Chris O’Donnell has already shown his acting chops by starring as special agent G. Callen on NCIS: Los Angeles for the past four seasons. But the star also recently got the chance to direct the show and we went behind the scenes for Chris’s directorial debut of tonight’s all-new episode!

“I’ve loved it,” said Daniela Ruah (who plays Special Agent Kensi Blye) when asked about being directed by her co-star. “The expectation of Chris directing was very exciting, especially because as a cast I think we’re very open about giving each other ideas for scenes.”

“He’s exceeding all the expectations, I think he’s been amazing,” added Eric Christian Olsen (Marty Deeks) about Chris’s directing chops. “I think he’s always been very good with details… and he’s kind of just slid into this with no bumps.”

Chris said he managed to quickly settle in to the “exciting” directing opportunity and also learned a lot in the process. “I’m having a blast with it, I love it,” he said. “It’s a big team effort, but there are so many critical departments and people and positions behind the scenes that not everyone sees. When you’re the director and you’re at the helm, you realize just what a team effort it truly is.”

LL Cool J (Sam Hanna) said he admires Chris for acting on his long-held desire to direct the show, but also made clear that the cast also had some fun when he stepped into his new role behind the camera. “He’s always in my ear anyway,” the star/rapper joked. “He’s running around here like a soda bottle that got shook up. He needed to direct — so it was great.”

Don’t miss tonight’s all-new episode of NCIS: Los Angeles at 9 p.m. on CBS.

Source: ET Online