On "Grimm," Jacqueline Toboni made an immediate impact as Theresa Rubel, a drifter with an entirely fitting nickname -- "Trubel," pronounced "Trouble," which is what has followed her all her young life.
Toboni herself also made an instant impression on "Grimm" co-creator and co-executive Jim Kouf, who met Toboni in February, when he came to the University of Michigan, which Kouf's daughter attends.
"Jim and his wife Lynn were there, speaking to our class," recalls Toboni, in a phone conversation. "They had been trying to cast this role for quite some time, and hadn't found the right person."
Kouf and his wife were at the university on a Friday, as Toboni recalls. Kouf thought Toboni, an acting student, had potential. In a whirlwind few days, Toboni taped herself auditioning for the "Grimm" role on a Saturday, got the call the "Grimm" producers wanted to see her on Sunday morning, and flew out to Los Angeles.
"I got there Monday, and went into the audition room on the NBC Universal lot," Toboni, 22, says. "I got to sit in the 'Grimm' writers' room while they were crafting this character. To see the minds behind it was something very special."
Later that day, Toboni found "I was going to the network, with another girl." The NBC executives liked her, because, "later that night, I found out I was flying to Portland to test with David Giuntoli," who plays the lead character of Nick Burkhardt on the filmed-in-Portland "Grimm."
"He was so generous with his time," Toboni says of Giuntoli. "Before I tested, he had like a five-minute break, and took me out to this balcony that looked over the Portland bridges, which was really beautiful. He said, I want you to be comfortable. He's been so gracious, and looking out for me, and playing big brother."
Toboni's test went well too, and next thing she knew, "I flew back to Michigan, and packed up my bags."
In short order, Toboni was in Portland, on the set of "Grimm," filming "Nobody Knows the Trubel I've Seen," the Season 3 episode that introduced her character. The episode aired on April 25.
In the show, it took meeting Nick for Trubel to realize that she, like him, was a Grimm -- one of the chosen few who have the ability to see Wesen, the scary supernatural creatures who look like normal humans to everyone else.
Growing up seeing monsters she couldn't understand, Trubel was unable to make anyone believe her, and her youth was a sad, difficult parade of foster homes and stints inside mental institutions.
Toboni has made Trubel a complicated, prickly, sympathetic character, and Nick has taken her under his wing, explaining what it means to be a Grimm, and reassuring her that not all Wesen are deadly. After all, Nick's best friend is Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell), a Blutbad, who may be a wolf-like creature when he morphs into his Wesen state, but is the mildest of men most of the time.
In the past three episodes, Trubel has learned more about her heritage, just as Nick and his girlfriend Juliette (Bitsie Tulloch) -- who have put Trubel up in their guest room -- learn more about the new Grimm in Portland.
With the Season 3 finale coming up Friday, May 16, Toboni couldn't reveal much about what's next for Trubel, but she is generous with praise for her "Grimm" castmates, and for Portland.
When she was in the "Grimm" writers' room in L.A., Toboni says, she heard that the "Grimm" cast in Portland is "a really tight-knit family," as she recalls. She was told "nobody is a diva, nobody's too big for their britches, they're all really down to earth. And I was thinking that's amazing, but if they're such a tight-knit family, I was a little nervous about coming in and breaking that up -- as Trubel tends to do."
To her relief, "I couldn't have been more wrong. They were all so great in terms of welcoming me, inviting me to watch the episodes, having dinner. They're all really great people."
Toboni, who grew up in San Francisco, had been to Portland before. "My brother (Joey Toboni) went to Lewis and Clark, and played basketball there," she says. "I remember going to Jake's for his graduation dinner in 2008."
While San Francisco is her home, "and my favorite city in the world," Toboni says, "the only city I think that's comparable is Portland. The people are so nice and welcoming. I told people I was new in town, and they gave me lists of restaurants to try."
Sasha Roiz, who plays Captain Renard on "Grimm," "lent me his bike, so I was able to get around. I'm thankful to the people there for, number one keeping it weird, and just for welcome me with open arms."
As to whether "Grimm" viewers will see more of Trubel when she returns for the next season, Toboni says, "I don't know. It depends on how much the storyline needs her. It's a great character."
Oh, and in case you're wondering, despite the "Grimm" interruption, Toboni did complete her final term at the University of Michigan. "I graduated about a week ago," she says, "with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in acting."
The "Grimm" Season 3 finale airs at 9 p.m. Friday, May 16 on NBC (8).
-- Kristi Turnquist
Join me for a special "Grimm" edition of TV Talk Live, our weekly live chat about TV, at noon Thursday May 15. Bring questions, comments about this season and ideas for next season, and we'll talk in the comments section.