The story of Kim Philby, the high-ranking British intelligence official who turned out to be one of the biggest double agents in U.K. history, is well known at this point. Dozens of books, fiction and nonfiction, have been written about how Philby took in the great and the good of MI6 and the CIA for decades before he finally had to flee across the Iron Curtain in 1963.
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This version of Philby, played with the kind of rumpled fatalism only Guy Pierce can muster, spends a lot of time keeping those friends close at the cost of his own soul, particularly Nicholas Elliott (Damian Lewis). But MGM Television’s “A Spy Among Friends,” which traces Philby and...
Related Stories How Jason Momoa’s Outrageous ‘Fast X’ Character Became Equal Parts Python and Peacock AI Becomes Him: How De-Aging Progressed from ‘Benjamin Button’ to ‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’
This version of Philby, played with the kind of rumpled fatalism only Guy Pierce can muster, spends a lot of time keeping those friends close at the cost of his own soul, particularly Nicholas Elliott (Damian Lewis). But MGM Television’s “A Spy Among Friends,” which traces Philby and...
- 5/22/2023
- by Sarah Shachat
- Indiewire
“It really is a show about friendship against the backdrop of espionage,” A Spy Among Friends creator Alexander Cary said at a panel for Deadline’s Contenders TV event. Cary was joined by star Damian Lewis to discuss the MGM+ series.
Set in England in 1963, the espionage thriller A Spy Among Friends centers around Nicholas Elliot (Damien Lewis), an MI6 intelligence officer who is distraught when he discovers that his close friend, Kim Philby (Guy Pearce), is a double agent working for the Soviet Union. It also stars Anna Maxwell Martin and Adrian Edmondson.
Related: Deadline Contenders Television 2023 Arrivals & Panels Gallery
“One of the brilliant things about spy stuff,” said Cary, “is that so much of it is secret, so much of it is left to the imagination. That opens the door for people like me to come in… and fill in the blanks.”
“[Nicholas Elliot] was an interesting way into an otherwise quite well-known story,...
Set in England in 1963, the espionage thriller A Spy Among Friends centers around Nicholas Elliot (Damien Lewis), an MI6 intelligence officer who is distraught when he discovers that his close friend, Kim Philby (Guy Pearce), is a double agent working for the Soviet Union. It also stars Anna Maxwell Martin and Adrian Edmondson.
Related: Deadline Contenders Television 2023 Arrivals & Panels Gallery
“One of the brilliant things about spy stuff,” said Cary, “is that so much of it is secret, so much of it is left to the imagination. That opens the door for people like me to come in… and fill in the blanks.”
“[Nicholas Elliot] was an interesting way into an otherwise quite well-known story,...
- 4/16/2023
- by Ryan Fleming
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: A Spy Among Friends, the story of British spies Kim Philby and Nicholas Elliott that stars Damian Lewis and Guy Pearce, recently premiered on MGM+.
The series, which is produced by Sony Pictures Television, is based on Ben Macintyre’s eponymous book. Alexander Cary, who exec produced Lewis-fronted Homeland, created the A Spy Among Friends TV series.
Cary and Lewis, who also exec produced the MGM+ period drama, were at Deadline TV Contenders to talk up the show. They are now turning their attention to more Macintryre books for the small screen.
First up is an adaptation of The Spy and the Traitor: The Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War. The book tells the story of Oleg Gordievsky, a former Kgb colonel who became a bureau chief in London and was a double agent, providing information to the British secret intelligence service MI6.
It tells the story of how,...
The series, which is produced by Sony Pictures Television, is based on Ben Macintyre’s eponymous book. Alexander Cary, who exec produced Lewis-fronted Homeland, created the A Spy Among Friends TV series.
Cary and Lewis, who also exec produced the MGM+ period drama, were at Deadline TV Contenders to talk up the show. They are now turning their attention to more Macintryre books for the small screen.
First up is an adaptation of The Spy and the Traitor: The Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War. The book tells the story of Oleg Gordievsky, a former Kgb colonel who became a bureau chief in London and was a double agent, providing information to the British secret intelligence service MI6.
It tells the story of how,...
- 4/16/2023
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Deadline’s Contenders Television, where the top networks and streamers are showing off their wares and Emmy hopefuls, continues Sunday with 20 more panels after a chock-full Saturday featuring some of the best and brightest series this awards season.
Click here to register for and watch the livestream.
After the likes of Riley Keogh, Patrick Stewart, Steven Yeun, Natasha Lyonne, Marc Maron, Wanda Sykes, Kathryn Hahn and Joel McHale took the DGA Theater stage in Los Angeles, Sunday’s lineup is slated to feature appearances by Helen Mirren, Adam Scott, Quinta Brunson, Maya Rudolph, Taron Egerton, Jason Segel, Bryan Cranston, Weird Al Yankovic, Kerry Washington, Elle Fanning, Paddy Considine and many more.
The studios and streamers participating this weekend at our panel extravaganza: Peacock, Prime Video, National Geographic, Apple TV+, Netflix, Hulu, CBS Studios, Showtime, Fox Entertainment, Paramount+, AMC/AMC+, HBO Max, Starz, Sony Pictures Television, ABC, Roku, Onyx Collective and Disney+.
Click here to register for and watch the livestream.
After the likes of Riley Keogh, Patrick Stewart, Steven Yeun, Natasha Lyonne, Marc Maron, Wanda Sykes, Kathryn Hahn and Joel McHale took the DGA Theater stage in Los Angeles, Sunday’s lineup is slated to feature appearances by Helen Mirren, Adam Scott, Quinta Brunson, Maya Rudolph, Taron Egerton, Jason Segel, Bryan Cranston, Weird Al Yankovic, Kerry Washington, Elle Fanning, Paddy Considine and many more.
The studios and streamers participating this weekend at our panel extravaganza: Peacock, Prime Video, National Geographic, Apple TV+, Netflix, Hulu, CBS Studios, Showtime, Fox Entertainment, Paramount+, AMC/AMC+, HBO Max, Starz, Sony Pictures Television, ABC, Roku, Onyx Collective and Disney+.
- 4/16/2023
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
Following closely behind, Bad Sisters, The Crown, The English and Slow Horses also received five nominations apiece.
BBC dramas This is Going To Hurt and The Responder lead the nominations for this year’s Bafta Television and Bafta Craft awards with six nominations each.
Both dramas have received nods in the leading actor category for Ben Wishaw and Martin Freeman’s performances.
Sister’s This is Going To Hurt is up for best drama mini series, while Dancing Ledge’s The Responder, which has been recomissioned for a second series, makes the list for best drama series.
The two dramas...
BBC dramas This is Going To Hurt and The Responder lead the nominations for this year’s Bafta Television and Bafta Craft awards with six nominations each.
Both dramas have received nods in the leading actor category for Ben Wishaw and Martin Freeman’s performances.
Sister’s This is Going To Hurt is up for best drama mini series, while Dancing Ledge’s The Responder, which has been recomissioned for a second series, makes the list for best drama series.
The two dramas...
- 3/22/2023
- by Heather Fallon Broadcast
- ScreenDaily
Spies have always been the center of action thrillers like the James Bond and Jason Bourne franchises. But, a new breed of espionage story has become popular in recent years. Chronicling the more realistic world of spycraft, which involves psychological measures on the spies and their targets, this new type of story trades explosions and car chases for dialogue and back-room dealings. While that may sound less exciting, you have not seen A Spy Among Friends (read our review).
Telling the true story of Kim Philby and Nicholas Elliott, A Spy Among Friends tells the intricate and complex path that led to the discovery of a network of Soviet spies operating within the British secret intelligence agency. Based on the acclaimed book by Ben MacIntyre, A Spy Among Friends dramatizes how Elliott and Philby, long-time friends and colleagues, played a cat-and-mouse game with each other that eventually led to one...
Telling the true story of Kim Philby and Nicholas Elliott, A Spy Among Friends tells the intricate and complex path that led to the discovery of a network of Soviet spies operating within the British secret intelligence agency. Based on the acclaimed book by Ben MacIntyre, A Spy Among Friends dramatizes how Elliott and Philby, long-time friends and colleagues, played a cat-and-mouse game with each other that eventually led to one...
- 3/15/2023
- by Alex Maidy
- JoBlo.com
The story of Kim Philby is perhaps too good to make up. The British spy, a double agent for Moscow, operated at the highest levels of the intelligence community; his ability to disseminate information to the Soviet Union, to which he eventually defected, is proof, perhaps, of the power of personal charm and erudition to cover over what’s lying in plain sight.
That’s the powerfully told story of “A Spy Among Friends,” which streamed on Itvx in the United Kingdom last year and which now arrives on nascent streamer MGM+. Guy Pearce plays Philby, who has at the series’ outset been a valued Soviet source for many years; likely his closest friend in tradecraft, Nicholas Elliott (Damian Lewis), must get a confession from him. We see the pair’s relationship over time in layered flashbacks, adding context and understanding to Elliott’s failure to nail down Philby.
The...
That’s the powerfully told story of “A Spy Among Friends,” which streamed on Itvx in the United Kingdom last year and which now arrives on nascent streamer MGM+. Guy Pearce plays Philby, who has at the series’ outset been a valued Soviet source for many years; likely his closest friend in tradecraft, Nicholas Elliott (Damian Lewis), must get a confession from him. We see the pair’s relationship over time in layered flashbacks, adding context and understanding to Elliott’s failure to nail down Philby.
The...
- 3/12/2023
- by Daniel D'Addario
- Variety Film + TV
Plot: Based on the New York Times best-selling book written by Ben Macintyre, this six-episode limited series dramatizes the true story of two British spies and lifelong friends, Nicholas Elliott and Kim Philby. The latter became the most notorious British defector and Soviet double agent in history. Philby’s deeply personal betrayal, uncovered at the height of the Cold War, resulted in the gutting of British and American intelligence.
Review: The story of Kim Philby, one of the most notorious spies discovered during the Cold War, has been told many times over in both books and documentaries. While speculative stories and alternate histories abound, Philby’s tale has inspired John Le Carre’s Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and the Matt Damon film The Good Shepherd. While these stories and adaptations have been interesting, the true story is fascinating in its own right. The new limited series A Spy Among Friends...
Review: The story of Kim Philby, one of the most notorious spies discovered during the Cold War, has been told many times over in both books and documentaries. While speculative stories and alternate histories abound, Philby’s tale has inspired John Le Carre’s Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and the Matt Damon film The Good Shepherd. While these stories and adaptations have been interesting, the true story is fascinating in its own right. The new limited series A Spy Among Friends...
- 3/9/2023
- by Alex Maidy
- JoBlo.com
A Spy Among Friends Trailer — MGM+‘s A Spy Among Friends (2023) TV Mini-series trailer has been released. The A Spy Among Friends trailer stars Guy Pearce, Damian Lewis, Anna Maxwell Martin, Adrian Edmondson, Stephen Kunken, Nicholas Rowe, Edward Baker-Duly, Anastasia Hille, and Radoslaw Kaim. Crew Nick Murphy directed A Spy Among Friends. Alexander Cary wrote the screenplay [...]
Continue reading: A Spy Among Friends (2023) TV Mini-series Trailer: Guy Pearce & Damian Lewis are British Spies During the Cold War [MGM+]...
Continue reading: A Spy Among Friends (2023) TV Mini-series Trailer: Guy Pearce & Damian Lewis are British Spies During the Cold War [MGM+]...
- 1/20/2023
- by Rollo Tomasi
- Film-Book
A Spy Among Friends: Thriller Adaptation Starring Damian Lewis and Guy Pearce Gets MGM+ Release Date
A March release date has been set for MGM+’s adaptation of Ben Macintyre’s A Spy Among Friends, starring Emmy winners Damian Lewis (Homeland) and Guy Pearce (Mildred Pierce).
Specifically, the six-episode limited series will premiere Sunday, March 12, it was announced by MGM+ (fka Epix) at the Television Critics Association winter press tour in Pasadena.
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Based on Macintyre’s New York Times bestseller, A Spy Among Friends...
Specifically, the six-episode limited series will premiere Sunday, March 12, it was announced by MGM+ (fka Epix) at the Television Critics Association winter press tour in Pasadena.
More from TVLineFROM Season 2: Premiere Date Set for Sci-Fi Horror Series on MGM+Spider-Man Offshoot Silk: Spider Society Greenlit at MGM+, More Live-Action Marvel Shows to FollowEPIX Is Changing Its Name to MGM+
Based on Macintyre’s New York Times bestseller, A Spy Among Friends...
- 1/10/2023
- by Matt Webb Mitovich
- TVLine.com
Just a couple of weeks from now, families will be gathered round Christmas trees, sharing mince pieces, singing yuletide songs, and unwrapping presents. And all over the country, dads – who’ve spent a lifetime receiving socks and ties – will be squeezing their rectangular packages. What could it be? A DVD of Saving Private Ryan? A box of Ferrero Rochers? Or the latest book by popular historian Ben Macintyre, whose accounts of modern British history are adored by men of a certain age?
Macintyre’s works include Rogue Heroes (adapted for a BBC TV series) and Operation Mincemeat (a hit in cinemas earlier this year), and the author is now making his debut on Itvx – a bold new streaming era for Britain’s third channel – with a big-budget adaptation of A Spy Among Friends, the inside story of the capture of Soviet double agent Kim Philby. Philby here is played by...
Macintyre’s works include Rogue Heroes (adapted for a BBC TV series) and Operation Mincemeat (a hit in cinemas earlier this year), and the author is now making his debut on Itvx – a bold new streaming era for Britain’s third channel – with a big-budget adaptation of A Spy Among Friends, the inside story of the capture of Soviet double agent Kim Philby. Philby here is played by...
- 12/8/2022
- by Nick Hilton
- The Independent - TV
On 9 November 1955, the world’s media crowded into a fourth-floor flat in South Kensington in London, their cameras trained on a self-assured man in his forties, speaking with the clipped accent and unshakeable confidence that is drilled into a certain class of British male through years of expensive schooling. He answers the questions posed by his American interviewer with few words, sometimes accompanied by the flicker of a smile, a slight air of ennui, as if he is bored with the whole charade.
His name is Harold Adrian Russell Philby, known to his friends, and now the world, as Kim. The interviewer asks whether Philby is satisfied with his newly clean reputation, now that he has been ruled out as “the so-called third man” – the mole thought to have tipped off British agents-turned-Soviet spies Guy Burgess and Donald Maclean, allowing the pair to defect to the Ussr in 1951. After Philby gives a brief assent,...
His name is Harold Adrian Russell Philby, known to his friends, and now the world, as Kim. The interviewer asks whether Philby is satisfied with his newly clean reputation, now that he has been ruled out as “the so-called third man” – the mole thought to have tipped off British agents-turned-Soviet spies Guy Burgess and Donald Maclean, allowing the pair to defect to the Ussr in 1951. After Philby gives a brief assent,...
- 12/8/2022
- by Katie Rosseinsky
- The Independent - TV
On 9 November 1955, the world’s media crowded into a fourth-floor flat in South Kensington in London, their cameras trained on a self-assured man in his forties, speaking with the clipped accent and unshakeable confidence that is drilled into a certain class of British male through years of expensive schooling. He answers the questions posed by his American interviewer with few words, sometimes accompanied by the flicker of a smile, a slight air of ennui, as if he is bored with the whole charade.
His name is Harold Adrian Russell Philby, known to his friends, and now the world, as Kim. The interviewer asks whether Philby is satisfied with his newly clean reputation, now that he has been ruled out as “the so-called third man” – the mole thought to have tipped off British agents-turned-Soviet spies Guy Burgess and Donald Maclean, allowing the pair to defect to the Ussr in 1951. After Philby gives a brief assent,...
His name is Harold Adrian Russell Philby, known to his friends, and now the world, as Kim. The interviewer asks whether Philby is satisfied with his newly clean reputation, now that he has been ruled out as “the so-called third man” – the mole thought to have tipped off British agents-turned-Soviet spies Guy Burgess and Donald Maclean, allowing the pair to defect to the Ussr in 1951. After Philby gives a brief assent,...
- 12/8/2022
- by Katie Rosseinsky
- The Independent - TV
Ben Macintyre’s best-selling novel A Spy Among Friends is being adapted into a scripted crime drama for MGM+, with Damian Lewis (Billions) and Guy Pearce (Mare of Easttown) starring in lead roles. MGM+ is the new name for Epix from early 2023. The six-episode series tells the true story of two British spies and lifelong friends, Nicholas Elliott and Kim Philby, the latter of which became the most notorious British defector and Soviet double agent in history. The drama will explore how Philby’s profoundly personal betrayal, uncovered at the height of the Cold War, resulted in the gutting of British and American intelligence. Created by Alexander Cary (Homeland) and produced by ITV Studios in collaboration with Sony Pictures Television, A Spy Among Friends stars Emmy winners Lewis and Pearce alongside Anna Maxwell Martin (Line of Duty), Stephen Kunken (The Handmaid’s Tale), and Adrian Edmondson (Back to Life). “I’m...
- 11/29/2022
- TV Insider
MGM+, the linear channel and streaming service previously known as Epix, has picked up crime drama “A Spy Among Friends.” The British limited series was commissioned by ITV Studios and was originally set to air as a Spectrum Original in the U.S. before that cabler was shuttered in August.
“A Spy Among Friends” is based on Ben Macintyre’s novel of the same and dramatizes the true story of two British spies and lifelong friends, Nicholas Elliott (Damian Lewis) and Kim Philby (Guy Pearce). The latter became the most notorious British defector and Soviet double agent in history. Philby’s deeply personal betrayal, uncovered at the height of the Cold War, resulted in the gutting of British and American intelligence. Anna Maxwell Martin, Stephen Kunken and Adrian Edmondson also star.
After debuting on Itvx in the U.K. in December, “A Spy Among Friends” will premiere on MGM+ in...
“A Spy Among Friends” is based on Ben Macintyre’s novel of the same and dramatizes the true story of two British spies and lifelong friends, Nicholas Elliott (Damian Lewis) and Kim Philby (Guy Pearce). The latter became the most notorious British defector and Soviet double agent in history. Philby’s deeply personal betrayal, uncovered at the height of the Cold War, resulted in the gutting of British and American intelligence. Anna Maxwell Martin, Stephen Kunken and Adrian Edmondson also star.
After debuting on Itvx in the U.K. in December, “A Spy Among Friends” will premiere on MGM+ in...
- 11/29/2022
- by Selome Hailu
- Variety Film + TV
MGM+, which was previously named Epix, has picked up limited thriller series “A Spy Among Friends.” The new series is based on the New York Times best-selling novel written by Ben Macintyre. It’s set to premiere in 2023.
The six-episode crime drama will reimagine the real-life story of two British spies — Nicholas Elliott and Kim Philby — who are also longtime fiends. “[Philby] became the most notorious British defector and Soviet double agent in history. Philby’s deeply personal betrayal, uncovered at the height of the Cold War, resulted in the gutting of British and American intelligence,” reads a description for the series.
“A Spy Among Friends” stars award-winning actor Damian Lewis and Emmy winner Guy Pearce. Other cast members includes Anna Maxwell, Stephen Kunken, and Adrian Edmondson.
Also Read:
Mark Burnett Exits as MGM Worldwide TV Group Chairman
The series, which was created by British writer Alexander Cary, will be...
The six-episode crime drama will reimagine the real-life story of two British spies — Nicholas Elliott and Kim Philby — who are also longtime fiends. “[Philby] became the most notorious British defector and Soviet double agent in history. Philby’s deeply personal betrayal, uncovered at the height of the Cold War, resulted in the gutting of British and American intelligence,” reads a description for the series.
“A Spy Among Friends” stars award-winning actor Damian Lewis and Emmy winner Guy Pearce. Other cast members includes Anna Maxwell, Stephen Kunken, and Adrian Edmondson.
Also Read:
Mark Burnett Exits as MGM Worldwide TV Group Chairman
The series, which was created by British writer Alexander Cary, will be...
- 11/29/2022
- by Raquel "Rocky" Harris
- The Wrap
Damian Lewis and Guy Pearce-fronted drama series A Spy Among Friends has found a new home in the U.S. following Spectrum’s move out of original series.
The spy thriller, which is a co-production with UK streamer Itvx, has landed at MGM+, the network formerly known as Epix.
It comes after the series premiered at the London Film Festival and ahead of its British launch in December.
The six-part series, which is based on Ben Macintyre’s book, tells the true story of two British spies and lifelong friends, Nicholas Elliott and Kim Philby.
A Spy Among Friends follows the defection of notorious British intelligence officer and Kgb double agent, Kim Philby, played by Pearce, through the lens of his complex relationship with MI6 colleague and close friend, Nicholas Elliott, played by Lewis. The show examines espionage through their friendship, the fallout of which affects East-West relations to this day.
The spy thriller, which is a co-production with UK streamer Itvx, has landed at MGM+, the network formerly known as Epix.
It comes after the series premiered at the London Film Festival and ahead of its British launch in December.
The six-part series, which is based on Ben Macintyre’s book, tells the true story of two British spies and lifelong friends, Nicholas Elliott and Kim Philby.
A Spy Among Friends follows the defection of notorious British intelligence officer and Kgb double agent, Kim Philby, played by Pearce, through the lens of his complex relationship with MI6 colleague and close friend, Nicholas Elliott, played by Lewis. The show examines espionage through their friendship, the fallout of which affects East-West relations to this day.
- 11/29/2022
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
MGM+, the premium cable network and streamer currently known as Epix, has landed domestic rights to Damian Lewis drama A Spy Among Friends after the series was to have aired as a Spectrum original.
The six-episode series that reunites the Billions star with his former Homeland exec producer Alexander Cary was among the programs that were left without a home after Charter shut down its Spectrum Originals banner following the departure of exec Katherine Pope. Pope departed cable service Charter to take over as president of indie studio Sony Pictures Television, which produces Spy. Pope previously bought the show during her time at Charter and now sold it to MGM+ in her new role atop Sony TV.
Created by Cary, Spy is based on the New York Times best-selling book by Ben Macintyre. The series, produced by Sony and BritBox parent ITV Studios and Veritas Entertainment Group,...
MGM+, the premium cable network and streamer currently known as Epix, has landed domestic rights to Damian Lewis drama A Spy Among Friends after the series was to have aired as a Spectrum original.
The six-episode series that reunites the Billions star with his former Homeland exec producer Alexander Cary was among the programs that were left without a home after Charter shut down its Spectrum Originals banner following the departure of exec Katherine Pope. Pope departed cable service Charter to take over as president of indie studio Sony Pictures Television, which produces Spy. Pope previously bought the show during her time at Charter and now sold it to MGM+ in her new role atop Sony TV.
Created by Cary, Spy is based on the New York Times best-selling book by Ben Macintyre. The series, produced by Sony and BritBox parent ITV Studios and Veritas Entertainment Group,...
- 11/29/2022
- by Lesley Goldberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Britain’s freshest new streaming service has launched a trailer for the star-studded spy thriller, ‘A Spy Among Friends.’
Based on the New York Times best-selling book written by Ben Macintyre, the six-episode series dramatises the true story of Nicholas Elliott and Kim Philby, two British spies and lifelong friends. Philby was the most notorious British defector and Soviet double agent in history. This is a story of intimate duplicity; loyalty, trust and treachery. Philby’s deeply personal betrayal, uncovered at the height of the Cold War, resulted in the gutting of British and American Intelligence.
Alexander Cary is the creator and executive producer alongside ITV Studios’ Patrick Spence and Nick Murphy.
Launching on 8th December, Itvx is a new, free streaming platform. Replacing ITV Hub as the online home of all ITV content, viewers can expect a new and improved product experience through Itvx as well as more new...
Based on the New York Times best-selling book written by Ben Macintyre, the six-episode series dramatises the true story of Nicholas Elliott and Kim Philby, two British spies and lifelong friends. Philby was the most notorious British defector and Soviet double agent in history. This is a story of intimate duplicity; loyalty, trust and treachery. Philby’s deeply personal betrayal, uncovered at the height of the Cold War, resulted in the gutting of British and American Intelligence.
Alexander Cary is the creator and executive producer alongside ITV Studios’ Patrick Spence and Nick Murphy.
Launching on 8th December, Itvx is a new, free streaming platform. Replacing ITV Hub as the online home of all ITV content, viewers can expect a new and improved product experience through Itvx as well as more new...
- 11/9/2022
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Rebecca Lenkiewicz was talking with fellow writer Alex Cary at the BFI London Film Festival.
UK scriptwriters Alex Cary and Rebecca Lenkiewicz discussed the travails of their craft in a talk at the BFI London Film Festival (Lff) this week, that followed the damning findings of a report by the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain (Wggb) that said most of its members believed they were being edited out of the filmmaking process.
“The findings of the Wggb report didn’t surprise me at all,” said Lenkiewicz, the writer of the New York TImes drama She Said, directed by Maria Schrader.
UK scriptwriters Alex Cary and Rebecca Lenkiewicz discussed the travails of their craft in a talk at the BFI London Film Festival (Lff) this week, that followed the damning findings of a report by the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain (Wggb) that said most of its members believed they were being edited out of the filmmaking process.
“The findings of the Wggb report didn’t surprise me at all,” said Lenkiewicz, the writer of the New York TImes drama She Said, directed by Maria Schrader.
- 10/14/2022
- by Chris Evans
- ScreenDaily
“She Said” screenwriter Rebecca Lenkiewicz has said the New York Times journalists who broke the Harvey Weinstein story in 2017 fed her chapters of their book as they were writing it in order to bring the novel to screen sooner.
Speaking as part of a Variety-sponsored London Film Festival panel on screenwriting, the British scribe of such films as the Keira Knightley-fronted “Colette” and Pawel Pawlikowski’s “Ida” described working closely with reporters Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey to write Universal’s film adaptation of their 2019 book. The process took around four years, said Lenkiewicz.
“I started working on it before I read the book,” said the Devon-born writer, who had six “freeing” weeks of writing on her own before even getting sight of a chapter.
“I met the journalists and was writing it, and they were feeding me the chapters. That was an interesting way of working because...
Speaking as part of a Variety-sponsored London Film Festival panel on screenwriting, the British scribe of such films as the Keira Knightley-fronted “Colette” and Pawel Pawlikowski’s “Ida” described working closely with reporters Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey to write Universal’s film adaptation of their 2019 book. The process took around four years, said Lenkiewicz.
“I started working on it before I read the book,” said the Devon-born writer, who had six “freeing” weeks of writing on her own before even getting sight of a chapter.
“I met the journalists and was writing it, and they were feeding me the chapters. That was an interesting way of working because...
- 10/12/2022
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
Nothing has quite the same screen allure as a secret world. Espionage is so secret, by definition, that we have to take even its existence as a matter of trust; all we know about what goes on behind the intelligence agencies’ closed doors is what is relayed to us through books, films and series like A Spy Among Friends, based on Ben Macintyre’s book about the British double agent Kim Philby. Presumably, a certain kind of person is drawn to that world where nothing can be let slip outside it. To work for both sides, one must constantly be aware of who said what to whom, who knows what, who saw you where, who remembers you there — that anyone should want that life is a mystery in itself.
A Spy Among Friends – two episodes of which are screening as part of the London Film Festival – reunites Alexander Cary, a...
A Spy Among Friends – two episodes of which are screening as part of the London Film Festival – reunites Alexander Cary, a...
- 10/7/2022
- by Stephanie Bunbury
- Deadline Film + TV
The 66th BFI London Film Festival in partnership with American Express has announced the line-up of world premieres for this year’s festival.
In addition to the previously announced opening night gala, the rousing big screen adaptation of the smash-hit, Olivier-winning stage musical Roald Dahl’S Matilda The Musical, the festival will also launch dazzling stop-motion animation Guillermo Del Toro’S Pinocchio as well as Creature, a new collaboration between acclaimed choreographer Akram Khan and Oscar-winner, Asif Kapadia, and My Father’S Dragon, family animation from Award-winning Nora Twomey (The Breadwinner) and Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon.
The series and episodic selection, now in its second year, has a thrilling range of stories for audiences to see on the big screen. Lff’s Series Special Presentation in 2022 will be the World Premiere of The English, starring Emily Blunt and Chaske Spencer, a sweeping tale of romance and revenge from award-winning television auteur Hugo Blick.
In addition to the previously announced opening night gala, the rousing big screen adaptation of the smash-hit, Olivier-winning stage musical Roald Dahl’S Matilda The Musical, the festival will also launch dazzling stop-motion animation Guillermo Del Toro’S Pinocchio as well as Creature, a new collaboration between acclaimed choreographer Akram Khan and Oscar-winner, Asif Kapadia, and My Father’S Dragon, family animation from Award-winning Nora Twomey (The Breadwinner) and Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon.
The series and episodic selection, now in its second year, has a thrilling range of stories for audiences to see on the big screen. Lff’s Series Special Presentation in 2022 will be the World Premiere of The English, starring Emily Blunt and Chaske Spencer, a sweeping tale of romance and revenge from award-winning television auteur Hugo Blick.
- 8/31/2022
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
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The 66th BFI London Film Festival has unveiled its lineup of world premieres at this year’s edition, including Guillermo del Toro’s Netflix stop-motion animation film Pinocchio.
The fest will also mark the debut of Creature, a collaboration between choreographer Akram Khan and Oscar winner Asif Kapadia, as well as family animation My Father’s Dragon from Nora Twomey (The Breadwinner) and Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon (Wolfwalkers, The Song of the Sea).
The London festival’s series and episodic selection, now in its second year, has “a thrilling range of stories for audiences to see on the big screen,” organizers said. They unveiled a “series special presentation” as the world premiere of The English, starring Emily Blunt and Chaske Spencer, a tale of romance and revenge from television auteur Hugo Blick (An Honourable Woman, Black Earth Rising). Also premiering in the section are comedy-drama Mammals,...
The 66th BFI London Film Festival has unveiled its lineup of world premieres at this year’s edition, including Guillermo del Toro’s Netflix stop-motion animation film Pinocchio.
The fest will also mark the debut of Creature, a collaboration between choreographer Akram Khan and Oscar winner Asif Kapadia, as well as family animation My Father’s Dragon from Nora Twomey (The Breadwinner) and Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon (Wolfwalkers, The Song of the Sea).
The London festival’s series and episodic selection, now in its second year, has “a thrilling range of stories for audiences to see on the big screen,” organizers said. They unveiled a “series special presentation” as the world premiere of The English, starring Emily Blunt and Chaske Spencer, a tale of romance and revenge from television auteur Hugo Blick (An Honourable Woman, Black Earth Rising). Also premiering in the section are comedy-drama Mammals,...
- 8/31/2022
- by Georg Szalai
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
22 films will have their world premiere at the festival.
Stop-motion animation Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio and Asif Kapadia’s Creature are among the 22 features having their world premiere at the 66th BFI London Film Festival.
Scroll down for full line-up
Pinocchio is directed by del Toro and Mark Gustafson, and produced by del Toro, Lisa Henson (Jim Henson Company), Gary Ungar, Alex Bulkley, and Corey Campodonico (Shadow Machine).
The ensemble voice cast includes Ewan McGregor, David Bradley, Finn Wolfhard, Cate Blanchett, Christopher Waltz, Tilda Swinton, John Turturro, Ron Perlman, Tim Blake Nelson, Burn Gorman, and newcomer Gregory Mann.
Creature,...
Stop-motion animation Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio and Asif Kapadia’s Creature are among the 22 features having their world premiere at the 66th BFI London Film Festival.
Scroll down for full line-up
Pinocchio is directed by del Toro and Mark Gustafson, and produced by del Toro, Lisa Henson (Jim Henson Company), Gary Ungar, Alex Bulkley, and Corey Campodonico (Shadow Machine).
The ensemble voice cast includes Ewan McGregor, David Bradley, Finn Wolfhard, Cate Blanchett, Christopher Waltz, Tilda Swinton, John Turturro, Ron Perlman, Tim Blake Nelson, Burn Gorman, and newcomer Gregory Mann.
Creature,...
- 8/31/2022
- by Ellie Calnan
- ScreenDaily
The 66th BFI London Film Festival is set to host the world premiere of Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, the Oscar-winning director’s dark take on the classic fairy tale about a wooden marionette brought to life to mend the heart of a grieving woodcarver named Geppetto.
The film will debut in the Royal Festival Hall at the Southbank Centre during the festival, which takes place October 5-15, 2022.
The stop-motion film was directed by del Toro and Mark Gustafson and is from a screenplay by the Mexican filmmaker and Patrick McHale. The film’s voice cast includes Ewan McGregor as Cricket, David Bradley as Geppetto and Gregory Mann as Pinocchio. Finn Wolfhard, Cate Blanchett, John Turturro, Ron Perlman, Tim Blake Nelson, Burn Gorman and Christoph Waltz and Tilda Swinton also star.
The film’s music will be provided by the Oscar-winning composer Alexandre Desplat, who has also written the score.
The film will debut in the Royal Festival Hall at the Southbank Centre during the festival, which takes place October 5-15, 2022.
The stop-motion film was directed by del Toro and Mark Gustafson and is from a screenplay by the Mexican filmmaker and Patrick McHale. The film’s voice cast includes Ewan McGregor as Cricket, David Bradley as Geppetto and Gregory Mann as Pinocchio. Finn Wolfhard, Cate Blanchett, John Turturro, Ron Perlman, Tim Blake Nelson, Burn Gorman and Christoph Waltz and Tilda Swinton also star.
The film’s music will be provided by the Oscar-winning composer Alexandre Desplat, who has also written the score.
- 8/31/2022
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
Damian Lewis and Guy Pearce are teaming up for “A Spy Among Friends,” a limited series for BritBox U.K. and Spectrum.
The show is based on the eponymous 2014 New York Times-bestselling book by Ben Macintyre, and produced by Sony Pictures Television, ITV Studios and Veritas Entertainment Group. Lewis will also serve as an executive producer through his production company, Ginger Biscuit Entertainment. Alexander Cary is creator and executive producer alongside ITV Studios’ Patrick Spence and Nick Murphy.
The six-part series began production in London this week and also will shoot in Romania. It will debut exclusively on ITV and BBC-owned streamer BritBox in the U.K. and Spectrum’s on-demand platform in the U.S. in the fall of 2022.
Other cast members include Anna Maxwell Martin, Stephen Kunken and Adrian Edmondson.
Cary, in describing the plot, said the show dramatized the true story of spies and lifelong friends...
The show is based on the eponymous 2014 New York Times-bestselling book by Ben Macintyre, and produced by Sony Pictures Television, ITV Studios and Veritas Entertainment Group. Lewis will also serve as an executive producer through his production company, Ginger Biscuit Entertainment. Alexander Cary is creator and executive producer alongside ITV Studios’ Patrick Spence and Nick Murphy.
The six-part series began production in London this week and also will shoot in Romania. It will debut exclusively on ITV and BBC-owned streamer BritBox in the U.K. and Spectrum’s on-demand platform in the U.S. in the fall of 2022.
Other cast members include Anna Maxwell Martin, Stephen Kunken and Adrian Edmondson.
Cary, in describing the plot, said the show dramatized the true story of spies and lifelong friends...
- 10/6/2021
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
Damian Lewis and Guy Pearce are to lead the line of limited drama series A Spy Among Friends.
Spectrum Originals and BritBox UK have ordered the adaptation of Ben Macintyre’s book to series. It comes over a year after Deadline first revealed the project, which then had Dominic West poised to star alongside Lewis.
It marks Lewis’ first gig since he exited Showtime’s Billions.
The series has started production in London this week and will also shoot in Romania. It is produced by Sony Pictures Television, ITV Studios and Veritas Entertainment Group with former Homeland exec producer Alexander Cary creator and exec producer alongside Lewis, via his production company, Ginger Biscuit Entertainment, and ITV Studios’ Patrick Spence.
It will air in the U.S. via Spectrum’s On Demand platform and in the UK via streamer BritBox, a joint venture between the BBC and ITV, in the fall...
Spectrum Originals and BritBox UK have ordered the adaptation of Ben Macintyre’s book to series. It comes over a year after Deadline first revealed the project, which then had Dominic West poised to star alongside Lewis.
It marks Lewis’ first gig since he exited Showtime’s Billions.
The series has started production in London this week and will also shoot in Romania. It is produced by Sony Pictures Television, ITV Studios and Veritas Entertainment Group with former Homeland exec producer Alexander Cary creator and exec producer alongside Lewis, via his production company, Ginger Biscuit Entertainment, and ITV Studios’ Patrick Spence.
It will air in the U.S. via Spectrum’s On Demand platform and in the UK via streamer BritBox, a joint venture between the BBC and ITV, in the fall...
- 10/6/2021
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Fresh off his Billions exit, Damian Lewis has closed a deal and begun filming his follow-up role.
The actor will star alongside Guy Pearce in the BritBox/Spectrum Originals limited series A Spy Among Friends. The six-episode drama, which has been in the works for more than a year before deals for the project closed, started production this week in London and will also film in Romania.
Created by Alexander Cary, Spy is based on the New York Times best-selling book by Ben Macintyre. The series, produced by Sony Pictures TV and BritBox parent ITV Studios and Veritas Entertainment Group, revolves around the ...
The actor will star alongside Guy Pearce in the BritBox/Spectrum Originals limited series A Spy Among Friends. The six-episode drama, which has been in the works for more than a year before deals for the project closed, started production this week in London and will also film in Romania.
Created by Alexander Cary, Spy is based on the New York Times best-selling book by Ben Macintyre. The series, produced by Sony Pictures TV and BritBox parent ITV Studios and Veritas Entertainment Group, revolves around the ...
- 10/6/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Fresh off his Billions exit, Damian Lewis has closed a deal and begun filming his follow-up role.
The actor will star alongside Guy Pearce in the BritBox/Spectrum Originals limited series A Spy Among Friends. The six-episode drama, which has been in the works for more than a year before deals for the project closed, started production this week in London and will also film in Romania.
Created by Alexander Cary, Spy is based on the New York Times best-selling book by Ben Macintyre. The series, produced by Sony Pictures TV and BritBox parent ITV Studios and Veritas Entertainment Group, revolves around the ...
The actor will star alongside Guy Pearce in the BritBox/Spectrum Originals limited series A Spy Among Friends. The six-episode drama, which has been in the works for more than a year before deals for the project closed, started production this week in London and will also film in Romania.
Created by Alexander Cary, Spy is based on the New York Times best-selling book by Ben Macintyre. The series, produced by Sony Pictures TV and BritBox parent ITV Studios and Veritas Entertainment Group, revolves around the ...
- 10/6/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Spectrum Originals and BET have partnered on a mystery drama set in the world of women’s basketball starring Rose Rollins.
“Long Slow Exhale” follows J.C. Abernathy (Rollins), the head coach of a competitive women’s college basketball team who finds herself in the middle of a career-shattering sexual abuse scandal. Sorting through the secrets to unravel the truth, she is forced to make decisions that will affect her and those that depend on her.
After a nine-month exclusive run for Spectrum, the 12-episode series will air with a second window on BET. Per Paramount Television Studios President Nicole Clemens, the show will explore various issues “at the forefront of our culture, told in the high-stakes, adrenaline-filled arena of elite women’s college basketball.”
Paramount Television Studios will produce. “Long Slow Exhale” is executive produced by showrunner and creator Pam Veasey, who is returning to Spectrum Originals after executive...
“Long Slow Exhale” follows J.C. Abernathy (Rollins), the head coach of a competitive women’s college basketball team who finds herself in the middle of a career-shattering sexual abuse scandal. Sorting through the secrets to unravel the truth, she is forced to make decisions that will affect her and those that depend on her.
After a nine-month exclusive run for Spectrum, the 12-episode series will air with a second window on BET. Per Paramount Television Studios President Nicole Clemens, the show will explore various issues “at the forefront of our culture, told in the high-stakes, adrenaline-filled arena of elite women’s college basketball.”
Paramount Television Studios will produce. “Long Slow Exhale” is executive produced by showrunner and creator Pam Veasey, who is returning to Spectrum Originals after executive...
- 2/9/2021
- by Mónica Marie Zorrilla
- Variety Film + TV
It’s a Brit dream team: Damian Lewis (Billions) and Dominic West (The Affair) are in talks to star in and executive-produce an adaptation of the novel A Spy Among Friends: Kim Philby and the Great Betrayal, for Spectrum Originals and UK streamer BritBox, our sister site Deadline reports.
A six-episode Cold War espionage thriller based on Ben Macintyre’s book, A Spy Among Friends “follows the defection of notorious British intelligence officer and Kgb double agent Kim Philby (played by West) through the lens of his complex relationship with MI6 colleague and close friend Nicholas Elliott (Lewis). The show examines espionage through their friendship,...
A six-episode Cold War espionage thriller based on Ben Macintyre’s book, A Spy Among Friends “follows the defection of notorious British intelligence officer and Kgb double agent Kim Philby (played by West) through the lens of his complex relationship with MI6 colleague and close friend Nicholas Elliott (Lewis). The show examines espionage through their friendship,...
- 7/7/2020
- by Vlada Gelman
- TVLine.com
Exclusive: Billions’ Damian Lewis and The Affair alum Dominic West are in negotiations to headline and executive produce a limited series adaptation of bestselling Cold War espionage thriller A Spy Among Friends for Spectrum Originals and UK streamer BritBox.
The six-episode A Spy Among Friends, based on Ben Macintyre’s book, comes from former Homeland executive producer Alexander Cary, Sony Pictures Television and ITV Studios. It is tentatively scheduled to premiere in the fall of 2021.
A Spy Among Friends follows the defection of notorious British intelligence officer and Kgb double agent, Kim Philby (West), through the lens of his complex relationship with MI6 colleague and close friend, Nicholas Elliott (Lewis). The show examines espionage through their friendship, the fallout of which affects East-West relations to this day.
Philby was a British spy who notoriously defected to the Soviet Union in the 1950s, betraying secrets to the Russians in the early years of the Cold War.
The six-episode A Spy Among Friends, based on Ben Macintyre’s book, comes from former Homeland executive producer Alexander Cary, Sony Pictures Television and ITV Studios. It is tentatively scheduled to premiere in the fall of 2021.
A Spy Among Friends follows the defection of notorious British intelligence officer and Kgb double agent, Kim Philby (West), through the lens of his complex relationship with MI6 colleague and close friend, Nicholas Elliott (Lewis). The show examines espionage through their friendship, the fallout of which affects East-West relations to this day.
Philby was a British spy who notoriously defected to the Soviet Union in the 1950s, betraying secrets to the Russians in the early years of the Cold War.
- 7/7/2020
- by Jake Kanter, Peter White and Nellie Andreeva
- Deadline Film + TV
For “Homeland” to do what it does best, Carrie Mathison had to become Nicholas Brody in the show’s eighth and final season.
Alex Gansa, co-creator and showrunner of the Showtime drama series, realized the storytelling path for the swan-song year as they were filming the closing scenes of Season 7. Claire Danes’ intrepid, bipolar CIA agent would come full circle by finding herself under suspicion of having become a brainwashed double-agent turned by the enemy — in this case, Russians — after she spent seven months in a spy-gulag during Season 7.
“Not only is she being suspected, she’s suspecting herself,” Gansa tells Variety.
In the season that debuts on Sunday, Carrie’s latest mission involves trying to reconstruct her repressed memories of her time in captivity. Gansa and his team have to deftly place the last figurative pushpins and yarn on Carrie’s signature evidence wall to make the case for...
Alex Gansa, co-creator and showrunner of the Showtime drama series, realized the storytelling path for the swan-song year as they were filming the closing scenes of Season 7. Claire Danes’ intrepid, bipolar CIA agent would come full circle by finding herself under suspicion of having become a brainwashed double-agent turned by the enemy — in this case, Russians — after she spent seven months in a spy-gulag during Season 7.
“Not only is she being suspected, she’s suspecting herself,” Gansa tells Variety.
In the season that debuts on Sunday, Carrie’s latest mission involves trying to reconstruct her repressed memories of her time in captivity. Gansa and his team have to deftly place the last figurative pushpins and yarn on Carrie’s signature evidence wall to make the case for...
- 2/7/2020
- by Cynthia Littleton
- Variety Film + TV
NBC has canceled drama “Taken.” The series is being shopped elsewhere as producers produced by EuropaCorp TV USA and Universal Television seek a new U.S. platform for the series, whose title has strong international brand recognition.
The series serves as a prequel to the hit action film franchise of the same name that starred Liam Neeson, with “Vikings” star Clive Standen taking over the role of former Green Beret Bryan Mills. After a personal tragedy leaves him badly shaken, Mills is recruited by the CIA, with each mission helping him build up the “very particular set of skills” that enthralled fans of the film series.
NBC moved “Taken” from its Friday perch in April, shifting the drama to Saturdays.
After the show was renewed for a second season, showrunner Alexander Cary departed with Greg Plageman taking over. Shortly thereafter, cast members Gaius Charles, Brooklyn Sudano, Monique Gabriela Curnen, Michael Irby,...
The series serves as a prequel to the hit action film franchise of the same name that starred Liam Neeson, with “Vikings” star Clive Standen taking over the role of former Green Beret Bryan Mills. After a personal tragedy leaves him badly shaken, Mills is recruited by the CIA, with each mission helping him build up the “very particular set of skills” that enthralled fans of the film series.
NBC moved “Taken” from its Friday perch in April, shifting the drama to Saturdays.
After the show was renewed for a second season, showrunner Alexander Cary departed with Greg Plageman taking over. Shortly thereafter, cast members Gaius Charles, Brooklyn Sudano, Monique Gabriela Curnen, Michael Irby,...
- 5/11/2018
- by Daniel Holloway
- Variety Film + TV
“Taken” is being pulled off of the NBC schedule.
The sophomore drama will no longer air on Fridays for the broadcaster. Instead, it will move to Saturdays beginning on May 26. The move means an almost certain cancellation for the series. The show’s renewal last year was something of a surprise, given that the series averaged just a 1.0 rating in adults 18-49 and 5.1 million viewers per episode in Live+Same Day. However, the show had been popular internationally and was relatively inexpensive to produce. NBC also overhauled the show for Season 2, with six Season 1 cast members exiting and Greg Plageman taking over as showrunner from Alexander Cary. Nevertheless, the second season has fallen off hard in the ratings, currently averaging just a 0.4 and 2.8 million viewers per episode, making it NBC’s lowest-rated original.
The series serves as a prequel to the hit action film franchise of the same name that starred Liam Neeson,...
The sophomore drama will no longer air on Fridays for the broadcaster. Instead, it will move to Saturdays beginning on May 26. The move means an almost certain cancellation for the series. The show’s renewal last year was something of a surprise, given that the series averaged just a 1.0 rating in adults 18-49 and 5.1 million viewers per episode in Live+Same Day. However, the show had been popular internationally and was relatively inexpensive to produce. NBC also overhauled the show for Season 2, with six Season 1 cast members exiting and Greg Plageman taking over as showrunner from Alexander Cary. Nevertheless, the second season has fallen off hard in the ratings, currently averaging just a 0.4 and 2.8 million viewers per episode, making it NBC’s lowest-rated original.
The series serves as a prequel to the hit action film franchise of the same name that starred Liam Neeson,...
- 4/19/2018
- by Joe Otterson
- Variety Film + TV
Adam Goldberg has joined the cast of NBC’s Taken, marking the second addition to the action-drama’s Season 2 rejiggering.
Weeks after the series was renewed for the 2017-18 TV season, TVLine reported that Gaius Charles (who played John), Brooklyn Sudano (Asha), Monique Gabriela Curnen (Vlasik), Michael Irby (Scott), Jose Pablo Cantillo (Dave) and James Landry Hébert (Rem) would not be returning, while Clive Standen (Bryan Mills) and Jennifer Beals (Christina Hart) will.
Explaining that the half-dozen excised characters had not been defined enough, “We just took a look at what the essence of the show was and tried to focus in on that,...
Weeks after the series was renewed for the 2017-18 TV season, TVLine reported that Gaius Charles (who played John), Brooklyn Sudano (Asha), Monique Gabriela Curnen (Vlasik), Michael Irby (Scott), Jose Pablo Cantillo (Dave) and James Landry Hébert (Rem) would not be returning, while Clive Standen (Bryan Mills) and Jennifer Beals (Christina Hart) will.
Explaining that the half-dozen excised characters had not been defined enough, “We just took a look at what the essence of the show was and tried to focus in on that,...
- 8/15/2017
- TVLine.com
Call it Taken: Take Deux.
Back in June, TVLine broke the news that NBC pink-slipped six series regulars in the wake of the action-drama’s down-to-the-wire Season 2 pickup. The network also made a showrunner switch, tapping Person of Interest Ep Greg Plageman to replace Season 1 boss Alex Cary.
Per NBC Chairman Robert Greenblatt, the drastic overhaul stemmed from a belief that Taken “needed” a creative reboot. “There’s a better show in there,” the exec tells TVLine, noting that the “essence” of the series — leads Clive Standen (Bryan Mills) and Jennifer Beals (Christina Hart) — will remain in Season 2. “We love Clive and Jennifer,...
Back in June, TVLine broke the news that NBC pink-slipped six series regulars in the wake of the action-drama’s down-to-the-wire Season 2 pickup. The network also made a showrunner switch, tapping Person of Interest Ep Greg Plageman to replace Season 1 boss Alex Cary.
Per NBC Chairman Robert Greenblatt, the drastic overhaul stemmed from a belief that Taken “needed” a creative reboot. “There’s a better show in there,” the exec tells TVLine, noting that the “essence” of the series — leads Clive Standen (Bryan Mills) and Jennifer Beals (Christina Hart) — will remain in Season 2. “We love Clive and Jennifer,...
- 8/4/2017
- TVLine.com
The Season 2 cast of NBC’s drama series Taken is going to have a very different look. Only series regulars Clive Standen (Bryan Mills), and Jennifer Beals (Christina Hart) will return for the second season. The shakeup is tied to the show’s change in creative direction under new showrunner Greg Plageman; he succeeds Alex Cary, who developed the series and served as executive producer/showrunner on Season 1. Renewed for a 16-episode Season 2, the new iteration is expected…...
- 6/21/2017
- Deadline TV
NBC giveth and NBC Taken-eth away.
On the heels of Taken‘s surprise Season 2 renewal, the drama’s ensemble is undergoing a dramatic overhaul, with six series regulars on their way out.
TVLine has learned exclusively that Gaius Charles (John), Brooklyn Sudano (Asha), Monique Gabriela Curnen (Vlasik), Michael Irby (Scott), Jose Pablo Cantillo (Dave) and James Landry Hébert (Rem) will not be back for the show’s 16-episode second season.
That leaves Clive Standen (Bryan Mills) and Jennifer Beals (Christina Hart) as the only two regulars returning.
RelatedNBC Fall Premiere Dates: The Voice and This Is Us Kick Things...
On the heels of Taken‘s surprise Season 2 renewal, the drama’s ensemble is undergoing a dramatic overhaul, with six series regulars on their way out.
TVLine has learned exclusively that Gaius Charles (John), Brooklyn Sudano (Asha), Monique Gabriela Curnen (Vlasik), Michael Irby (Scott), Jose Pablo Cantillo (Dave) and James Landry Hébert (Rem) will not be back for the show’s 16-episode second season.
That leaves Clive Standen (Bryan Mills) and Jennifer Beals (Christina Hart) as the only two regulars returning.
RelatedNBC Fall Premiere Dates: The Voice and This Is Us Kick Things...
- 6/21/2017
- TVLine.com
Sarah Hyland is taking on a mysterious, potentially supernatural role.
The Modern Family actress will guest-star during Shadowhunters Season 2B as an undisclosed character, Freeform announced Monday. Will she be a demon? Witch? Vampire? Seelie? Hit the comments with your theories.
RelatedShadowhunters Star Teases the Rebirth of Clary’s Love Triangle, Shady New Characters and More in Season 2B
Shadowhunters‘ summer run kicks off tonight at 8/7c.
Ready for more of today’s newsy nuggets? Well…
* The three-hour documentary Biggie: The Life of Notorious B.I.G. will air Monday, Sept. 4 at 8 pm on A&E. Additionally, the network has pushed the...
The Modern Family actress will guest-star during Shadowhunters Season 2B as an undisclosed character, Freeform announced Monday. Will she be a demon? Witch? Vampire? Seelie? Hit the comments with your theories.
RelatedShadowhunters Star Teases the Rebirth of Clary’s Love Triangle, Shady New Characters and More in Season 2B
Shadowhunters‘ summer run kicks off tonight at 8/7c.
Ready for more of today’s newsy nuggets? Well…
* The three-hour documentary Biggie: The Life of Notorious B.I.G. will air Monday, Sept. 4 at 8 pm on A&E. Additionally, the network has pushed the...
- 6/5/2017
- TVLine.com
Greg Plageman is set as the new executive producer and showrunner for Season 2 of NBC’s “Taken.” Plageman, who was previously the showrunner and Ep on CBS’ “Person of Interest,” takes over for Alexander Cary. NBC announced Cary’s exit last month. Luc Besson, Matthew Gross, Edouard de Vésinne, Thomas Anargyros and director Alex Graves also executive produce. Also Read: 'Overboard'?! Why Is Hollyw'd Now Remaking Duds? “We’re thrilled to bring Greg on to run the show,” said EuropaCorp TV USA president Matthew Gross in a statement. “His enormous talent and vast experience with bold broadcast television is a perfect fit.
- 6/5/2017
- by Ryan Gajewski
- The Wrap
Former Person Of Interest executive producer/co-showrunner Greg Plageman has closed a deal to join NBC thriller drama Taken, which was renewed for a 16-episode second season. He succeeds Alex Cary, who developed the series — a prequel to Luc Besson's hit movie franchise — and served as executive producer/showrunner on the first season. Taken returns for Season 2 in the fall in a new time slot, Friday 9 Pm. In Season 2, Taken, which has been a strong international seller…...
- 6/5/2017
- Deadline TV
2017-05-09T14:26:09-07:00'Taken' Renewed by NBC
“Taken” has been renewed for Season 2 at NBC, Variety has learned.
Executive producer Alexander Cary is departing the show, and a new showrunner is expected to be named shortly.
The second season will consist of 16 hour-long episodes. The series serves as a prequel to the hit action film franchise of the same name that starred Liam Neeson, with “Vikings” star Clive Standen taking over the role of former Green Beret Bryan Mills. After a personal tragedy leaves him badly shaken, Mills is recruited by the CIA, with each mission helping him build up the “very particular set of skills” that enthralled fans of the film series.
Read the rest of this article at Variety.
Taken stars Clive Standen, Jennifer Beals and Gaius Charles.
“Taken” has been renewed for Season 2 at NBC, Variety has learned.
Executive producer Alexander Cary is departing the show, and a new showrunner is expected to be named shortly.
The second season will consist of 16 hour-long episodes. The series serves as a prequel to the hit action film franchise of the same name that starred Liam Neeson, with “Vikings” star Clive Standen taking over the role of former Green Beret Bryan Mills. After a personal tragedy leaves him badly shaken, Mills is recruited by the CIA, with each mission helping him build up the “very particular set of skills” that enthralled fans of the film series.
Read the rest of this article at Variety.
Taken stars Clive Standen, Jennifer Beals and Gaius Charles.
- 5/9/2017
- by EG
- Yidio
NBC has renewed new midseason series Taken for a 16-episode second season. There will be a change at the helm of the thriller drama — a prequel to Luc Besson’s hit movie franchise — with Alex Cary, who developed the TV series adaptation and served as executive producer/showrunner on the first season, departing. Search is underway for a new showrunner. Parting of the ways is said to be amicable, and I hear the series is expected to tweak its creative direction in the…...
- 5/9/2017
- Deadline TV
Never underestimate Bryan Mills: Despite mediocre ratings, NBC’s rookie drama Taken has been renewed for a relatively super-sized Season 2, TVLine has learned. The series — billed as a prequel to the Liam Neeson-fronted film franchise — will produce 16 new episodes, nearly double Season 1’s order of 10. But it will do so with a new leader. Deadline reports that showrunner Alex Cary is moving on and the search for a new boss is underway.
Related2017 Renewal Scorecard: What’s Coming Back? What’s Getting Cancelled? What’s on the Bubble?
Taken premiered in February to 7.5 million total viewers and a 1.6 demo rating,...
Related2017 Renewal Scorecard: What’s Coming Back? What’s Getting Cancelled? What’s on the Bubble?
Taken premiered in February to 7.5 million total viewers and a 1.6 demo rating,...
- 5/9/2017
- TVLine.com
Just 10 episodes of NBC's Taken is enough to put Clive Standen and his character, Bryan Mills, through the ringer -- though Standen says he's absolutely ready for more.
As the television series, based on the Liam Neeson thrillers, approaches its season finale on Monday, audiences will see Mills and his "particular set of skills" put to the test, in a move that Standen teased transforms a young, eager, team-playing Mills to the character "that we know and love from the films."
Exclusive: Clive Standen Talks Stepping Into Liam Neeson's Shoes, Doing His Own Stunts for NBC's 'Taken'
Et caught up with Standen over the phone, where he spoke about the show's upcoming season finale and where he'd like to see his character go in a possible second season, as well as advice he received from Neeson and why Mills has been the "toughest character" for him to play.
"[Being a father] has impacted...
As the television series, based on the Liam Neeson thrillers, approaches its season finale on Monday, audiences will see Mills and his "particular set of skills" put to the test, in a move that Standen teased transforms a young, eager, team-playing Mills to the character "that we know and love from the films."
Exclusive: Clive Standen Talks Stepping Into Liam Neeson's Shoes, Doing His Own Stunts for NBC's 'Taken'
Et caught up with Standen over the phone, where he spoke about the show's upcoming season finale and where he'd like to see his character go in a possible second season, as well as advice he received from Neeson and why Mills has been the "toughest character" for him to play.
"[Being a father] has impacted...
- 5/1/2017
- Entertainment Tonight
“Taken” star Clive Standen says that despite it’s blockbuster origins, his new NBC series will be different than other big-budget action franchises. “We’ve got nothing compared to those $100 million action movies,” Standen said at the Television Critics Association press tour on Wednesday. “A lot of the action movies out there are all sound and fury signifying nothing. I don’t connect with big explosions and backflips and things. It has to be driven by heart, and it has to be driven by character.” The show, executive produced by Alex Cary and Matt Gross, serves as a pseudo-prequel to the Liam Neeson film.
- 1/18/2017
- by Reid Nakamura
- The Wrap
Clive Standen had to learn "a very particular set of skills" to take on Liam Neeson's iconic Taken character -- and then some!
Et hopped on the phone with the 35-year-old actor last month, where he opened up about what it took to step into Bryan Mills' shoes for the upcoming NBC series, starting with losing a bit of his trademark Viking bulk.
Exclusive: 'Vikings' Star Clive Standen Talks Rollo's Absence, Teases 'Fiery' Reunion Between Rollo and Bjorn
"With any new character, you have to wipe the canvas clean and start from the beginning," Standen shared. "Physically, I weighed 220 pounds to play Rollo [on History Channel's Vikings], but for Bryan Mills, he's a spy. So I had to lose quite a lot of weight to get in shape for Bryan Mills in an entirely different way."
"[Mills] is not an action hero, he's covert, and there's a big difference," he added. "So I tried to kind of lose a...
Et hopped on the phone with the 35-year-old actor last month, where he opened up about what it took to step into Bryan Mills' shoes for the upcoming NBC series, starting with losing a bit of his trademark Viking bulk.
Exclusive: 'Vikings' Star Clive Standen Talks Rollo's Absence, Teases 'Fiery' Reunion Between Rollo and Bjorn
"With any new character, you have to wipe the canvas clean and start from the beginning," Standen shared. "Physically, I weighed 220 pounds to play Rollo [on History Channel's Vikings], but for Bryan Mills, he's a spy. So I had to lose quite a lot of weight to get in shape for Bryan Mills in an entirely different way."
"[Mills] is not an action hero, he's covert, and there's a big difference," he added. "So I tried to kind of lose a...
- 1/18/2017
- Entertainment Tonight
Come February, Bryan Mills, the lead character in the “Taken” film franchise, will head to the small screen in the TV adaptation of the same name. Created by Luc Besson and Alexander Cary, NBC shared the first preview of the upcoming series, which introduces viewers to the former Green Beret, this time portrayed by Clive Standen.
Unfortunately there is no Liam Neeson to tell us about his “very particular set of skills,” but the first look contains many action-packed sequences with the new lead to get you interested.
Read More: ‘Sneaky Pete’ Trailer: Bryan Cranston Is a Ruthless Gangster in Amazon Series
The series is the origin story of the younger Mills as he deals with a personal tragedy that changes his life. The trailer shows how after two gunmen kill his daughter while they are on a train, he gets recruited by the CIA to become a deadly operative.
Unfortunately there is no Liam Neeson to tell us about his “very particular set of skills,” but the first look contains many action-packed sequences with the new lead to get you interested.
Read More: ‘Sneaky Pete’ Trailer: Bryan Cranston Is a Ruthless Gangster in Amazon Series
The series is the origin story of the younger Mills as he deals with a personal tragedy that changes his life. The trailer shows how after two gunmen kill his daughter while they are on a train, he gets recruited by the CIA to become a deadly operative.
- 12/15/2016
- by Liz Calvario
- Indiewire
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