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Main Characters
Jess Valenzuela
Jesusita "Jess" Valenzuela
Portrayed by: Lisette Olivera
A Mexican-American young woman and DACA recipient living in Baton Rouge who finds out that her dead father was part of a secret network of treasure protectors.- Badass Bookworm: She has often outscored lawyer-in-training Ethan on exams when they were in school and is incredible at solving puzzles.
- Child of Two Worlds: Downplayed. While she is of Mexican heritage, growing up in America means she is, in her words, "Too Mexican for America, but too American for Mexico."
- Disappeared Dad: Her father died in Mexico when she was a baby. It later turns out he didn't die, but has been in prison under another name for 20 years.
- Guile Hero: Much like Ben Gates, Jess uses trickery, historical knowledge, and observational skills rather than outright violence.
- I Don't Want to Ruin Our Friendship: Jess' attitude towards Ethan.
- The Illegal: Jess is a Dreamer
, meaning she's an undocumented immigrant brought to the US as a small child. She is given a small amount of legal protection but Billie's henchmen can still threaten her with deportation while posing as FBI agents. This becomes a problem when she has to leave the US to pursue a clue. - Immigrant Patriotism: Downplayed, but her dream is to serve her country as an FBI Agent, if she can ever attain legal citizenship.
- Like Father, Like Son: Jess notably shares traits with both of her parents.Rafael: I like how you think! You're smart like your mother. But you're devious like me.
- Missing Mom: Jess lost her mom to cancer a year before the start of the series.
- Sherlock Scan: Jess does this frequently, sometimes visualizing what she's thinking.
Tasha Rivers
Tasha Rivers
Portrayed by: Zuri Reed
Jess' hacktivist roommate and best friend.- Cop Hater: She calls Jess' dream to become an FBI agent her worst nightmare and discourages the group from telling the FBI anything. Justified, since her grandmother was a civil rights activist in The '60s whose life was ruined by trumped-up charges from the FBI at the time. This is why it's a big deal when she finally contacts Agent Ross in "A Meeting With Salazar".
- The Lancer: She is Jess' best friend, dependable right-hand woman, and Foil. Tasha is an outspoken Soapbox Sadie, Rabble Rouser, and Cop Hater. Jess, due to being an undocumented immigrant, is more reluctant to cause trouble and dreams of being an FBI codebreaker.
- Macgyvering: She comes up with a way to track Billie's plane using an antennae from a crappy old TV in a motel. She had only watched a Youtube video about how to do this once.
- Mission Control: She is the Riley to Jess's Ben in terms of anything computer-related.
- Soapbox Sadie: Her idea of a distraction is to use the opportunity to protest and point out real social justice issues.
Oren Bradley
Oren Bradley
Portrayed by: Anthony Cipriano
Another friend of Jess, roommate of Ethan, and sneakerhead; Tasha's on-and-off boyfriend.- Cannot Tell a Lie: He is sweating profusely when faced with the prospect of lying to the police or to nuns, and his other attempts to lie tend to be easy to see through. This ends up being an asset, as his confession to Agent Ross and successful polygraph test pass finally gets Ross to believe their whole story.
- Conspiracy Theorist: Follows conspiracy subreddits, is the most likely to believe crazy theories of the bunch (such as Elvis Lives), and is the only one who listens to Riley Poole's podcast (a fellow Conspiracy Theorist). While the others usually brush off his theories, they later come in handy, leading to a few moments of Dumbass Has a Point.
- Crazy-Prepared: He has shoeboxes of emergency gear prepared in case of multiple types of emergencies, including "In Case of Zombie Apocalypse" and "In Case Jess Ever Needs to Use That Suitcase", including burner phones. He learned from Tasha.
- The Fashionista: A rare straight male example. Oren is willing to wait in line for ages to buy fancy new sneakers, and has his own Youtube channel showing off his finds. He's also a skilled tailor and alters one of Peter Sadusky's suits for Liam.
- Hidden Depths: While he comes off as The Load early on, he turns out to be a thoughtful friend and boyfriend who is able to provide some keen insights and help. He's the one who figures out how to break into the prison and crack The Book Cipher in Peter Sandusky's book. He's also a talented tailor, which comes though in a pinch.
- The Load: Oren's Establishing Character Moment is him ruining the gang's escape room victory because he brought a contraband cell phone with him. He later gets tricked into Billie's trap with a promise of fancy shoes. However, he gets better later on.
- Plucky Comic Relief: Downplayed as the series goes on, but his airheaded humor provides a lot of jokes.
Ethan Chao
Ethan Chao
Portrayed by: Jordan Rodrigues
Jess' oldest friend who has feelings for her; Oren's roommate.- Agent Scully: He's the most skeptical about the treasure and Jess getting involved in the beginning, though he softens over time.
- Asian and Nerdy: He is Asian American and studying to be a lawyer.
- Changing Yourself for Love: He pretends to like golf for Meena. She is not happy when she discovers the truth, because she wants to be with someone who can be himself around her.
- If You Ever Do Anything to Hurt Her...: Ethan tells Liam not to be so cavalier with Jess' safety, accidentally telling him she has DACA to hammer in that the costs of getting in trouble are significantly higher for her than for him.
- I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Even though he's worried for Jess' safety on the treasure hunt, seeing how this is the first thing she's gotten passionate about since her mom died slowly makes him more supportive of Jess' quest.
- Only Sane Man: Often the most grounded and reasonable of the friend-group, especially since he wants to protect Jess from any trouble that will get her deported. So when he decides to help Jess break her dad out of prison, it's a case of O.O.C. Is Serious Business.
- Patient Childhood Love Interest: He's interested in Jess, but she doesn't want to ruin their friendship, so he tries to date other people.
Liam Sadusky
Liam Sadusky
Portrayed by: Jake Austin Walker
Peter Sadusky's grandson, who is a musician and bar worker.- Agent Scully: He is initially skeptical of the treasure, much like Patrick Gates in the films, since he lost his father and had a falling out with his grandfather over their search for it. Eventually subverted.
- Disappeared Dad: Liam losing his father as a child to the hunt for the Pan-American treasure helps him relate to Jess, who is trying to find out more about her father through the same treasure.
- Girls Like Musicians: Not only is Jess initially attracted to him because he's actually pretty talented for a bar musician, but after his Graceland performance went viral, most of the people who showed up to see him were women, with one asking for his autograph after.
- Like Father, Unlike Son: More like grandfather unlike grandson, but Liam initially refuses to have any part of the treasure hunt because he doesn't want to become paranoid and obsessed with treasure like Peter seemingly did. He also goes into music rather than taking a role in law enforcement like his grandfather (FBI Agent) and father (an Iraq War veteran).
- Sixth Ranger: Liam joins the previously-established friend group due to his connection to Peter Sadusky and the treasure. This makes him the most suspicious when it comes out someone leaked the Elvis tape, but it turns out to be Mistaken for Betrayal.
- Starving Artist: Liam is a bartender who occasionally plays at his bar. He's hoping to use his inheritance from his grandfather to move to Nashville and break into the country music industry, so he's not happy to learn he's only inherited a house that will take years to repair before it can be sold.
Cras Est Nostrum
Billie Pearce
Billie Pearce
Portrayed by: Catherine Zeta-Jones
A wealthy and ruthless black market antiquities dealer.- Big Brother Is Watching: Billie tracks many people of interest through their phones or through planted bugs. A map showing the number of people tracked is practically glowing, with thousands of names listed.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Her parents were killed in an IRA explosion right in front of her and her brother, then lost said brother years later while hunting the Pan-American Treasure, seemingly betrayed by Rafael.
- Evil Brit: Billie, the series Big Bad, is British.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: She took Kacey in off the streets, seems to truly mourn Nate's demise, and has a personal stake in the Pan-American Treasure due to her brother's death while seeking it.
- Fatal Flaw: Billie's schemes are often undone by her lack of attention to small details. For example:
- Jess sees through her fake FBI agents because their badges are signed by the President instead of the Attorney General.
- Her lie about being friends with Jess's father is exposed because she didn't put his shirt buttons on the correct side in a photoshopped picture.
- Ethan sees through her fake recording of Jess murdering Sadusky because fake!Jess says "further" instead of "farther" when referring to physical distance, a mistake the real Jess never would have made.note
- Foil: To Jess. Where Jess is young and financially struggling with long, wavy brown hair, Billie is middle-aged and rich with pin-straight, short blonde hair. But both are incredibly intelligent and motivated to find the treasure for family reasons. Billie even tries to get Jess on her side at one point, albeit by false means.
- Non-Action Big Bad: Billie. When Liam asks Myles if she killed Liam's father, Myles says no — Billie is too smart to bloody her hands personally.
- Rich Bitch: As a cryptocurrency queen, she has a lot of resources at her disposal, including her own private, untraceable jet. She uses this against the protagonists at every turn.
- Tech Bro: Big Bad Billie is both an antiquities dealer and a cryptocurrency billionaire. She even pays one of her spies in Bitcoin.
- Villainous Breakdown: As the hunt for the treasure intensifies Billie's voice begins to sound a little shaky due to Jess finding ways to outsmart her. This is more evident in the season finale.
Kacey Hasler
Kacey Hasler
Portrayed by: Breeda Wool
A dedicated mercenary of Billie's.- The Dragon: Kacey is this to Billie. When they're attacked by a traitor in their organization, Kacey defeats two assassins on her own. She also beats up Liam so badly he ends up in the hospital and snipes a prison guard.
- Evil Redhead: Kacey is a redheaded woman and possibly Billie's most ruthless hire.
- Hired Help as Family: Kacey genuinely cares about Billie and sympathizes with her tragic past. Billie lost her family in an IRA bombing. As Kacey puts it, her employees are the only family she has left.
- Lady Looks Like a Dude: When trying to recall who beat him to near-death, Liam initially mistakes Kacey for a man due to her short hair and tuxedo.
- Recruited from the Gutter: Kacey was originally a Street Urchin and purse-snatcher before Billie found her and paid for her education, explaining why Kacey is so loyal to her.
- You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Hendricks kills her for slowing down due to her leg wound.
Salazar (SPOILERS)
Salazar/ Special Agent Hendricks
Portrayed by: Armando Riesco
An infamous criminal who was after the Pan-American Treasure. Rafael Rios was working for him in finding the relics, but after he had located the Aztec Relic, he betrayed Salazar. Later revealed to be a Legacy Character — the title is a mantle name for the leader of Cras Est Nostrum, dating all the way back to Ancient Egypt.- Evil All Along: Downplayed. Hendricks murdered Sebastian Pearce and tried to kill Rafael sometime around 2001. National Treasure took place in 2004. This means Hendricks was already evil back during his appearance in the first film, when it appeared he goofed up missing the tip on the Declaration of Independence. While he was never exactly the protagonist, he was at least seen as a Sympathetic Inspector Antagonist back then, and a Reasonable Authority Figure now, until The Reveal.
- Greater-Scope Villain: Billie may be the primary antagonist, but Salazar is the one who was originally seeking the treasure and kidnapped Jess' father. Billie also answers to a mysterious "board" who she's seen talking to over the phone and later appears in Episode 4. They are all part of the same organization, with Salazar at the top of the chain.
- Legacy Character: Salazar is not an individual but a title handed down.
- Mole in Charge: Hendricks, as Salazar, is now a higher-up in the Baton Rouge office of the FBI, and is Ross' superior. He uses his position to cover up his murder of Peter Sadusky.
- You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Reportedly the reason he murdered Billie's brother Sebastian, who worked for him.
- Walking Spoiler: The true identity of Salazar and how his actions connect to the other characters are all huge spoilers of Season 1.
Law Enforcement
Special Agent Ross
Special Agent Hannah Betsy Ross
Portrayed by: Lyndon Smith
An FBI Agent who recently transferred to the Bureau's Baton Rouge field office.- 11th-Hour Ranger: Seems to be going this route in "A Meeting With Salazar", but subverted when she gets stabbed by Hendricks/Salazar the minute she catches up with Jess and Rafael.
- Determinator: When she has a gut feeling, she keeps on digging for the truth. She's also determined to correct the mistakes that got her sent to Baton Rouge in the first place.
- Deuteragonist: Ross is on her own search for the truth parallel with Jess, though their paths sometimes put them in opposition to each other.
- Foil: To Jess. Ross is everything Jess dreams of being — a top-of-her-class FBI agent solving puzzles. They also have a similar drive to find the truth in spite of everything. But Ross, as a white American citizen, had opportunities that Jess did not growing up. At the same time, Ross is constricted by the regulations and protocol of her job in a way Jess is not, and dismissed her case out of hand due to a snap judgement.
- Named After Somebody Famous: Downplayed. Her business card reveals her middle name is Betsy, showing that she was partly named after Betsy Ross, creator of the American flag (similar to Benjamin Franklin Gates of the original films). The reason? "My mother liked to sew".
- Reasonable Authority Figure: While she is initially dismissive of Jess and Tasha, she later admits she was wrong to Tasha in "A Meeting With Salazar". She also admits the FBI was wrong to arrest Tasha's grandmother for standing up for her rights years before and honestly wants to help prove Jess' innocence. When Tasha insists that the only way to get her to trust Ross is to stop treating them like criminals, she immediately takes the cuffs off and lets Tasha and Ethan go. However, as a legal professional she still has to follow protocol and needs solid evidence before she can prove anything.
- Reassigned to Antarctica: Agent Ross was top of her class and originally assigned to Washington DC. However, she accidentally arrested the wrong person, allowing a killer to strike again, and got sent to Baton Rouge.
Peter Sadusky
Former Special Agent Peter Sadusky
Portrayed by: Harvey Keitel
A reclusive former FBI agent and master Freemason apparently suffering from dementia. (For tropes about his role in the original films see here.)- Back for the Dead: Harvey Keitel returns as a retired Peter Sadusky but dies offscreen at the end of the first episode.
- Despair Event Horizon: He was never the same after his son's death, which his grandson Liam blames him for since it had to do with the Pan-American Treasure.
- Dying Clue:
- Downplayed. When he meets Jess in the first episode, even though he is not dying at the time, he is pretty sure he will be dying soon, giving him reason to pass on the clue to Jess so the secret of the treasure doesn't die with him. He is right — he dies mere hours later.
- According to a flashback, he knocked Hendricks' orange Tic Tacs out of his hand and made sure to grab one as he lays dying from poison, so that the dye would be left on his hand. Ross and Zeke take note of this, and Ross later realizes it was Hendricks when he offers her said Tic Tacs.
- Mister Exposition: Peter provides the opening narration, via a secret tape, informing the audience about the Pan-American Treasure.
- Outliving One's Offspring: His son Jack was killed during a treasure hunt, leading to his estrangement from Jack's son Liam.
- Properly Paranoid: His nurse Myles and grandson Liam thought he was crazy for thinking he was surrounded by spies. But considering his suspicious death and the fact that his nurse AND his protege at the FBI were both spying on him, he was more correct than anyone suspected.
- Retired Badass: The former head of the Washington DC division 20 years ago was forced into retirement, living at home. He still maintains a secret clue room full of resources for the heroes.
- Scatterbrained Senior: Peter Sadusky has dementia, which forced him into retirement from the FBI, though it's ambiguous how much of it is real and how much is Obfuscating Stupidity on Sadusky's part or Gaslighting, since the only ones who said he had dementia were Myles and Hendricks, both of whom work for the enemy.
- Small Role, Big Impact: Peter only appears in the series' first episode. But falling behind on payment for his storage room, which is under a fake name, leads Jess to crack his code and find him, which leads him to see she is connected to the Pan-American Treasure and give her the first clue.
Special Agent Hendricks
Special Agent Hendricks
Portrayed by: Armando Riesco
Agent Ross's boss and Peter Sadusky's former partner and friend.- Benevolent Boss: He gave Ross a chance to start over after her mistaken arrest in Washington D.C., encouraging her to be kinder to herself and not second-guess herself. Subverted. It's hard to know Was It All a Lie?, but at least some of his supportive statements were actually meant to keep her from discovering the truth.
- Master-Apprentice Chain: In the movies, Agent Hendricks was a young rookie agent mentored by Sadusky. Now he's back as an older veteran agent mentoring the rookie Agent Ross.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Zig-Zagged between this and Clueless Boss. As Ross' boss, while he takes some convincing, he does eventually believe and support her findings on Sadusky's murder. However, he also can't arrest Billie on little evidence. However, this turns out to be a ruse — he only appeared to believe her so she wouldn't suspect he was involved.
Dr. Zeke Hudson
Dr. Zeke Hudson
Portrayed by: Tommy Savas
A coroner at the city morgue who is interested in Agent Ross romatically.- Affectionate Nickname: Zeke calls Hannah "Bets", after her middle name.
- Flowers of Romance: A quirky example, crossed with Meaningful Gift — Zeke creates a bouquet of flowers for Hannah out of wrappers of products containing Orange Dye #47, one of the clues that Peter Sadusky was murdered, symbolizing how Zeke believed Hannah's crazy theory when no one else would. Hannah is touched, saying it's the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for her. It also helps her realize Hendricks killed Sadusky, since one of the wrappers used was for orange Tic Tacs, which Hendricks carries.
- Understanding Boyfriend: When she goes off on a tangent about the case during their lunch date, he decides to help her ditch the date so they can find more evidence.
Other
Myles (SPOILERS)
Myles
Portrayed by: Dustin Ingram
Peter Sadusky's in-house nurse.- Defector from Decadence: Myles served as The Mole for Billie, but turns down payment and later has a Heel–Face Turn after Liam's life is threatened.
- Heel–Face Turn: Myles was initially a spy for Billie, but decided to help Liam find Jess after saving him from the river.
- Jerkass Realization: Myles was helping Billie for the money, but trying to kill Liam made him realize she was going too far, causing Myles to turn on Billie.
- The Mole: Myles was working for Billie, turning a blind eye when Hendricks decided to take Peter out, helping Kacey put Liam in the river, and giving Ross the drive incriminating Jess in Peter's murder.
- Redemption Equals Death: After Myles turns on Billie, one of her men kills him after he and Liam lock Dario in Sadusky's saferoom.
Meena Mishra
Meena Mishra
Portrayed by: Salena Qureshi
Introduced Ethan's girlfriend, who is a nurse. Becomes his ex as of "Bad Romance".- Chekhov's Gunman: Her being Ethan's girlfriend at the beginning of the series becomes important after Ethan gives his phone to Jess. The SOS message goes to Meena, still programmed as Ethan's emergency contact, who informs the others where Jess is.
- Hero of Another Story: We briefly see her at the bar with her own friends , trying to get over Ethan.
- Romantic False Lead: She is introduced as Ethan's secret girlfriend, but they quickly break up when she realizes Ethan still has feelings for Jess.
Riley Poole
Riley Poole
Portrayed by: Justin Bartha
Author and co-discoverer of the Templar Treasure, who now has a podcast that is getting turned into a series. (For tropes pertaining to his role in the original films, see here.)- "Eureka!" Moment: Riley reveals that he was the one who gave Ben the idea that Charlotte might be a ship rather than a person.
- Honorary Uncle: Riley is now an uncle to Charlotte, Ben and Abigail's dog.
- Master-Apprentice Chain: Riley was the youngest of the original group in National Treasure. While he had his expertise in computers, he was often learning on-the-job from Ben. Now, he appears as a mentor figure for Jess and her friends, who according to Justin Bartha are about the same age Riley was in the first film.
- Retired Badass: Subverted. While it appears Riley is retired from treasure hunting, he denies this — he and Ben have just been stuck working on a single mystery (implied to be whatever was on page 47 from the President's Book from National Treasure: Book of Secrets) for the past 15 years.
- You Remind Me of X: Riley recognizes Jess thinks a lot like Ben Gates, and "Ben is always right", deferring to Jess' conclusion at a crucial moment.
Rafael Rios (SPOILERS)
Rafael Rios
Portrayed by: Jacob Vargas, Alejandro Edda (Young)
Jess' long-lost father, whose mother was a Daughter of the Plumed Serpent. He gave the necklace to Jess.- Alliterative Name: Rafael Rios.
- Determinator: For Rafael, nothing is more important than protecting the treasure, not even his family.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He comes off as singularly focused on the treasure at first, but he clearly loved Manuela and Jess and was willing to die for them.
- Red Herring: He was originally believed to be Salazar before telling Billie that the real Salazar killed her brother.
