Last week, FandomWire had the chance to speak with actor Guy Pearce (Memento, L.A. Confidential) and creator Alexander Cary (Homeland, Lie To Me) about A Spy Among Friends, a mini-series now available to stream on MGM+ and based on true events.
The show is based on the New York Times Bestseller by Ben Macintyre (SAS Rogue Heroes). The official plot reads:
“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.’’
Guy Pearce & Alexander Cary on A Spy Among Friends
You can watch the full interview down below:
Related: Cary Elwes Talks Operation Fortune, Being Star-Struck, & Joining Mission: Impossible (EXCLUSIVE)
Throughout the six episodes, we follow different timelines, from the years of friendship between Kim Philby (Guy Pearce) and Nicholas Elliott (Damian Lewis) to the unfolding of Philby’s years of secrets, lies, treachery, and betrayals against his country, and his best friend.
Though the series features a few moments of action, the intensity of the story resides in the quiet moments of suspense. The gravity of the betrayal is often shown in moments of stillness, during which one of the characters is sitting down, reflecting on the past, on their relationships, on their lives, and of course, on their respective secrets. Most of the time, the set is simple: a parlor, a cabin on a boat, and a small kitchen. The strength of the scene is between the actor, his craft, and a camera.
On these moments of intimacy and quietness, showrunner Alexander Cary declared:
“I like the moments of silence. I consider the moments of silence, like the parts of a novel where it takes you through the internal workings of the narrator. Of course, to do the exposition of that, you have to leave that to the camera and the characters. What happens is, hopefully, you set it upright. And the audience fills in the blanks, and I like that partnership with the audience.”
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