Brett Dalton plays Mark Trent in Found. Watch new episodes of the drama on Tuesdays at 10 PM ET/PT on NBC and streaming on Peacock.

In any given year, more than 600,000 people are reported missing in the U.S. More than half that number are people of color that the country seems to forget about. Public relations specialist Gabi Mosely (series star and producer Shanola Hampton) — who was once herself one of those forgotten ones — and her crisis management team now make sure there is always someone looking out for the forgotten missing people. But unbeknownst to anyone, this everyday hero is hiding a chilling secret of her own.

I spoke with the actor about why Found stands out from other crime procedurals, the relationship between Trent and Gabi, who his character is at his core, and more. Keep reading for our full conversation!

I’ve been a fan of yours for a really long time and it’s such a privilege to be interviewing you today. Thank you so much.
Brett Dalton: That’s very sweet of you to say. You win the award for best opening.

I love everything about this show and I think that it stands out, especially in the crime drama lineup that we have, it’s really unique. Why do you think that is? What originally made it stand out to you and why do you think it’s standing out to viewers?
I mean, I think that the show stands out. When I read it, you know, being the father of almost a teenage daughter, it’s a sensitive subject matter and I don’t always love viewing that myself. But by the time I got to the end of the pilot, I was like, “Well, this is done with dignity and respect,” and because it is procedural, the cases get solved. I thought that it was just done so beautifully, so I was just happy to be part of something that has such relevance and purpose. This isn’t just another crime procedural that happens to be done in Miami, New Orleans, or something like that, and no disrespect to any of those things, but this just feels like a procedural with focus. I’ve never seen any of these stories on screen and felt blessed to be part of such a wonderfully diverse and talented cast. It just felt important, it felt relevant.

Yeah, and I want to go off what you just said about not necessarily wanting to view a show like this, especially with a teenage daughter. I mean, I think of my own family and that mindset while watching, but I feel like it also opens your eyes and at least you have that happy ending. Out of the cases we’ve seen so far, has there been one that was most interesting for you to see how it was done or written? I do feel like every case that we’ve seen, like you said, gets the attention it deserves and has a full-circle perspective.
I mean, they all kind of are, and sorry about the cop-out on that answer.

No, it’s true.
I know. I mean, it’s kind of disturbing when you think of the psychology of some of the kidnappers. Like, how could anyone do this to another human being who is not a full adult yet and doesn’t have the worldview fully formed yet, how someone possibly do that? That is kind of a disturbing thing. I think in some ways, it is coming from a place of protection, love, and some strangely twisted way of oftentimes taking care of or possessing someone who is vulnerable, but the way it comes out often is kidnap, that’s what it ends up as. And so, yeah, that’s always kind of disturbing. I think, during the pilot, because that was our first one and we’re all getting together in this world for the first time, having that child in that storm basement, I feel like it kind of hit us. That was our first night shoot as well. And so, we’re watching this kid who’s doing an excellent job, but you really do kind of go there like, “Oh my god, if this was really my job, could I handle this on a daily basis?” And I don’t know, I think it would take a strong mental state in order to do that. I feel like not everybody has the stomach for that. Thank God I’m part of a TV show where we can sort of [weave] in the waters of it, but also we get to go home and also, we save the day. That is the beautiful thing and that’s not always what happens in life. So, it’s nice to be part of a story with a happy ending and it is also nice to have a character where I can be one of the good guys in a flawed system that often overlooks these underrepresented communities.

In this week’s episode, we see Trent really concerned for Gabi and doing his best to protect her. From the pilot, I have loved the dynamic between those two characters. I just think you both are amazing together. What has it been like to work on that dynamic with Shanola and see it kind of come to life? I feel like it almost takes its own form because yes, you’re acting but to see it translate on screen must be so interesting.
Yeah, absolutely. I mean, that’s the interesting thing about chemistry, it’s either there or it’s not. Shanola and I had that for free, even through Zoom during the callback. I don’t know what it is, but it was just there and it was in the room with both of us. It’s a beautiful thing and I hate to say that it’s easy being with her, but it kind of is. As James Cagney used to say, “Look the other fella in the eye and tell the truth.” And so, that’s kind of what it what it feels like. I mean, it’s so alive in the room, and that’s something that’s been echoed by the other directors too, so whatever it is, it feels like we kind of captured that lightning in a bottle. It’s just kind of there, I don’t know. It’s not like I sat down and was like, “Man, I really need to have chemistry with Shanola here in order for this thing to work.” It was just kind of there, and it’s a beautiful thing and it’s a nice thing too to have a kind of, I don’t know, hope and emotional tension in the air. It’s also something that our show does really well. Shanola has that with Mark-Paul Gosselaar and that’s a whole other bunch of layers on it, but it’s there and I think it’s really intriguing, and what makes our show stand out. So yeah, I don’t know how much credit I take for that.

Last question for you, Trent was recently suspended, so what can you tell me about how this is going to affect him and his outlook? Because that’s a big thing and we’ve gotten to see him working with the team more since, which has been fun to see, but what can you tease for me about that going forward?
At the end of the day, Trent is just invariably a good guy. This is someone — I mean, the character of Gabi Mosely bends the law all the time and I know that it’s done for the right reasons and so, Trent is constantly trying to either clean up the mess or turn a blind eye and have them still work together and pull in the same direction, even though we’re both going at it two different ways. So here we had a case where Gabi stole police evidence and it was traced back to me, I lost my job and I still would not point the finger at Gabi, because I would never do that to another friend, especially someone who I’ve had a love interest with, who has such a life’s purpose of saving people and doing something so essential for the overlooked people in the community, so he’s just always a good guy. I think the more you learn about him, he always makes the right, honorable choice and yet, it would be so easy for me, as a third-generation detective, to get my job back by just pointing a finger and I still won’t do it because it would betray a friend. So he is a good guy working in not so good system, and he very seldom wins, that’s what happens. He’s fighting against the tide.

We all love him for it, Brett.
That’s very sweet.