Facts about Ziva David in “NCIS” that captured the heart of fans
The character Ziva David, a Mossad liaison officer from Israel who spoke more than five languages, in “NCIS” captured the heart of fans. The character is played by the stunning Cote De Pablo.
Actress Cote De Pablo is best known for her role in “NCIS” but the star already had an impressive resume. The Chilean-American is not only an actress she is also a singer.
The multi-talented actress was born in Santiago, Chile. She moved to America when she was ten-years-old. Here are twenty other interesting facts about Cote De Pablo.
1. Her real name isn’t Cote
Cote de Pablo was born Maria Jose de Pablo Fernandez. Rumor has it that when she moved from Chile to Miami people at her new school could not pronounce her name so she changed it to “Cote.”
2. She was a star runner as a child
When they moved, she did not speak a lot of English and struggled until a teacher helped her find her path.
“And so I remember in 5th grade, I had a teacher… who was wonderful and he was an older man. And the only thing I knew really was ‘run.’ I knew what that meant. And so he put me into the track and field, and so he got me starting to run and all that stuff, and before I knew it, I was a little track and field star. And I remember, he would say in the middle of a competition, he would scream and get very red and scream, ‘Cote, run!’ And that’s all I knew.”
she said
3. She wanted to be a secretary
De Pablo had a different dream when she was growing up. She did not want to be an actress but reportedly wanted to be a secretary.
“I, believe it or not, wanted to be a secretary, much like Maggie Gyllenhaal in The Secretary. … I had clips all over and markers, and you know, the old-fashioned typewriters… I like to follow direction… and, by the way, I became an actor, so I’m kind of doing it anyway.”
4. Performing arts became her home
She joined a performing arts high school in order to help her learn English. She revealed se had always been interested in the arts but really explored it because it was a “way to communicate with people in my new country…My friend had the perfect saying for it: ‘You found your tribe.’ We’re not Chilean or Argentinean or Brazilian or Russian. We’re actors.”
5. University
Her love for the arts continued through high school. She went on to study musical theater at Carnegie Mellon University.
6. Leaving Broadway
After graduating, she appeared on the New York City Public Theater stage for a Shakespeare production but left Broadway behind when she landed her iconic role in NCIS.
7. Terrified of Guns
She might play a former Israeli special forces veteran on “NCIS” but the star revealed during an interview on “Good Morning America” that she had never fired a gun and was also terrified of them.
8. Not Happy With Her “NCIS” exit
Pablo revealed that she had “wanted to stay for more episodes, but had no choice in that matter.” She later told TVLine that she felt the writers “rushed” her exit and that she “would have liked a little bit of closure.”
9. Fans petitioned for her return to the show
She left the show after eight years and in more than 180 episodes. Fans were extremely upset to see her go and petitioned for her return.
“When you make decisions like this, you never expect for people to fully understand. So it was really delicious to feel that kind of love and I’m always grateful for that.”
During an interview with TVLine.com she said
10. Singing on NCIS
Besides acting, she also flexed her musical talents did not go to waste. She reportedly originally did not want her character to sing however, the “NCIS” writing team kept the idea on the table and after two years she gave in. She also sang in the Season 6 premiere of “NCIS.”
