Background, Crimes, and the Actor Who Plays Him

Everything comes full circle. After escaping the team the first time, Vargas is finally back. Need a refresher? Here's what you need to know.

As the third season of FBI comes to a close tonight in "Straight Flush," a notorious criminal has been brought back: Antonio Vargas. Since he was never captured, he'll be part of what FBI showrunner calls a "rematch," which sounds intense. And it will be. If you need a little refresher on who Vargas is (he was only in one other episode), here's what you need to know before you watch the season finale.

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Who is Vargas on FBI?

Antonio Vargas was first introduced earlier in Season 3, in Episode 3, titled "Liar's Poker." He's the leader of a drug cartel, and one of the world's most wanted, dangerous men. He's apprehended by the team, but Vargas' henchmen threaten an attack that could a lot of people killed if they don't release Vargas. Isobel ultimately made the call to release him after Elise was captured. And that's how Vargas got away.

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Who plays Vargas?

Vargas is played by Dexter alum, David Zayas. David has been in a number of shows, including Gotham, Bloodline, and Blue Bloods. Crime TV is definitely his forte, and it's easy to see why. He plays those parts very, very convincingly.

Will we see Vargas' final scene this time around? Showrunner Rick Eid wanted to stress the importance of him coming back at all, and told CinemaBlend why he chose to bring him back into the fold.

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Rick said, "Because it wasn't closed. It's one of the rare times that we let a murderer drug kingpin free.... So the fact that we let somebody, this kind of criminal, walk free, is a problem, and an unresolved problem. We saw in Episode 14 the emotional toll that experience took on Elise, and she's still struggling with some lingering effects of trauma. There's a lot of unfinished business here. And we thought that it would be great to have a rematch, so to speak, between Isobel and Vargas."

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And will the FBI team (and Elise and Isobel especially) finally get justice? Rick simply said, "The return of Vargas, perhaps the conviction or the arrest or the imprisonment of Vargas, might begin that process." While Rick isn't promising that Isobel will do what she tried to initially do and finish the job (arrest Vargas), it seems like that would be a fitting end to this season.

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Rick feels like we should all be excited about this episode and described the difference between Vargas' first episode and his, probably, last: "I'd say if you liked his debut episode, you'll love this episode. It's intentionally a Part 2 of that storyline. The first episode we called 'Liar's Poker' because of their showdown and this one we call 'Straight Flush.' Because once again, they're both in a sense playing poker. The question is who has the straight flush – Vargas or Isobel?"

The Season 3 finale of FBI airs tonight, May 25. You can watch it on CBS at 9 p.m. EST.

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