For the first time since 2008, Michael Fassbender is going to star in a TV series, as the Oscar-nominated actor is headlining the new TV show The Agency on Paramount Plus with Showtime. Not only that, but he is also collaborating on the series with George Clooney, as both serve as executive producers.
The Agency is an adaptation of the acclaimed French TV series Le Bureau des Légendes (aka The Bureau). This isn't the only French TV show that is getting the Hollywood treatment in the near future, as ABC is also going to be debuting High Potential in fall 2024, based on the French series Haut Potentiel Intellectuel.
Will we be getting The Agency this year as well? We've got everything you need to know about that and all other details of the show directly below.
The Agency release date
It's now official, The Agency is going to premiere its first two episodes on Friday, November 29, for US viewers with Paramount Plus with Showtime subscribers, ahead of the show's premiere on cable. For those in the UK and other international locations where Paramount Plus is available, the political thriller is exclusively streaming on Paramount Plus starting November 30.
So you must have a Paramount Plus subscription if you want to watch The Agency when it premieres.
The Agency cast
Fassbender is the star of The Agency, playing the covert CIA agent Martian. Fassbender is a two-time Oscar nominee (12 Years a Slave, Steve Jobs), returning to the screen in the last year after a nearly four-year gap between projects. Things began to pick up with his pair of 2023 movies, The Killer and Next Goal Wins. In 2024, he starred in the Sundance hit Kneecap. Other future projects include Steven Soderbergh's Black Bag. It's been an even longer wait to see Fassbender in a TV series, as this is his first role on TV since 2008's The Devil's Mistress.
There are a number of other big name actors starring in the spy series. That includes Jeffrey Wright, coming off his Oscar nomination for American Fiction, playing Henry, the CIA's director of operations and a mentor to Martian. There's also Richard Gere playing Bosko, the London Station Chief with a storied past that includes eight years undercover. Other recognizable names include Jodie Turner-Smith, most recently seen in The Acolyte, as Samia Zahir, and Katherine Waterston (Fantastic Beasts franchise) in an undisclosed role.
Series regulars are set to include John Magaro (Past Lives), Alex Reznik (Babylon), Andrew Brooke (Sexy Beast), Harriet Sansom Harris (Clipped), India Fowler (The Nevers), Saura Lightfoot-Leon (Masters of the Air), Reza Brojerdi (Homeland). Recurring cast members include Adam Nagaitis (The Responder), Ambreen Razia (Ted Lasso), Bilal Hasna (3 Body Problem), David Harewood (Sherwood), Kurt Egyiawan (House of the Dragon), Ray BLK (Champion), Sabrina Wu (Joy Ride) and Tom Vaughan-Lawlor (The Book of Clarence).
Variety has also reported that Downton Abbey star Hugh Bonneville will guest star in the spy series.
The Agency plot
Le Bureau des Légendes, which premiered in 2015, centered on the daily life and missions of agents for France's security service DGSE, specifically those responsible for training and handling deep-cover agents on long-term missions. It was named one of the top international shows of the decade by the New York Times and "one of the best TV shows in the world" by NPR. Now it is getting a US adaptation.
Here is a synopsis from Paramount Plus with Showtime:
"The series follows Martian (Fassbender), a covert CIA agent ordered to abandon his undercover life and return to London Station. When the love he left behind reappears, romance reignites. His career, his real identity and his mission are pitted against his heart; hurling them both into a deadly game of international intrigue and espionage."
The creatives bringing the series to American audiences are Jez and John-Henry Butterworth (Ford v Ferrari, The Edge of Tomorrow) as showrunners, with BAFTA-winning director Joe Wright (Pride & Prejudice, Cyrano), directing and serving as an executive producer. As mentioned, Fassbender and George Clooney are also executive producers on the show.
The Agency trailer
Watch the official trailers for The Agency right here:
How to watch Le Bureau des Légendes
If you want to get a sense of what is to come with The Agency by watching the original series, you can find Le Bureau des Légendes through digital on-demand platforms in the US. In the UK you can stream it on Paramount Plus or rent it on Prime Video.
