“NCIS” focuses a great deal of attention on the found-family aspect of the various members of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service coming together to solve cases and support one another through thick and thin. However, their biological family members occasionally factor into plots, and a major force within Ziva David’s (Cote de Pablo) life for quite some time was her father, Eli David, portrayed by Michael Nouri.
Eli appeared in seven episodes of “NCIS,” and his presence fills in a lot of blanks concerning Ziva’s backstory, as he’s the director of Mossad, the Israeli intelligence agency. While Eli tries to manipulate Ziva and his other kids to join him, they all go their separate ways. That doesn’t stop him, though, from integrating himself into Ziva’s life until his death on “NCIS” Season 10, Episode 11, “Shabbat Shalom.”
The character is shot in the midst of a Shabbat dinner, and even though Ziva pursues the assailant, they get away initially. This results in the most heartbreaking Ziva moment on “NCIS” as she cradles the body of her deceased father. They may have had a frosty relationship, but it’s clear that based on her reaction, Ziva still cared about him to some extent.
Cote de Pablo thought Michael Nouri played Eli David ‘beautifully’
Anyone who has watched television over the past few decades has probably seen Michael Nouri in something before. He’s appeared on pulse-pounding dramas like “Damages” and “Yellowstone” and soap operas such as “All My Children” and “The Young and the Restless.” He’s an exceptionally versatile performer, but his portrayal of Eli David is certainly one of the more memorable roles in his career. Eli is absolutely ruthless toward Ziva for much of his time on the series, even attempting to frame her for a crime to get her to leave the NCIS for Mossad — but to no avail.
It’s certainly a complex father-daughter relationship, and that made for engaging television. A few years before Eli was finally killed off, Cote de Pablo gave an interview to Spoiler TV in 2010 about the idea of getting audiences to understand this flawed man: “These characters are able to justify [their actions] because they come from a country that’s at war,” she said. “You learn to sympathize with [Ziva’s] dad, who’s played so beautifully by Michael Nouri.” Following Eli’s death, Ziva sets out on a revenge mission to get back at her father’s killer, Ilan Bodnar (Oded Fehr), who’s finally dispatched with on Season 10, Episode 22, “Revenge.”
Eli informs Ziva’s character a lot, and more about the ramifications of their relationship could be explored in the new “NCIS” series following Ziva and Tony (Michael Weatherly). Perhaps Eli will end up leaving the couple with more problems to contend with, even in death.
