take him away and we start to investigate, we find out that his DNA is all over the crime scene and there’s a lot of evidence pointing in his direction. Obviously this becomes very personal for the team, trying to defend one of our own.”

For O’Donnell, stepping behind the camera came with its own challenges, but was an opportunity he embraced.

“For me, it’s such a great way to mix up the season,” he says. “To suddenly get involved behind the camera and work with half of our crew who I don’t see on a day-to-day basis — the people that are building the sets and scouting the locations and that sort of thing — that’s great. And I particularly love the post-production aspect of it, getting into the editing room and being able to have an impact on making sure that the beats that were important to me when I read the script, and that I think helped to tell the story, get in. … It just gives you great appreciation for how hard everyone’s working, because it’s really easy sometimes to sit back as an actor to sit back and think, ‘Well, why am I waiting? Why aren’t we rolling right now?’ It’s like, well, you know, a lot of people are working on this and a lot of things had to come together for this to work so smoothly. It’s easy to take that for granted.

“I love having an episode that has to do with Sam stuff as well,” O’Donnell adds, “because it just gives me a chance to boss around [LL Cool J] all day, which is really fun for me.”

Though he assures that fans shouldn’t be concerned about Callen and Sam’s friendship being in jeopardy, O’Donnell says the incident does make Callen see his partner in a new light.

“Hetty and Sam are really the only family that Callen has in the world,” he notes. “Having that companionship and having someone who is busting your chops and you can give a hard time to all the time, it’s a great friendship. And when somebody you’re that close to is brought up on charges of murder and you start to investigate and look into the evidence, and it’s all pointing to him, and it’s stuff that’s hard to refute, it’s DNA, it really challenges your level of trust and your belief in whether or not someone would be capable of doing something like that.”

The episode also features an intense fight scene involving Sam that O’Donnell calls “one of the best ones we’ve ever done, in kind of an unusual location, to say the least.”

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This Monday on NCIS: Los Angeles (CBS, 10/9c), the episode title – “SEAL Hunter” – could not be more apt, as Sam is arrested for the murder of a woman, the deck improbably stacked against him. Will Callen & Co. be able to salvage their colleague’s good name? Chris O’Donnell spoke with TVLine about directing this intense episode, which features one of the high-octane series’ most unique fight scenes, as well as shared his thoughts on the NCIS crossover he’d most like to see.

TVLINE | Talk about the set-up for this episode. What’s the main narrative thrust?
Sam has been taken in, accused of murder, which has left the team in disbelief. And as we investigate it, his DNA is all over the crime scene, everything is against him…. Needless to say, it makes it a very personal episode for everyone.

TVLINE | Well, it was good having LL on the show all these years. He had a nice run.
[Joking along] It was nice. I thought he would stay for a little longer, but we got five-and-a-quarter seasons out of him. [Laughs] But no, there is something bigger and more ominous at play, and it ends up with one of the best fight scenes we’ve done thus far on the show, and in an unusual location, which was kind of fun. Todd [aka LL Cool J] just nailed it, which was great.

TVLINE | And Callen is partnered with Granger during the investigation?
Yes – and you know, I don’t get a ton of scenes one-on-one with him in general, and I really enjoy Miguel [Ferrer] personally. He’s also such a talented actor, I relish any chance I get to spend time interacting with him. I spend so much time with Todd every day — and I love him, he’s my man — but it’s fun to mix it up and have scenes with Linda [Hunt], and Miguel….

TVLINE | That was actually my next question: What are your favorite dynamics to play on the show?Between the Lines
I really enjoy the scenes with Linda, with the whole exploration of Callen’s family history. Hetty seems to definitely know more than she lets on, and this thing has agonized Callen his whole life, the struggle to understand his background. And though you will read a script and hear the words in your head, you can never guess how it’s going to come out of [Linda’s] mouth. She has such a command of the language and a unique spin on things, so that’s always a pleasure. And the scenes that are my bread-and-butter, of course, are with Todd. We sit there on set just busting each other’s chops all day long, so then to get in there [and do a scene as Callen and Sam]…. It’s not too far-fetched from what we’re doing anyways!

TVLINE | What was the most interesting challenge in directing this particular episode?
The most daunting thing was trying to coordinate this big fight scene. We had a huge day filming, outside, with 100 extras. And then at the end of that day, after Todd had already had a big day of filming, he had to do this massive fight sequence, and he rose to the challenge. I always said, “Once we get through that day, this episode’s a piece of cake,” and that kind of was the case. I’ve learned from directing in the past that so much of it is your prep work beforehand. The more work you out in those eight days of preparation, the easier it is when you get on the set.

TVLINE | TV is seeing some truly great stunt work these says, on shows such as Arrow and Banshee, and NCIS: LA obviously films a lot of great action sequences…. What do you find is most integral to capturing a fight scene?
We have a terrific stunt coordinator, Troy Brown; I’m actually surprised he doesn’t get more recognition. But there are guys that have worked on the Batman films I did, everyone we bring in is the best… But like anything, it’s about the preparation. I remember when I was doing Three Musketeers, there was the repetition, day after day, going through these sword fights with Bob Anderson, who did the Stars Wars movies and Raiders of the Lost Ark. I think [a fight scene] is Todd’s favorite thing to do, because of who is and his physicality. Me, I would much rather have a five-page scene with Linda Hunt, but Todd really relishes it. I’ve had to do it a couple of times, but boy, you don’t want to be opposite Todd even for a staged fight! He is very physical.

TVLINE | What I like, especially from a close-quarters fight, is a variety of camera angles, so I can appreciate what exactly is going on. I need to see limbs flying, have a sense of who is where.
Wait until you see this one – we have a couple shots that are anything but tight, because the setting was so unique and beautiful.

TVLINE | The NCIS franchiseNCIS Season 12 Weatherly Re-Signs is a bit crossover- happy these days, and Rocky Carroll’s Vance even returned to LA earlier this season. Anybody else you’d like to have swing by?
We’ve got to get [Michael] Weatherly over. It’s funny: When we were filming this episode, he was driving down the street randomly. We were at a deli on location, and all of a sudden this [SUV] pulls over and it’s Weatherly. It’s kind of like your long-lost cousin you haven’t seen in a while! He came in like, “I’m coming on this year!” I was like, “Great, let’s do it!” I just enjoy him as a person. He’s very quick-witted, so it’d be a lot of fun.

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WHEN A MAN IS MURDERED BY A DRONE, THE TEAM DISCOVERS HE WAS CONNECTED TO A TERRORIST GROUP THAT IS PLANNING ANOTHER LOCAL ATTACK, ON “NCIS: LOS ANGELES,” MONDAY, NOV. 10

“Leipei” – When a man is murdered by a small drone, the team discovers his connection to a terrorist group that is planning another local attack. With time running short, Nell must use her drone expertise to try to divert a disaster in Long Beach, on NCIS: LOS ANGELES, Monday, Nov. 10 (9:59-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.

CHEAT TWEET: It’s up to Nell to save the port of Long Beach from a drone attack!! @NCISLA_CBS @reneefsmith 11/10 9:59pm

NCIS: Los Angeles is known more for being a high stakes/action-packed drama than a comedy.

But after my recent chat with stars Renée Felice Smith (Nell) and Barrett Foa (Eric), it was easy to see that the intensity of the job is not following these two off the set when they’re doing a full day of press side by side.

Trust me, their collective bubbliness was a very good thing for a lively chat to talk not only about what we’ll see in NCIS Los Angeles Season 6 Episode 4, but also to show just how much fun they’re having working on the popular CBS series.

The twosome talked about Nell’s road to recovery from her first kill, how Nate Getz’s return will stir things up and whether we’re going to be seeing any movement in the Nell/Eric relationship. Let’s see what they had to say…
Nell Needs Help – NCIS: Los Angeles

TV Fanatic: Nell is in such a fragile place. Can you talk about what we’re going to see her go through?

Renée Felice Smith: Basically, in the last episode she had to defend herself and she had to shoot one of our baddies and we’re going to see her grapple with that decision and she’s really on the fence about returning to work and whether this is the line of work she wants to be in. So she’s in that fragile, shaken state and…

Barrett Foa: And you know it’s serious because she’s not picking up the phone when Eric Beale calls.

RFS: That’s right! In one of the scenes, Eric leaves her a voicemail and she won’t even pick it up so things are rough for poor Nell but Nate Getz, our good friend and psychologist, comes in to assess her and sees if she’s up for it. And eventually Hetty has a conversation with her about her future at NCIS.

TVF: Do you think what she’s going through is like a rite of passage for anyone in that job?

RFS: I would think so! That’s all I can do is put myself in the character’s shoes so I would say that would probably be the biggest hurdle in your line of work and see if this is really something you want to do and if you can handle it.

TVF: Barrett, what is Eric’s piece in this?

BF: [Nell is] on her own and he’s kind of holding down the fort alone and he’s trying to be there for his friend and co-worker but he’s getting some radio silence so he knows it’s pretty serious.

TVF: Do you think Eric understands what she’s going through or is this foreign even for him?

BF: It’s absolutely foreign territory for him, certainly, but he’s seen the other agents go through it and now he sees his closest friend at work going through it so I think that affects him at an ever deeper level. But it’s high stakes and we’re defending our country and defending our lives so he knows it’s all a risk. As we’ll see down the line in a couple of episode, Eric has to defend himself. Our headquarters is infiltrated and there’s a mole inside the office…and not the animal kind!

RFS: These people are under high stress situations at work, which is something we normal folk really have as a luxury! These people are really doing amazing work for our country.

TVF: Nate is back and we know he has a history of some kind with Nell but how does Eric feel about him being back?

BF: Eric doesn’t like it!

RFS: Eric’s jelly.

BF: Eric is a little jelly. But Barrett is happy because we love Peter Cambor…

RFS: We love Peter!

BF: But as much as I like [Peter] I think Eric gets a little p.o.’d because Nell and Nate have a little bit of a past and we don’t know how much or how little but Eric has been jealous in the past. Nell has gone so far in the past to tell Nate that they have kissed.

RFS: I will say this – whenever Nate Getz does come back we bring the apple crates out for me to stand on because he is the tallest guy on Earth!

TVF: With Nate back, are we maybe going to see Eric make some overtures that the audience has maybe been waiting for him to make?

BF: I think that’s imminent. It’s definitely imminent. I think it’s going to kick some things into high gear.

RFS: We just did an episode where Eric and Nell come to blows with one another. [laughs]

BF: You really only fight with the people you love the most.

RFS: Nell has to kind of slap him back to reality!

BF: That was a rumor! Don’t read too much between the lines but let’s just say my cheek was red!

RFS: Whoa!

BF: Not that cheek, Jim! [laughs]

TVF: The episode this week is also a lot about Hetty being questioned and the Department of Justice in the office going through all the files. At this point, can our team trust anyone at this point?

RFS: Everyone’s in question and I think that’s what this is all about. It’s all a mystery.

BF: What’s so cool about this team is that we play by the rules but we also go rogue a lot. We do not play by the rules and we dodge the parameters of what is by the book and I think that makes it exciting. We have to make sacrifices for what we think is right and a lot of that has to do with loyalty and friendship and our love for the team.

RFS: Love the team and love the game, baby! [more laughs]

TVF: Moving forward, is there a storyline or guest star you’re excited for fans to see.

BF: Well, Meryl Streep…

RFS: …and Carol Burnett. They’re playing our Moms in a coming episode. But that’s old news.

TVF: Is that something you two are writing? Sounds like something you’re creating.

RFS: We’re going to pitch it!

BF: I do love that John Heard has been on the show as a recurring guest character.

RFS: From Home Alone! We also have Aisha Hinds, who plays one of our investigators at the DOJ and she’s going a great scene with LL Cool J coming up where she kind of confesses her interest in him.

TVF: Barrett, when I talked to Shane Brennan a few weeks ago, I urged him to have you sing on the show if he could find a way to do it.

BF: It’s been hinted at a few times…

RFS: Actually he did sing a bit of the National Anthem at the end of one of our scenes but unfortunately it was cut due to time.

BF: And it was pretty brilliant! [laughs] Always humble Barrett Foa! But [Eric] has been in the choir so they’ve been dropping little hints of it in so I’m waiting for that.

RFS: If my Dad gets his wish we will be dance studio owners and partners in an upcoming episode where we’ll both be able to sing and dance.

BF: It’s what we do. It’s what we love.

NCIS: Los Angeles Season 6 airs Mondays at 10/9c on CBS.

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Nell (Renée Felice Smith ) had no idea when she agreed to impersonate Hetty (Linda Hunt) on last week’s episode of “NCIS: Los Angeles,” just how life-threatening the mission was going to be. And even though Sam (LL Cool J) and Callen (Chris O’Donnell) were on the case, Nell had to take a life to save her own.

Traumatized by the action, on tonight’s episode, Nell is huddled up at home, where she gets a visit from Operational Psychologist Nate Getz (Peter Cambor), who visits to help her through her traumatic experience, but also to determine if she will be able to return to the field.

Of course, Hetty’s life is still in peril, and her team — Sam, Callen, Kensi (Daniela Ruah), Nell, Eric (Barrett Foa), and Deeks (Eric Christian Olsen) — go to desperate lengths to keep her safe, even as she endangers her own life by returning from Washington, D.C. into the face of menace.

In a conversation with Renée and Barrett, the two talked about the separate journey their two NCIS characters have been on, how they will be back to the Nell and Eric banter we love so much in the future, and more.

Did it affect you as a person to have to pretend to kill someone? Or because of the way it is shot, you don’t really see it happen?

Renée Felice Smith: We don’t see it happen, but I am a pretty sensitive person so it did affect me in having to play the aftermath of shooting someone, it does affect you psychologically. But that is what the character has to go through as well.

Tonight, we see her dealing with her emotions and Nate comes back and we talk it out to see if she can handle it.

Nell isn’t as close to Nate as she is to Hetty. Is he going to be able to help her or does she need her mentor to come back and make things okay?

Renée: She actually gets to talk to both of them. Nate comes back and assesses her. Then Hetty has a heart-to-heart with her as well, so she gets both doses of good medicine.

Is Eric jealous of the fact that Nell is in the field, or he by no means wants to do the dangerous missions?

Barrett Foa: What Eric and Barrett want and need is different. I like when Eric gets out. It is fun to be on location and getting to see how the other half of our show works. Eric mostly works with the inside headquarters half, and I don’t get to meet the fans on the street and see the sunshine. But there is something actually comforting about that, also. Being on the soundstage is comforting, like being home. You know how it works: You know the camera angles, you know the lighting, I have it all down to a science. There is something outside the box when you go out into the field. Eric is used to showing where the bad guys are, not being where the bad guys are. So Eric is comfy inside, but it is always fun to have someone who is comfy be in an uncomfortable place.

Even though Eric doesn’t want to be out there, danger finds him anyway, because on “NCIS: Los Angeles,” no one is ever 100 percent safe. So when that happens, does he find that he is cool in action?

Barrett: Eric is never cool. There is stuff coming up where Eric is in a lot of danger first hand. It is exciting to see how Barrett as an actor dealt with that because it is something I had never done before. Eric has never been in that kind of danger, and I have to think, “What would I do? How would I react because Eric is not used to it?”

Renée: We all react in our own way. It is interesting to see a fish out of water sometimes.

I know we are only a few episodes into the new season but it feels as if as if the bit of romance between these two isn’t being played as much. Has something changed?

Renée: Nothing has changed. I think they were focusing on Nell now being a junior agent outside, so they haven’t physically been together on a lot of these missions. We are looking forward to them coming back together as the season goes on.

Barrett: I think that gets reestablished in upcoming episodes a little more. There is like a lovers/friends quarrel coming up, which is an indicator of how close they are.

Renée: It is great to see that they are comfortable enough to be honest with each other.

Barrett: There’s a really nice resolution. It was nice taking a break from it and then going back. It is going to be super sexy coming up.

So Hetty has all these places to live that were compromised in last week’s episode. Is she going to have to sell them all and move since the addresses were revealed? Does Hetty come from money?

Renée: You have to remember that Hetty is an enigma wrapped in a riddle covered in a …

Barrett: conundrum.

Renée: We know that. Her houses remain her houses. It is yet to be determined if she has to sell them and get some new extravagant [places to live]. I have to tell you, that house we shot in was absolutely gorgeous. It had gold-leaf detailing on the ceiling and murals from the 1920s.

Barrett: Who knows if Hetty has money or not, but, remember, she is well connected. Maybe these are favors; maybe these are gifts. I think

Renée: We just saw that she knows the pope. This is a woman who is well traveled and has a lot of friends in high places. One may never know where Hetty gets her money from, but we do enjoy [the mystery].

What would you like to see for your character going forward?

Barrett: We talked about something earlier. I think, for me, I am glad we took the Nell/Eric break, but I am excited for that to get rekindled. I miss that funny banter that was so delicious.

Renée: I miss the funny banter. The danger has been heightened and highlighted on the show, so it will be good to get back to the banter, which, I think, is the heart of our show. I am always looking for a dance break. Hopefully, one of these days, we will get one.

Barrett: At first I thought that was a metaphor. You want an actual dance break?

Renée: A choreographed dance break with Nell and Eric. I think Kensi and Deeks had one.

“NCIS: Los Angeles” airs in its new Monday night timeslot at 10 p.m. on CBS.

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WHEN SAM IS ARRESTED FOR MURDERING A WOMAN, KENSI AND DEEKS UNCOVER A LINK BETWEEN THE VICTIM AND A STUDENT FROM SAM’S PAST, ON “NCIS: LOS ANGELES,” MONDAY, NOV. 3

Series Star Chris O’Donnell Directed the Episode

Mixed Martial Artist & Former UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva Guest Stars

“SEAL Hunter” – When Sam is arrested for murdering a woman, Callen and Granger work to clear his name. Meanwhile, Kensi and Deeks discover a link between the victim and a student from Sam’s past, on NCIS: LOS ANGELES, Monday, Nov. 3 (9:59-11:00 PM, ET/PT), on the CBS Television Network. Chris O’Donnell directed the episode. Mixed martial artist and former UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva guest stars.

CHEAT TWEET: Sam is arrested 4 murder! Will his name b cleared? + @chrisodonnell directs & @SpiderAnderson guest stars! 11/3 9:59pm