NCIS: Origins’ Caleb Foote Talks ‘Jacked’ Randy, Stripping Down on Show

NCIS: Origins fans were shook when they got a peek at Randy’s jacked physique during season 1 — and according to actor Caleb Foote, there’s plenty more where that came from.

“You’re talking about the legendary episode 8,” Foote, 32, who plays NIS agent Bernard “Randy” Randolph, exclusively told Us Weekly during a set visit on Wednesday, February 25.

The actor revealed that “there’s not a lot of pressure” to stay in shape after viewers got a glimpse at his arm, leg and ab muscles during season 1, episode 8.

In the now-iconic scene, Randy wore a tank top that exposed his muscles and boxers while staying at a seedy motel with partner Leroy Jethro Gibbs (Austin Stowell) amid a protective detail assignment. When alarms went off in the hotel, Randy jumped up and threw on pants before fighting a man in the stairwell and giving viewers another look at his fit body.

“In a way, there was a bit of, like, freedom and permission to be who I was,” Foote told Us while sitting in a hair and makeup trailer.

He noted that when he auditioned to play Randy — the lovable redhead that everyone at NIS’ San Diego office is friends with — the description was, “The most vanilla guy you’ve ever met,” adding that the character was “a bit of a nerd.”

Foote, however, was already “very muscular” when he landed the part. “My body mass index was pretty low. I’m a jacked guy,” he said with a laugh.

“When I booked Randy, a nerd, as a jacked guy, it was really lovely that they kind of gave me the permission to be jacked,” he said.

Foote recalled that early on during filming he was wearing a “cut off tee” and his costar Mariel Molino, who plays Lala Dominguez, said she was “chill with it,” before confiding in their showrunner how ripped he really was.

“She was like, ‘Is he supposed to be this ripped?’ And then David, our showrunner, was like, ‘It’s a visual media, like, hell yeah, let him be jacked!’” Foote laughed.

Now that both fans and the cast have fully leaned into Randy’s sexy features, they want more of it — and Foote is happy to oblige.

“Oh, oh, it’s coming. It’s coming,” Foote told Us when asked whether viewers will see Randy get “stripped down on screen.”

He teased, “We got a season 3 [so] it’s coming.” Foote once again let out a laugh, adding, “Hey, I’ve worked my whole life, and now that I get to be strong on television. I mean, that’s great. Why the heck not?”

While Foote didn’t give specifics of what fans will see when Randy takes off his normal long-sleeved shirt on the job, he did take Us behind the scenes for a gym workout with Stowell, 41, and Kyle Schmid.

During their reps on a variety of machines, the trio shared a few secrets to staying in shape for the show, including the fact that Schmid, who plays Mike Franks, avoids McDonald’s fast food.

“No, no, no, you gotta keep that life going. Dunkin’ Donuts. Eat all the carbs you can. Don’t cut anything else, just train harder,” Stowell chimed in.

Foote added, “That’s actually a really good point. If you train really hard, it doesn’t matter what you eat.”

He confessed, “In between seasons is when we get the most jacked. I [came] back with 10 pounds of muscle.”

Fit or not, Foote told Us he couldn’t be happier to play such a beloved character.

“It’s awesome because, typically, it’s just like my parents and my aunts and uncles that love my work,” he chuckled. “So to be recognized by other people it’s really a treat.”

Foote noted that Randy gets to be the guy who “maintain[s] that light with all the darkness around” as the “goofier” special agent.

NCIS: Origins returns to CBS Tuesday, March 3, at 9 p.m. ET.