Hugh Laurie will take on another John le Carré role in the BBC and MGM’s ambitious upcoming spy thriller Legacy of Spies, which boasts a large budget and all-star cast.
The series will draw inspiration primarily from two of le Carre’s espionage novels, The Spy Who Came in From the Cold and its 2017 follow-up A Legacy of Spies, which are connected by his much-loved character George Smiley.
Succession alum Matthew Macfadyen is to inherit the role for this new series, marking his return to the spy genre after a star-making turn in Spooks, while Laurie’s character is yet to be identified (according to Deadline). Expect an announcement soon.
Laurie is a self-proclaimed Le Carré super-fan, who recently reprised the role of illegal arms dealer Richard Roper in The Night Manager season 2, which ended on a shocking note that sets up the confirmed third (and final) entry.
Legacy of Spies might be one of the elements slowing down work on that much-anticipated conclusion, with filming on the former taking place right now, but The Night Manager boss David Farr has assured that there won’t be another 10-year break.
Le Carré’s son Stephen Cornwell is showrunner on this latest adaptation, co-writing scripts alongside Clarissa Ingram, while Michael Lennox (Say Nothing) serves as executive producer and lead director.
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The cast of Legacy of Spies also includes Zero Day‘s Dan Stevens (as spymaster Bill Haydon), Monster‘s Charlie Hunnam (as intelligence officer Alec Leamas), All Quiet on the Western Front‘s Felix Kammerer (as East Germany’s Hans-Dieter Mundt) and Star City‘s Agnes O’Casey (as Liz Gold, a role she previously played on stage).
The synopsis, courtesy of the BBC, teases: “In the shadow of the newly-erected Berlin Wall, Alec Leamas watches his last agent shot dead by East German sentries.
“For Leamas, a senior British intelligence officer in Berlin, the Cold War is over. As he faces the prospect of retirement or worse – a desk job – Control offers him a unique opportunity for revenge.
“Assuming the guise of an embittered and dissolute ex-agent, Leamas is set up to trap Mundt, the deputy director of the East German Intelligence Service, with himself as the bait. In the background is George Smiley, ready to make the game play out just as Control wants.”
Legacy of Spies is coming soon to BBC One.
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Authors
David Craig is the Senior Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest and greatest scripted drama and comedy across television and streaming. Previously, he worked at Starburst Magazine, presented The Winter King Podcast for ITVX and studied Journalism at the University of Sheffield.
