Some shows are action packed. Others make the minute laugh. “The Diplomat” is talk, talk, talk – and then some more small talk.
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“The first reaction to reading so much dialogue and diplomatic speeches was just panic,” said Keri Russell, recalling her initial impression of “The Diplomat” pilot. “How many acronyms can there be in the government language? (…) How many times can we get the Prime Minister’s name wrong? (…) It takes a second to memorize all the ‘fake’ names.”
“It was definitely worse for you,” Rufus Sewell told his co-star. “You were the one who was supposed to carry all that stuff.”
“Luckily, I have this incredible natural talent for sweating excessively,” Russell said. “So I could just sweat out the sheer amount of memorization and the panic I had about failing memorization.”
“I was wondering how long it’ll be before you talk about it,” Sewell said.
Free-flowing jokes like these wouldn’t be out of place in “The Diplomat” itself: quick, easy, funny and honest. These are the communication hallmarks of Kate (Russell) and Hal Wyler (Sewell) in the Netflix political drama. Sure, there’s an added helping of intensity as well, but that comes with the job.
Released in April, the eight-episode first season follows Kate as she reluctantly accepts a new post as American ambassador to England. Her husband Hal has long been the top diplomat in the family, but his recent kerfuffle with a few key officials keeps him on the outside looking in—and the role reversal takes some time for both of them. partner.
“These are quick smart people who use humor to deal with the shit they’re dealing with,” Sewell said. “There was a lot of talk about politics, but at the same time it felt like real people were talking. (…) I once did a show where much of the dialogue was expository, that literally got stuck in my throat. I had a physical reaction. I couldn’t get it out. But with that, everyone has a human reason for saying what they’re saying, and also: they have a fucking sense of humor about it.
Heated exchanges about world affairs and even more heated discussions about their business and personal relationships helped “The Diplomat” stand out in a busy season of television. The freshman series has been met with strong reviews and viewership has been solid: Season 1 ranked No. 1 in Nielsen’s Late April streamed reportdespite having the fewest episodes of any show in the Top 10.
The early adoption by audiences befits a show that Russell says came to life while they were making it.
“You’re trying to figure out your character and the world and everything that stands in your way, while you’re shooting it, which is devastating at times,” she said. “But the grace is, you have eight episodes to figure that out. (…) This is a really intense, crazy, fun, disastrous relationship that is hard to pin down.
In addition to meticulous scripts from creator and showrunner Debora Cahn, the actors received assistance from real-life locations and one-on-one conversations with real diplomats. Russell mentioned visiting Winfield House, where the American ambassador to England lives, and they both discussed fascinating conversations with anonymous state officials that helped them get into character.
Russell recognized the double life that every representative must lead: the public side, which must convey a nation’s message, and the private side, which cannot help but be influenced by the day-to-day work.
“You can’t tell me that someone like Obama doesn’t walk out of (a) room with his chief of staff and say, ‘That guy is a fucking jerk’ — you know, in private,” he said. “(In public) he’s so graceful, he puts up with it, but then when he comes out, (it has to be) like, ‘That boy can suck.'”
After all that carefully considered political chatter at work, you just have to free yourself the moment you’re behind closed doors, even when you’re the president.
Watch the full Awards Spotlight conversation between Keri Russell and Rufus Sewall in the video above.
The first season of “The Diplomat” is available on Netflix, where it has already been renewed for a second season.
