Tonight (February 5) at 10PM, NBC premieres Allegiance, a show they describe as a “high-octane” thriller revolving around the O’Connor family and their son, Alex (Gavin Stenhouse), a young idealistic CIA analyst specializing in Russian affairs. Unbeknownst to him, both of his parents and his sister are part of a dormant Russian sleeper cell that has just been reactivated.
The series also stars Scott Cohen (Mark O’Connor), Hope Davis (Katya), Margarita Levieva (Natalie O’Connor), Morgan Spector (Victor Dobrynin), Kenneth Choi (Sam Luttrell), and Alex Peters (Sarah O’Connor).
Last month, the cast of Allegiance spoke at the Television Critics Association press tour about several subjects, including the lies the characters hold.
“As a parent, it’s always an issue as to what you’re telling your child ,and what you’re not telling your child, and whether you’re telling them the truth, or not telling them the truth… for their protection, or whatever it may be,” Scott Cohen explained. “For me, at least, that’s what plays into this whole show, for me. We are faced with that dilemma in every episode, and it gets worse and worse as we go on. But at the same time, the underlying theme or the underpinning of it all is this enormous love for each other that seems to supersede everything. With Mark and Katya it seems like the kernel of the truth is really between the two of them, and that’s what kind of keeps him going at least. But I can’t imagine to live that life where you’re constantly in secret and constantly in a state of lie is a very difficult place to be. As a human being, I can understand what it is to lie and have to live with that lie for an extended period of time,” he continued.
“They believe that their family will fall apart,” Hope Davis added. “So that’s a great motivating force. I’m sure Katya is nursing an ulcer, dealing with that, but that’s why they keep it up.”
In addition to the lying factor, Gavin Stenhouse, who plays Alex, talked about the comparisons that have been made between Allegiance and FX’s The Americans, which has a similar premise, albeit in a different decade. “I feel there’s actually a lot of shows that have superficially similar premises,” he said. “Some of my favorite shows, whether it’s True Detective, The Missing, The Killing, or Broadchurch, are all based on similar things, but they’re a completely different emotional journey for the viewer. I myself have enjoyed every single one and not gone, “Oh, man, they’re ripping each other off.” It’s its own ‑‑ it’s borne out of a completely different equation of writers, of actors, and, yeah, I really feel like once you’ve seen an episode or two, that’s where the similarities end,” he assured.
Allegiance premieres on NBC TONIGHT. See a trailer below:
