Damian Lewis and Guy Pearce are to portray a pair of real-life British intelligence officers, Nicholas Elliott and Kim Philby, in a new limited series.
Titled A Spy Among Friends, the series is based on Ben Macintyre's bestselling book about the two spies' fascinating and multilayered relationship. According to a press release, Homeland executive producer Alexander Cary is writing the series, which will air in the U.S. on Spectrum and in the U.K. on BritBox.
“How could I resist the opportunity to dramatize the true story of Nicholas Elliott (Damian Lewis) and Kim Philby (Guy Pearce) — two spies and lifelong friends, one of whom was betraying the other all along?" said Cary, who characterized the two men's friendship as one "that resulted in the gutting of British and American intelligence at the height of the Cold War and shaped the field of play for the dangerous game against Russia that we're still trying to win today." 
Cary added: "Macintyre’s books about spies from recent history are relevant and exciting because they examine the larger universal themes of human behavior that drive individuals among us, and like us, to excel in the murky world of espionage and, for better or worse, leave a lasting impact on the world."
Lewis, who is also serving as an executive producer on the series, said: "These fabulous scripts by Alex Cary take an up-close look at friendship – a friendship that was blinded by love, class, and membership to the right clubs, and ended in betrayal and the deaths of thousands. It’s been a fantastic creative process developing Spy and now I can’t wait to start filming with Guy and all the other brilliant actors who’ve happily agreed to join us."
Those other actors include Anna Maxwell Martin, Adrian Edmondson, and Lewis’ Billions co-star Stephen Kunken. Lewis announced earlier this week that he is leaving Billions after playing hedge fund manager Bobby Axelrod for five seasons. "A pleasure and a privilege to play Axe for 5 seasons with some of the smartest, funniest, most talented cast and crew I’ve worked with. I’ll miss the Billions family. Yep, some jobs are more than just a job," he wrote on Twitter.
Shooting on A Spy Among Friends is underway now with a fall 2022 premiere in the schedule. In the meantime, you can check out our feature on where to look for Damian Lewis.
Are you looking forward to seeing Damian Lewis and Guy Pearce in the same series?