It has been 16 years since writers Colin Trevorrow and longtime collaborator Derek Connolly wrote the action comedy Deep Cover. Nearly two decades later, it’s now in the running for an Emmy nomination for outstanding television movie.
“Deep Cover was initially set in America,” explains Trevorrow of the Amazon Prime Video flick that takes place in London. “We were about to give up on it. We both went on and did other things. Many years later, I asked our producer, Walter F. Parkes, if I could bring it over to the U.K., where I have lived for almost 10 years.” Once he got the green light, British writers Ben Ashenden and Alexander Owen came on board to “rebuild it.”
Deep Cover sees Bryce Dallas Howard, Orlando Bloom and Nick Mohammed play a trio of improv actors recruited by the police to infiltrate a gang in London’s criminal underworld. However, things get out of control pretty fast. The film’s supporting cast boasts Paddy Considine (MobLand, House of the Dragon), Ian McShane (John Wick, Deadwood) and Sean Bean (Game of Thrones, Lord of the Rings). That second tier of talent, more commonly known for gritty, dramatic performances, brings a gravitas to Deep Cover.
“Derek and I wanted this structure to be able to hold up as a cop thriller on its own if it wasn’t a comedy, so bringing in people who were going to play characters who took themselves seriously was essential,” says Trevorrow, who also produced the film. “For Ian, Paddy and Sean to come in and do a version of what we’ve seen them do before [in previous projects] — in this heightened space, that creates stakes for our three comedic characters that feel completely real. I do feel like they’re going to die at certain points.”
