cover story
Dangerous minds
Jennifer Carpenter stars in espionage thriller ‘The Enemy Within’
By Kyla Brewer
TV Media
W
ith dragons patrolling the
skies and zombies around
every corner on cable, network
television has some serious com-
petition these days. However, one
network is stepping up its game
with an espionage thriller worthy
of a closer look.
Jennifer Carpenter (“Dexter”)
stars as Erica Shepherd, a bril-
liant codebreaker and former CIA
operative who was convicted
of treason after selling out four
of her fellow agents to save her
daughter in “The Enemy Within,”
airing Monday, May 13, on NBC.
Three years after she was sent to
a supermax prison, Shepherd was
recruited by FBI Agent Will Keaton
(Morris Chestnut, “Rosewood”)
to help him track down the ter-
rorist responsible for the death
of his fiancée, one of the agents
Shepherd betrayed.
The drama boasts an intensity
often reserved for the big screen
as the agents track a network of
ruthless spies. Daring plot twists,
emotionally charged drama and
thrilling action sequences add to
the show’s appeal, promising to
raise it above typical prime-time
network fare. When Carpenter,
best known for her role in the
cable series “Dexter,” was in-
terviewed by Danielle Turchiano
for variety.com in February, the
actress explained that she hoped
the show would elevate network
television to the next level.
“I want to do the muscling of
raising the bar for network televi-
sion to feel like the complicated
world of cable,” Carpenter said.
Likewise, her co-star has had
high praise for NBC’s “The Enemy
Within.” In an April article on
chicagotribune.com, series star
Chestnut explained that the
show was much more than a one-
dimensional spy drama.
“The one thing about this
show that I love is it’s not just an
FBI show or a CIA show,” Chest-
nut said. “We’re dealing with
layers and layers of issues and
2 | Screentime
emotions. And mine is working
with this woman, knowing she
cost my fiancée her life and I still
don’t have closure on that.”
The show’s combination of
high-stakes action and intense
drama requires serious acting
chops and, luckily, its cast is more
than capable. Carpenter first
came to the attention of audi-
ences as the title character in the
supernatural thriller “The Exor-
cism of Emily Rose” (2005), which
earned her an MTV Movie Award.
She also starred in the zombie
flick “Quarantine” (2008) before
landing her most famous role
as Debra Morgan in Showtime’s
“Dexter.” She also appeared in
the CBS dramas “The Good Wife”
and “Limitless.”
Chestnut got his big break in
the Oscar-nominated film “Boyz
n the Hood” (1991). He went on
to appear in TV movies and series,
including “Out All Night” and “C-
16: FBI,” and hit the silver screen
again in “Under Siege 2: Dark
Territory” (1995), “The Game
Plan” (2007) and “The Best Man”
(1999). The latter earned him an
NAACP Image Award nomina-
tion. TV fans may also recognize
him from his leading role in the
Fox drama “Rosewood,” which
garnered him another NAACP Im-
age Award nomination.
“The Enemy Within” also
boasts a talented supporting cast.
English actor Raza Jaffrey (“Code
Black”) portrays FBI interrogator
Daniel Zain, Keaton’s friend and
confidant. TV aficionados may
recognize Jaffrey from his roles in
BBC One’s “Spooks” (known as
“MI-5” in the U.S.) and Season 4
of Showtime’s “Homeland.” Kelli
Garner plays Kate Ryan, a techni-
cal analyst from the FBI’s Cyber
Division. Garner is known for her
role as Faith Domergue in Martin
Scorsese’s “The Aviator” (2004), as
well as roles in “Lars and the Real
Girl” (2007) and “Horns” (2013).
Canadian model and actor
Noah Mills has taken on the role
of FBI agent and former Army
Ranger Jason Bragg in “The
Enemy Within.” In addition to
May 8, 2019 | East Oregonian and Hermiston Herald
Raza Jaffrey and Morris Chestnut in a scene from “The Enemy Within”
his work as a model, Mills has
version of Carpenter’s char-
SVR agent Mikhail Vassily Tal.
appeared in the television series
acter in “Limitless”) recurs as
Gorn is best known as Arkady
“The Brave” and “2 Broke Girls.”
Shepherd’s teenage daughter,
Zotov from “The Americans.”
Cassandra Freeman (“Inside
Hannah, while Noah Bean
While some critics have
Man,” 2006) rounds out “The
(“Nikita”) portrays her es-
panned “The Enemy Within” for
Enemy Within’s” regular cast as
tranged husband, Christopher.
taking itself too seriously, Carpen-
FBI Training Academy instructor
Broadway’s James Carpinello
ter has been almost unanimously
Jacqueline Pettigrew. Freeman
(“So Notorious”) also appears
praised for her performance as
has recently had roles in the Netf- in a recurring capacity as CIA
Shepherd. Her intensity and com-
lix series “Luke Cage” and the FX
Deputy Director of Operations
mitment to the role offers fans
hit “Atlanta.”
Anthony Cabrera. Russian stage of high drama an option unlike
Young actress Sophia Gen-
actor Lev Gorn stars as the
most other network television
nusa (who played a younger
show’s big, bad, former Russian programs of late. Including DVR
viewings, the show has consis-
tently pulled in more than seven
million average viewers per epi-
sode since its February premiere.
Those are decent numbers for any
show, network or cable.
Carpenter seems to have
captivated audiences once again.
Watch her as disgraced CIA
operative Erica Shepherd as she
helps Agent Keaton track down
spies in “The Enemy Within,” air-
ing Monday, May 13, on NBC.