Line Of Fire Show Boss Joshua Safran Promises 'All The Answers' About That Premiere Twist 'Will Come Out In The Course Of This Season'

This post contains spoilers for Monday's "Line of Fire" series premiere. Proceed accordingly.

The Hollingsworths are a family with a lot of federal badges — and even more secrets — spread among them. They're also at the center of NBC's "Line of Fire," the new drama from Joshua Safran ("Quantico," "Gossip Girl") and "Today" host Jenna Bush Hager that premiered Monday.

The series stars Peter Krause ("Six Feet Under," "9-1-1") as Mike Hollingsworth, an on-the-verge-of-retirement Secret Service agent. Hope Davis ("Succession") plays Jane Hollingsworth, a United States marshal. Their three adult children all have chosen careers in federal law enforcement: Daughter Clare (played by Kat Cunning, "The Deuce") is an agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, son Russ (Taylor Bloom, "American Horror Story") is at the Department of Justice, and son Micah (Tommy O'Brien, "grown-ish") is a Secret Service agent like Dad. 

The death of a deputy U.S. Marshal (played by "Veep" alum Anna Chlumsky) at the start of the premiere kicks off an hour in which we meet all of the Hollingsworths and soon find out that they're not 100 percent honest with each other most of the time. Clare has a boyfriend named Logan whom her family hasn't met; too bad that after an abysmal first dinner with the clan, he winds up dead. Micah, who is assigned to protect the First Daughter, happens to be sleeping with her, too. And Russ worries that Mike maneuvered him into the DOJ position just so he'd have a man on the inside.

The hour takes an unexpected turn when, in the final moments, we learn that Jack (Charlie Barnett, "Russian Doll," "Chicago Fire") — the Hollingsworth child we'd been led to believe was no longer among the living — is reveled to be alive... and a killer who was pretending to be Clare's boyfriend's neighbor?

"So I'm not who I said I was," Jack says, surprising Logan just before he offs him. "But neither are you, Agent Anderson." The plot thickens!

We immediately got on Zoom with showrunner Joshua Safran to get everything we could about the big twist (and when we can expect to get more answers). Read on to see what he said, then make sure to grade the episode!

TVLINE | Your show has consultants from the various branches of federal law enforcement where your characters work. Were there any things you came to them with, and they were like, "No, you can't do that"?
JOSHUA SAFRAN | It's funny. We actually tend to write it and then share it with them, like during the outlining phase when we talk to them, but we don't talk to them when we come up with the plots because honestly, the plots are pretty realistic. They're not ripped from the headlines. We're not doing SVU, but we do a lot of research. Every writer was assigned a different arena. Like, three writers took Secret Service, three writers took DOJ, and then from that they did their own research. However, [the consultants] will often look at an outline, and especially a script, and be like, "We wouldn't say that" or "We wouldn't go there." It's not usually plot-related.

And then Steve, our Secret Service consultant who was Barbara Bush's — Jenna's twin sister — Secret Service agent, and the Obamas and Hilary [Clinton], he's often like, "They would never say 'Madam Marshall' about Jane's character... You would just say "Marshal Hollingsworth." But we need the audience to understand that she is actually a federally appointed U.S. Marshal, which is above and in charge of the other marshals. So, you need that designation.

... They tell us such great things that we would never know. Like, when they are in their offices, they take their jackets off, because they're just so restricted in their suits all the time. So there's been fun things like that. But no, so far, not a plot-killer yet.

TVLINE | I was shocked to see Anna Schlumsky's character kick the bucket in the first episode.
She loved it. She was so happy to be here and do that. [Laughs] This is what helps: When you have the first Oscar-winning casting director [Cassandra Kulukundis] being one of the casting directors of your show. [Editor's note: After our interview, the show announced that other Season 1 guest stars would include Sam Waterston ("Law & Order"), Campbell Scott ("Furious"), and Chris Chalk ("IT: Welcome to Derry").] It's not like we're doing an "Elsbeth" thing where every criminal is an incredible, famous actor. But we are populating our world with really wonderful people like Anna, episodically, which has been great.

TVLINE | She's in the first episode, and that's it?
She's dead. [Laughs]

TVLINE | Well, let me tell you about this device called a "flashback."
[Laughs] You will see her photograph on a murder board for a very long time. But no, we don't have a flashback with her, as of yet. But she'd be so down to do it. It was so much fun to have her.

TVLINE | Let's talk about the central family. You show a warm connection among the three adult children, even if they're prickly with their parents. Talk to me about why it was important to get that across.
I wanted to do a family show. "Gossip Girl" is a family show in its way, but it really wasn't about the integration of the family. The parents had their own stories, the kids had their own stories, and twice a year they would intersect. Obviously Thanksgiving — which we will do again here. [Laughs] But I hadn't done a family show. "Soundtrack" was sort of a family show, but they were a broken family. I want to do an intact family show.

And yes, they're prickly with each other. They're not always looking like they're connected, but they always feel connected. I wanted that feeling... Mike and Jane may be separated, but they still are very connected. They're still sharing family meals with their kids. The kids still call on both of them... I was really just interested in those dynamics.

TVLINE | The fact that this is an intact family to you makes me want to give you a hug, but we can unpack that at another session.
[Laughs]

TVLINE | Since you brought up Jack: There's being estranged from your family, or even going no-contact, and then there's that family folding you out of photos and taking photos of you off the wall. What can you tell me, at this point in the story, about Jack?
I can tell you that it is a Season 1 story. It's not a story that's meant to continue, so all the answers will come out in the course of this season. Should there be more of this show, we're not trying to stretch it out for a very long time. There are flashbacks in that storyline. So you will see Jack interact with his family. You will come to understand the dynamics, and you'll learn more of the story.

My brother was estranged from our family for a while. And when I got to know him again, he appeared different to me than what I had remembered. And then, as life has progressed, he's also the same. So I'm very interested in that time, which I think a lot of families have, whether you have your estrangement due to substance issues or estrangement due to different parents or whatever the reasons are. You recognize yourself in these people, but you also don't. They're kind of a stranger.

So, all I can say is that all of the family has different points of view about why Jack died or why he left, depending on who you are. They never have the real answers. Everything they learn is constantly shifting.

Now it's your turn. Grade the episode via the poll below, then hit the comments with your thoughts!