Dick Wolf's new CBS show 'F.B.I' stars Delaware actor Zeeko Zaki

The News Journal

Zeeko Zaki, who grew up in Unionville, but spent a lot of time in Delaware, is one of the lead stars in Dick Wolf's new television series, "F.B.I."

An actor who grew up in Delaware has one of the lead roles in Dick Wolf's new television drama "F.B.I."

Zeeko Zaki thought he didn't have a chance at winning a role on the show when he auditioned, said the actor's mother, Emon Zaki. The role of an F.B.I. agent in New York City was written for a Hispanic actor, and Zeeko doesn't speak Spanish, she said.

But when Wolf, creator and producer of the Law & Order television shows, met Zeeko, who is a Muslim-American born in Egypt who moved to Delaware as a baby, he switched the role to fit Zeeko, says Emon.

She and her husband own the Sherif Zaki Salon and Spa in Greenville, which they opened when Zeeko was 3 years old.

Emon said it's hard to describe how it felt to watch her son in a lead role when the show debuted Tuesday night. Zeeko plays agent Omar Adom "OA" Zidan to Missy Peregrym's Maggie Bell.

"Proud, excited, thrilled. All of the above," she said. "It was beyond words. We're so very proud of him."

Special Agent Maggie Bell (Missy Peregrym), right, and her partner, Special Agent Omar Adom 'OA' Zidan (Zeeko Zaki), are covered in ash after barely escaping death during an apartment building explosion in the series premiere of CBS's 'FBI.'

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Reviewers seemed to like the show.

"'FBI' reworks the requisite good guy/bad guy formula as seen in every other FBI/CIA/Homeland Security network drama since 9/11 and turns the narrative inside out," wrote Lorraine Ali in The Los Angeles Times.

"The series by 'Law & Order' creator Dick Wolf is a fast-paced drama that’s engaging and timely but still polished and slick enough to deliver the type of escapist entertainment 'Law & Order' fans recognize, she said.

Zeeko Zaki, who grew up in Unionville, but spent a lot of time in Delaware, is one of the stars in Dick Wolf's new television series, "F.B.I." This is his back in the CBS promo poster.

Zeeko, who is 28, has appeared in many shows, including recurring roles in "24: Legacy," "Six," "NCIS: Los Angeles" and "Valor."

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He auditioned for "F.B.I." about a year ago, his mother said.

Zeeko was not available for comment Wednesday. He attended Unionville High School and then went to Temple University.

"You have all turned a day I’ve been dreaming about into one I never could’ve imagined in my wildest dreams," Zeeka tweeted Tuesday night.

"The show is captivating." Emon said. "I knew he was good, but he really just blew me away last night."

She is business manager of the salon, which was named the best upstate salon in this year's Best of Delaware competition, and her husband is a stylist. Married 30 years, they live in Hockessin.

Jeremy Sisto, left, Zeeko Zaki, leaning on desk, Missy Peregrym and Ebonee Noel play members of the FBI's elite New York office on Dick Wolf's new CBS procedural, "FBI."

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They have two other children. Their 23-year-old daughter won a tennis scholarship to the University of Connecticut, where she just graduated, and now works in Philadelphia. Their 21-year-old son attended the University of Delaware and now works as a tennis pro.

Contact Betsy Price at (302) 324-2884 or beprice@delawareonline.com.

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