Sacha Baron Cohen has been cast in the Netflix limited series The Spy; a six-episode series based on the real-life legendary Israeli Spy, Eli Cohen who will be played by Cohen.
The series is written and directed by Gideon Raff, creator of the Israeli drama Prisoners of War on which Showtime’s Homeland was based, The Spy tells the story of legendary Israeli spy Eli Cohen (Baron Cohen).
Also in the news – Cannes Film Festival 2018 Full Line-up announced
Eli Cohen lived in Damascus undercover in the beginning of the ’60s, spying for Israel. He managed to embed himself into Syrian high society and rise through the ranks of their politics until he was uncovered by the Syrian regime, sentenced to death and publicly hanged in a Damascus square in 1965. Cohen is considered a national hero in Israel. His actions, connections and immense sacrifice have had lasting consequences, shaping the Middle East of today.
After his career took off on the small screen as Ali G in Da Ali G Show which he created and ran in the UK between 200 and 2004, Baron Cohen has starred in films which include Les Misérables, Hugo, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street and the Madagascar animated franchise. Baron Cohen currently appears in Seth Rogen’s Hilarity for Charity, which is streaming globally on Netflix.
Legende Films and Alain Goldman will be producing the Netflix series.
Although there isn’t a specific release date, the series will debut globally on Netflix outside of France and on OCS in France.
