'The Agency' Still Moving Forward at Showtime

The never-ending, slow-rolling disaster at Paramount Studios continues despite the hope that the troubled studio would have landed a buyer or at least a rescue plan by now. Main shareholder Shari Redstone was 90% to closing a deal that would have sold the holding company National Amusements to David Ellison before she blew it up at the finish line. The stock crashed, and discussions are underway to see what happens next. However, Paramount+ is trying to act as if it's business as usual, moving forward with projects it scooped up when Showtime was folded into it in 2023, like The Department, which has now been retitled The Agency.

At the time, the deal's headliners were spinoffs of Showtime hits like Billions and Dexter (okay, former Showtime hits). The Department was billed as a show in the vein of Showtime's recently ended Homeland, loosely based on the French series The Bureau (Le Bureau des Legendes). The series then sat on the shelf until March 2024, when Jez and John-Henry Butterworth were brought on to write the first ten-episode season and Joe Wright (Pride & Prejudice) to direct at least the first two installments.

Unsurprisingly, with a creative team on board, the series has moved from its original working title to the more official The Agency. The series has also cast its headliner, Michael Fassbender, to draw in viewers, and much like the last couple of Showtime series that wound up on Paramount+, it's looking like this will be an actor showcase vehicle for him.