# Deep State (2018)

> A retired MI6 operative is drawn back for one last job that threatens the life he hoped to reclaim.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/64914

## Facts

- Seasons: 2
- Episodes: 16
- Episode runtime: 45 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: thriller, drama
- Created by: Matthew Parkhill, Simon Maxwell
- Network: Fox
- Cast: Mark Strong, Walton Goggins, Anastasia Griffith, Cara Bossom, Karima McAdams, Ashley Simone, Mansour Badri, Daisy Beaumont
- TMDB rating: 7.1/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4785472/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: dense
- Violence: moderate
- Tone: tense, paranoid, bleak, brooding

## What critics say

Audiences rate the series as mixed, with a solid espionage thriller premise and a strong lead performance but uneven plotting across its two seasons.

## Synopsis

Deep State (2018-2019) is a British espionage thriller series created by Matthew Parkhill and Simon Maxwell and broadcast on Fox. Mark Strong plays Max Easton, a former MI6 operative who believes he has left the intelligence world behind until he is called back for one more job meant to restore his life. Walton Goggins plays Nathan Miller, a figure whose agenda is tangled with the mission, while Anastasia Griffith's Amanda Jones and Karima McAdams's Leyla Toumi add further pressure from inside and outside the service. The engine is a man trying to reclaim a private life while each step pulls him deeper into a conspiracy that reaches across London, Washington and Africa. The show runs for two seasons of eight episodes each, forming one continuing story in which every revelation tightens the trap around him. Its settings move between European capitals, American corridors of power and the Middle East and Africa, giving a sense of a global shadow war. The mood is tense, paranoid and often bleak, with violence arriving suddenly and the loyalties of colleagues constantly in doubt. Fans of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Spooks and Homeland will find the same mix of institutional betrayal and moral strain here, delivered at a brisk pace.

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