Kyle Schmid is trying to find his work-life balance after he and wife Caity Lotz welcomed their second baby — and he’d happily have her join the cast of NCIS: Origins.
“We’ve got a tight schedule,” Schmid, 41, exclusively told Us Weekly of his filming schedule for the CBS series, noting he did get some time off after his wife, 39, welcomed their son, William, in February.
Schmid, who plays Mike Franks on the crime show, revealed that in order to film on time, he turns to Lotz to help balance out his day. (The couple also share daughter Lennox, 17 months.)
“Luckily, my wife is an actress, and she gets it,” he gushed. “And she’s a rock star. She’s my rock and, you know, she juggles it, she makes it work.”
Schmid added, “When I’m home, I’m present, and I’m a dad. And when I’m at work, I’m present, and I’m Franks. They’re just two different hats that you have to wear in this situation. So I think we’re doing OK.”
While Schmid and Lotz have found their rhythm as parents of two, the actor told Us that the couple have also talked about bringing Lotz on board for an NCIS: Origins cameo.
When asked whether Lotz could play a “love interest” for Franks, Schmid laughed. “Oh, my gosh, that would be so cool and so weird at the same time,” he said.
Schmid confessed, “I don’t know if she’d like Franks. I guess we’d have to find out.”
“Look, I have talked to her about it. She’s more than interested and willing to hop on the show,” he explained. “And I know the writers would love to have her on the show as well. So it’s just a matter of finding the right character and the right time to be able to do it.”
Lotz has been acting since the early 2000s, making her debut in 2006’s Bring It On: All or Nothing. She is best known for playing Sara Lance/White Canary on Arrow from 2013 to 2020 and on DC’s Legends of Tomorrow from 2016 to 2022.
She has also found success behind the camera, writing and directing 2019’s short Twin Turbo.
Schmid, meanwhile, made his acting debut in 1996. He made a splash on the kid’s TV show I Was a Sixth Grade Alien before playing Alex Thompson in the Disney Channel Original Movie Alley Cats Strike in 2000. He has been playing Franks on NCIS: Origins since 2024.
Schmid and Lotz began dating in 2021 and got engaged the following year. They tied the knot in Colombia in February 2023.
In September 2024, the couple announced the birth of their first baby, daughter Lennox. Their son, William, arrived in February.
“Forever changed ❤️ our little boy is here,” the pair wrote in a joint Instagram post. “It’s true what they say about your heart expanding. Love doesn’t get reallocated it just grows and grows. My heart is bigger and stronger than I ever imaged. This is our family 🥹.”
Schmid gushed over fatherhood in between taking Us behind the scenes with his NCIS: Origins costars Caleb Foote and Austin Stowell for an inside look at their gym workouts on set.
“Juggling the job, the wife, the kids, all of it, dog. It’s great,” he said. “You don’t understand your purpose in life — for me, at least I didn’t understand it — I defined myself as an actor, and now, I’m a dad first and foremost.”
Schmid added, “It’s the only thing I want in the world is to take care of my family and play with my kids and hang out with my wife. So I’m very lucky.”
Despite being smitten with his life off camera, Schmid said fans of NCIS: Origins have a lot to be excited about as well as the show returns for the second half of season 2 on Tuesday, March 3.
“The second half of the season, it’s like the gloves are off. No holds barred,” Schmid told Us. “The writers have done a phenomenal job at, like, you know, just bringing all the stakes super, super high.”
He teased, “There’s some love in the air, perhaps as well. You know, we’ve got 10 years to explore in the show, and this year in particular, leading up to our finale, is such a catalyst as to what we see in NCIS in the future. It’s really, really important.”
NCIS: Origins returns to CBS on Tuesday, March 3, at 9 p.m. ET. New episodes stream the next day on Paramount+.
