RAYMOND LEE: I thought they were joking.
Its gonna be on a soundstage.
Were gonna put in the pyramids and VFX the Sphinx.
And no, they werent kidding.
They looked me square in the eyes and said, Yeah, were gonna shoot it in Cairo.
It was a surreal thing to hear and I was beside myself.
More than anything, I was just excited to be in the locations.
It was completely bonkers.
Plus, the scenes with Eliza [Taylor]s character, Hannah, were all so well written.
Dean [Georgaris], specifically, had a really careful watch over those scenes.
Those scenes were just so juicy.
Had you ever personally had a fantasy or dream of playing a spy in this kind of adventure story?
Image via NBC
Did this fulfill that?
And then, we move over to anOppenheimer-typeworld.
And now, were in Cairo.
Image via NBC
That kind of story arc in three episodes seems unheard of on a TV show.
LEE: Yeah, we pinch ourselves, all the time, that we get to do these scenes.
The anticipation is so strong.
Image via NBC
We were like, Oh, my gosh, were going to actually do these scenes in Cairo.
And then, when we were there, we were experiencing it.
LEE: I like to ask for a pretty rough sketch, overall.
Image via NBC
I also like not knowing everything, as well.
That, I like to be surprised by.
Its quite the interesting situation for him to be in.
LEE: Ben has a lot to unpack, and I love it.
LEE: Thats a great question.
Yeah, I suppose thats something that can help him.
Out of the Season 2 characters youve lept into, what were you most nervous about pulling off?
LEE: The Salem witch trial was challenging.
It started with the fitting.
I was like, Okay, cool, its a bonnet.
Im in my teens.
I have to fit the period.
Im a servant girl, so I have to play status.
There was status, wardrobe, age, and time period.
I needed to retain that, the entire time.
So, it really helped me to be around our guest cast a lot because they were teenagers.
Just being around that energy helped me to stay in Bens character better.
Was there anything that could even compete with Egypt, as being the most fun episode?
LEE: Egypt was fun, but it was also extremely challenging.
Its hard to parse out the fun times when youre like, Did we get it?
I hope we got it.
Was that background in the shot?
Was that shop owner, whos living in 2023, in that shot wearing a hoodie and ball cap?
Should we shoot that over?
Can we even shoot it over?
Can we lock down this entire block?
It was fun watching me see all the A.D.s venture to get everything together.
Im really just having a lot of fun with the Ben and Hannah arc.
As a UFO investigator, I wore a very smart suit.
As a spy, I wore a very smart suit.
As somebody who was a professor during the Oppenheimer era, I wore a very smart suit.
They had me looking good for the romantic scenes, and those have been the most fun to play.
If you look good and you feel good, you have fun.
I love how Hannah is on Bens level.
Shes not somebody that he has to keep explaining everything to.
LEE: Yeah, they really bounce off each other well.
Theyre finishing each others sentences.
Its so nerdy and cool, at the same time, which is kind of the show.
What will they have to look forward to next, moving forward after Egypt?
LEE: Id say thatwhatever youre expecting to happen is not gonna happen.
There are bigger things at play than just these love relationships.
Im curious about whether youve ever tried to get Tiffani Thiessen on the show.
I feel like she would be great in any era and that totally needs to happen.
LEE: I certainly wouldnt say no.
I hope she is reading this article.
Quantum Leapairs on NBC and is available to stream at Peacock.
Check out the Season 2 trailer:
Watch on Peacock
