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The Agency: Central Intelligence

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This article is about the 2024 Paramount+ series. For the 2001 CBS series about a fictionalized Central Intelligence Agency, see The Agency (2001 TV series).

The Agency: Central Intelligence
Also known asThe Agency
GenreDrama
Political thriller
Spy thriller
Created byJez Butterworth & John-Henry Butterworth
Based onThe Bureau (Le Bureau des Légendes)
by Eric Rochant
Written byJez Butterworth & John-Henry Butterworth
Starring
Music byEmilie Levienaise-Farrouch
Opening theme"Love Is Blindness" covered by Jack White
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes10
Production
Executive producers
ProducerSimone Goodridge
Running time44–60 minutes
Production companies
Original release
NetworkParamount+ with Showtime
ReleaseDecember 1, 2024 (2024-12-01) –
present

The Agency: Central Intelligence (formerly known as The Agency)[1] is an American spy thriller television series from Paramount+ with Showtime produced by George Clooney and Grant Heslov and starring Michael Fassbender, Jeffrey Wright, Jodie Turner-Smith, and Richard Gere. The series premiered on December 1, 2024 on Paramount+ with Showtime, and is a remake of the acclaimed French series, The Bureau.

In December 2024, the series was renewed for a second season.

Premise

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CIA officer "Martian" is ordered to abandon his undercover life and return to London Station. A past love unexpectedly reappears, putting his mission and his real identity against his heart, hurling them both into a deadly game of international intrigue and espionage.[2]

Cast and characters

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Main

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  • Michael Fassbender as Brandon Colby, codename 'Martian', previously CIA NOC operative in Africa for six years, and now a senior case officer. He is known to Zahir by his former cover name Paul Lewis.
  • Jeffrey Wright as Henry Ogletree, Martian's boss, mentor and CIA London Deputy Station Chief. His official cover is the Foreign Service Support Attaché.
  • Jodie Turner-Smith as Dr. Samia Fatima 'Sami' Zahir, a Sudanese anthropology professor and Martian's love interest
  • Katherine Waterston as Naomi, Martian's former and Danny's current CIA case officer
  • Harriet Sansom Harris as Dr. Rachel Blake, a CIA clinical psychologist assigned to London Station from Langley
  • John Magaro as Owen Taylor, Coyote's CIA case officer
  • Saura Lightfoot-Leon as Daniela 'Danny' Ruiz Morata, codename 'Gremlin', a new CIA field officer undercover as a geophysics graduate to get on an exchange program to Tehran to identify Iranian nuclear engineers. Her cover name is Daniela Moreno Acosta.
  • Andrew Brooke as Grandpa, a CIA field agent assigned with keeping tabs on Martian
  • India Fowler as Poppy Cunningham, Martian's daughter
  • Reza Brojerdi as Reza Mortazevi, an Iranian seismology professor secretly affiliated with the IRGC. Danny is assigned to get selected for his esteemed exchange program that will allow her to enter Iran with bona fide cover
  • Alex Reznik as Piotr Rybak, codename 'Coyote', a CIA non-official deep cover agent in Belarus
  • Richard Gere as James Bradley, codename 'Bosko', the CIA London Station Chief.
  • Christian Ochoa Lavernia as Grandma (season 2)[1]

Recurring

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  • Ambreen Razia as Blair, a CIA case officer
  • Alex Jennings as Frank, a senior CIA case officer who originally recruited Coyote
  • Curtis Lum as Guo, a Chinese MSS operative
  • Marcin Zarzeczny as Alexei Orekhov, a trucking company owner and CIA asset in Belarus
  • Violet Verigo as Sandy
  • Adam Nagaitis as Grandma, a CIA field agent assigned with keeping tabs on Martian
  • Bilal Hasna as Simon, a CIA technician
  • Tom Vaughan-Lawlor as Ben, a senior CIA technician
  • Sabrina Wu as Raine Miller, a CIA officer
  • Edward Holcroft as Dr. Charlie Remy, Ogletree's brother-in-law, a Delta Force operator and deep cover agent in occupied Ukraine
  • Sergej Onopko as Dr. Koval, SOF soldier undercover with Remy in Ukraine
  • Oleksandr Rudynskyi as Sasha Boutenko, an SOF soldier undercover with Remy and Koval in Ukraine
  • Tim Samuels as Alex Kent-Jones, a professor at the Royal College of World Heritage
  • Kurt Egyiawan as Osman, a Sudanese GIS operative assigned to keep track of Sami by her estranged husband
  • Keanush Tafreshi as Viking (season 2)[1]
  • Medalion Rahimi as Darya (season 2)[1]
  • Raza Jaffrey as Craig (season 2)[1]
  • Tessa Ferrer as Robyn (season 2)[1]

Guest

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Episodes

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No.TitleDirected byTeleplay byOriginal release date [3][b]
1"The Bends"Joe WrightJez Butterworth & John-Henry ButterworthDecember 1, 2024 (2024-12-01)
CIA agent Brandon ‘Martian’ Colby is suddenly recalled to London Station from a six-year covert assignment in Ethiopia. He leaves behind a lover, married Sudanese anthropologist Dr. Samia Zahir, and downplays his deep feelings for her with his handler Naomi. Now a case officer, Martian reconnects with his estranged daughter Poppy, and his boss and mentor Henry Ogletree, whilst being subject to CIA surveillance. When Samia visits London for work, Martian breaks protocol and meets her under his former cover identity Paul Lewis. Coyote, a valuable but alcoholic asset in Belarus, is arrested and disappeared. This places his handler Owen Taylor and Station Chief James ‘Bosko’ Bradley under pressure from Langley, as it is possible Coyote could compromise ongoing operations in Ukraine. Martian and Naomi prepare rookie agent Danny for an undercover assignment to get close to IRGC affiliated professor Reza Mortazavi at a London university. In the near future, an injured Martian is interrogated by an unseen woman.
2"Wooden Duck"Joe WrightJez Butterworth & John-Henry ButterworthDecember 1, 2024 (2024-12-01)
Martian and Samia sleep together, and she says she is in London for six months on a course at the Royal College of World Heritage. Charlie, Ogletree’s brother-in-law, is a Delta Force operative in occupied Ukraine on a black-op with SOF soldiers Koval and Boutenko undercover as medical staff. Martian and visiting CIA psychologist Dr. Rachel Blake determine Coyote's contact Alexei, a trucking company owner affiliated with Russian PMC’s, should be extracted. The CIA kidnaps him from Gdansk whilst trying to flee to the US, and brings him to London. Concerned their cover is blown, Charlie and the Ukrainians exfil, killing many Russian Army soldiers and escape. However, after a complex enhanced interrogation, Martian deems Alexei is terrified, but legitimate and not compromised. Danny is given her cover identity, Daniela Moreno Acosta, by Naomi, and is instructed to be hired to work for Prof. Mortazevi, her mark, as a geophysics researcher. Naomi warns her of the impact of losing her identity.
3"Hawk from a Handsaw"Philip MartinJez Butterworth & John-Henry ButterworthDecember 8, 2024 (2024-12-08)
Martian escapes his tail and meets Samia at a hotel again. Ogletree confronts him, confirming he knows Martian is using the Paul Lewis identity to meet her, demanding he stop. Martian appears to oblige. Samia is unknowingly tailed by GIS agent Osman, working for her husband. Bosko confirms operation ‘Felix’ is a mission to extract the operatives in Ukraine, and has it authorised by the CIA Director. Poppy finds Martian’s fake Paul Lewis Pennsylvania ID hidden in his flat when hiding her weed. He warns her of the seriousness of his situation. Ogletree warns Naomi if Coyote is compromised, so is the CIA’s Ukraine operations. Charlie and the SOF are relieved by CIA operatives, and return to their medical cover in Ukraine. Blake interviews Martian about his transition from undercover. Martian conveys his belief that you naturally need to be insane to work for the agency. Martian and Samia meet at a cinema, and he begins to think she is under pressure.
4"Quarterback Blitz"Philip MartinJez Butterworth & John-Henry ButterworthDecember 15, 2024 (2024-12-15)
In a secret meeting in London, officials from Sudan, the EU and Saudi Arabia are negotiating a deal for China to take control of East Africa, including oil and a Suez Canal port. Samia is actually visiting to work at the conference, consulting on ensuring the various ethnic groups in the region won’t be unduly impacted by the takeover. The meeting is unknown to the intelligence community, with Osman enforcing strict secrecy. Martian has technician Simon look into Samia's background, and discovers she is getting a divorce. A member of the Belarusian delegation in London opens a back channel with Martian to negotiate Coyote’s return. Martian notices Osman tailing him whilst shopping with Poppy. Danny gets hired at the Institute of Geophysics, and starts planting seeds to be selected by Mortazevi to accompany him to Tehran on a research placement. Osman threatens Samia, who tells him Martian’s Paul Lewis identity. The woman in the near future continues to interrogate Martian about his actions.
5"Rat Trap"Zetna FuentesJez Butterworth & John-Henry ButterworthDecember 22, 2024 (2024-12-22)
Osman researches the Paul Lewis identity, and concludes Martian is a spy after he doesn't report being attacked by one of Osman's agents in an apparent mugging to the police. He asks MSS agent Guo, assisting with security at the talks, to help dispose of him. Martian starts investigating the real reason Samia is in London. After following her to the meeting building, he discovers via the agency and his senior MI6 contact Jim Richardson it is owned by a Chinese businessman with links to Xi Jinping. He ultimately deduces China is negotiating a deal with Sudan in secret. Owen travels to Minsk to search Coyote’s apartment and discovers a hidden message “Valhalla”. The Belarusians indicate via the back channel that Coyote is leaking information, so Bosko has Owen extracted. Ogletree discovers Coyote was seeing a psychiatrist in Minsk without the agency’s knowledge. Danny is captured, beaten and starved by CIA operatives for two days to test if she will blow her cover, but she doesn’t break.
6"Spy For Sale"Zetna FuentesJez Butterworth & John-Henry ButterworthDecember 29, 2024 (2024-12-29)
Martian and Ogletree conclude it is not the FSB or KGB RB who have Coyote. In exchange for a Cold War recording about the fate of his wife at the hands of the Stasi, former KGB general Novikov gives the CIA information. He tells them that Valhalla, a Russian mercenary group led by General Volchok, has Coyote in Belarus. They intend to hand him over to the Russian government in four days to curry favour with Putin, when the Deputy Defence Minister visits the Ukraine front line. In a call with the White House, Martian asserts they can get Coyote back, much to the chagrin of Bosko and Ogletree, who are doubtful of a rescue mission succeeding. Richardson, due to become Chief in a year, betrays Martian and tells Ogletree about the China-Sudan meetings. He suggests he no longer wants MI6 to be subordinate to the Americans. Martian evades being tailed by Guo and the MSS. Osman targets Poppy and threatens Martian after finding her student ID in the coat his agent took from him during the mugging.
7"Hard Landing"Grant HeslovJez Butterworth & John-Henry ButterworthJanuary 5, 2025 (2025-01-05)
Dalaga, a Sudanese official leading the meetings, threatens Samia’s family if she keeps evading Osman. A CIA agent monitoring Martian saves Poppy from being kidnapped by Guo. Martian is forced to reveal his enquiries into Samia to Ogletree, but keeps the true nature of their relationship secret and also has Poppy lie for him. He proposes the CIA recruit her as an asset. Blake suspects a deeper level of his involvement with Samia. Martian and Owen force Alexei to help them get close to Volchok, who uses his trucking company in Belarus. Under the pretence of telling Volchok he is being overcharged, Alexei meets with him and maintains his cover even when threatened. However, the paranoid Volchok suspects he is working for the Americans. Danny’s colleague Jerome is given the Tehran placement, but she gets a CIA associate to threaten him into dropping out. To get Samia in a meeting alone, the CIA impersonate her university and threaten her work visa. Martian attends to recruit her, revealing himself to be a spy.
8"Truth Will Set You Free"Grant HeslovJez Butterworth & John-Henry ButterworthJanuary 12, 2025 (2025-01-12)
Martian urges Samia to work for the CIA for protection and pass on information about the talks. Feeling betrayed and knowing her mother and sisters will be killed, she refuses and tells Osman, who takes her back to Sudan. Osman tells Dalaga, and Guo arranges to move the negotiations to Cairo. Guo is shown to be working with Richardson, who wants the UK to benefit from the East Africa takeover without American involvement. He gives Guo info on two Russian spies in the Department of Energy to give the CIA in exchange for them to back off investigating the negotiations, which Bosko accepts. Martian fights Guo to try and determine who he is working with. The CIA recruits Sylviya, Volchok’s secretary, to replace his combat boots with tracker equipped duplicates. However, he catches and executes her. Danny’s colleague Rose is chosen to replace Jerome, but Danny manipulates elements of her personal life to also have her drop out. Volchok joins a convoy transporting Coyote to the Ukrainian front.
9"The Rubicon"Neil BurgerJez Butterworth & John-Henry ButterworthJanuary 19, 2025 (2025-01-19)
Danny passes Reza’s vetting and is selected to accompany him on the seismology placement. Naomi prepares her for interrogation on her cover identity when she goes to Iran. Osman sends Martian a video of him torturing Samia in prison, demanding the names of the dissidents he recruited in Ethiopia in exchange for her freedom. When Martian refuses, Osman suggests she will be killed. Both Blake and Naomi voice their concerns about Martian’s mental state and honesty to Ogletree. Martian blackmails Volchok staffer Kravitsky into providing the Deputy Defence Minister's itinerary and has him arrange Coyote's handover to the FSB to take place at the medical clinic on the Ukrainian front. The Director approves for Charlie, Koval and Boutenko to be re-tasked. Instead of carrying out their original mission to kill the Deputy Defence Minister when he visits the clinic for a photo op, they are ordered to instead rescue Coyote and be extracted with help from SAC and JSOC. Boutenko and Koval disapprove of the reassignment.
10"Overtaken By Events"Neil BurgerJez Butterworth & John-Henry ButterworthJanuary 26, 2025 (2025-01-26)
Martian meets with Dalaga to try and make a deal in exchange for Samia’s safety. Richardson and his subordinate Robinshaw run a rogue operation, and offer to try and rescue Samia if Martian becomes a double agent for him. Martian expresses reluctant interest, which is used to blackmail him. Distracted by his desperation to help Samia, Martian gets into an accident on his motorcycle and is hospitalised. The operation to extract Coyote does not go to plan, but is ultimately successful. Volchok and the Deputy Defence Minister are killed, but so is Boutenko. Charlie and Koval also survive and are extracted by SAC/JSOC operatives. Danny is let into Iran with Reza after a long interrogation by the IRGC, and informs Naomi. After undergoing surgery, Martian is interrogated by Richardson and Robinshaw about the full events of the past months. After the successful Coyote extraction, Martian returns to the agency as a hero, but has been threatened and blackmailed into becoming Richardson's informant there.

Production

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Development

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The project received a straight to series order from Showtime, now known as the Paramount+ with Showtime channel which is a part of the Showtime Networks portfolio,[4] in February 2023. It is based on The Bureau a French espionage show created, directed and produced by Eric Rochant. It initially had the title of The Department.[5]

The series is produced by George Clooney and Grant Heslov's Smokehouse Pictures, MTV Entertainment Studios and 101 Studios. It is executive produced by Keith Cox and Nina L. Diaz of MTVE Studios, David C. Glasser, Ron Burkle, David Hutkin and Bob Yari of 101 Studios, Alex Berger for The Originals Productions in France, and Ashley Stern and Pascal Breton for the Paris-based company Federation Studios/Federation Entertainment of America.[6]

Joe Wright is set to direct the first two episodes with Jez Butterworth and John-Henry Butterworth writing all 10 episodes.[7] Clooney was originally set to direct.[8]

In December 2024, the series was renewed for a second season.[9] In June 2025, it was reported that the second season would be retitled The Agency: Central Intelligence.[1]

Casting

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Production started in June 2024, with the title changed to The Agency. Michael Fassbender is an executive producer, as well as in a starring role, played in the French series by Mathieu Kassovitz.[10][11] Shortly afterwards, Jeffrey Wright, Richard Gere, Jodie Turner-Smith, Katherine Waterston and John Magaro joined the cast.[12][13][14][15] Further cast members were revealed in August 2024, including Alex Reznik, Andrew Brooke, Harriet Sansom Harris, India Fowler and Saura Lightfoot-Leon.[16]

In June 2025, Christian Ochoa Lavernia was cast as a new series regular while Keanush Tafreshi, Medalion Rahimi, Raza Jaffrey, and Tessa Ferrer were cast in recurring roles for the second season.[1]

Filming

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Filming took place in London in 2024.[17][18]

Filming also took place in Tallinn, Estonia in September 2024.[19]

Filming also took place in Tangier, Morocco in September 2025.[citation needed]

Broadcast

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The Agency premiered with the first two episodes on Paramount Global's premium streaming service Paramount+ for subscribers of the Paramount+ with Showtime plan on November 29, 2024 in the United States, before making its Showtime Networks debut which includes the Paramount+ with Showtime channel[4] two days later,[3] with worldwide streaming following on November 30.[20][21]

Reception

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The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 68% approval rating with an average rating of 6.1/10, based on 40 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus is, "Emphasizing spycraft's heavy toll to both intriguing and tiresome effect, The Agency situates its all-star cast in a sumptuously-shot world of espionage."[22] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 66 out of 100 based on 22 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[23]

In January 2025, Michael Fassbender was nominated for Lead Actor in Drama at the Irish Film and Television Awards.[24]

Notes

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  1. ^ Known as Showtime Studios for season 1
  2. ^ Episodes are released early for subscribers of the Paramount+ Premium plan

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Petski, Denise (9 June 2025). "'The Agency' Season 2 Casts 6 Including Christian Ochoa Lavernia, Keanush Tafreshi & Raza Jaffrey". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 9 June 2025.
  2. ^ "About The Agency". Paramount+. 29 November 2024. Retrieved 6 December 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Shows A-Z - agency, the on Showtime". The Futon Critic. Retrieved 1 December 2024.
  4. ^ a b "About Parmount+ With Showtime". paramountpluswithshowtime.com. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
  5. ^ Goldberg, Lesley (6 February 2023). "'Dexter,' 'Billions' Spinoffs in the Works as Showtime Doubles Down on Franchise Plan". Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 6 February 2023. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
  6. ^ Keslassy, Elsa (27 February 2024). "Michael Fassbender in Talks to Star in George Clooney's Espionage Thriller Series 'The Department' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 30 April 2024.
  7. ^ Porter, Rick (5 March 2024). "Paramount+ Sets Creative Team for Spy Drama 'The Department'". Hollywood me Reporter. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
  8. ^ Otterson, Joe (6 February 2023). "George Clooney to Direct Showtime Political Thriller Series 'The Department'". Variety. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
  9. ^ Campione, Katie (4 December 2024). "'The Agency' Renewed For Season 2 At Showtime After Record Debut Weekend". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
  10. ^ Porter, Rick (24 June 2024). "Michael Fassbender to Topline Paramount+ Spy Thriller 'The Agency'". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
  11. ^ White, James (27 February 2024). "Michael Fassbender To Star In Spy Series The Department For Director George Clooney". Empire. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
  12. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (1 July 2024). "Richard Gere Joins 'The Agency' Showtime Series". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
  13. ^ Goldbart, Max (15 July 2024). "Jodie Turner-Smith The Latest To Join Showtime's 'The Agency'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 15 July 2024.
  14. ^ Grobar, Matt (25 July 2024). "Katherine Waterston Joins Showtime's 'The Agency' As Series Regular". Deadline. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  15. ^ Petski, Denise (1 August 2024). "John Magaro Joins Showtime's 'The Agency' As Series Regular". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
  16. ^ Porter, Rick (22 August 2024). "Showtime Spy Thriller 'The Agency' Adds Five to Cast (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
  17. ^ Ghosh, Suchismita (8 March 2024). "Joe Wright and George Clooney's The Department Starts Filming in London This Month". Cinemaholic. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
  18. ^ "The Department". Film & Television Industry Alliance. 3 June 2024. Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  19. ^ Kalugina, Jelizaveta; Ots, Mait; Cole, Michael (30 August 2024). "Tallinn's Laagna tee to close to traffic during filming of Hollywood spy thriller". ERR News. Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  20. ^ Petski, Denise (5 March 2024). "Joe Wright, Jez & John-Henry Butterworth Board 'The Department' Based On French Series 'The Bureau'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
  21. ^ Balderston, Michael (23 October 2024). "Michael Fassbender spy drama The Agency gets surprising release date that has me stoked". yahoo.com. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
  22. ^ "The Agency: Season 1". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 4 January 2025.
  23. ^ "The Agency: Season 1". Metacritic. Retrieved 4 January 2025.
  24. ^ "Kneecap and Say Nothing lead IFTA Awards nominations". RTE. 15 January 2025. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
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