Keri Russell, who is came to prominence thanks to her role in J. J. Abrams’ (he co-created with Matt Reeves) Felicity, which ran from 1998- 2002, is coming back to TV in a series set in the Cold War, The Americans.
Russell and Matthew Rhys (Brothers and Sisters) will play a pair of Soviet spies placed in deep cover, right in the heart of suburbia in an arranged marriage with two children who don’t suspect for a second that their parents aren’t true blue Mom-and-apple-pie Americans.
And that, of course, for any spy worth their salt is the general idea.
One man who may suspect there is something slightly amiss is Noah Emmerich (Super 8, The Walking Dead), who will play their neighbour and rather unfortunately for the two enemy operatives, a FBI agent in their counter-intelligence unit.
The initial tranche of 13 episodes will see the couple, in the words of Huffingtonpost.com, working hard to “balance their relationship, along with the network of spies and informants that are under their control.”
In launching the series, John Landgraf, president of FX, had this to say:
“We’re proud to welcome ‘The Americans,’ a taut series that crackles with incredible performances rooted in character perspectives never explored on a U.S. television series, to FX’s line up of quality dramas. We’re equally excited to welcome Graham Yost’s talented young Padawan Joe Weisberg as creator/showrunner. He joins a long line of gifted writer/producers who have taken their first shot at greatness on FX.”
With this kind of talent in front of and behind the cameras, and a wave of nostalgia sweeping through movies and TV, with Argo being the latest success story to tap into this remembrance of thrillers past, I have high hopes for this show.
The Americans comes to our screens in January 2013.