With spy series 'Tehran,' Israelis reach out to an enemy
NEW YORK -- Things are not as they seem in the new Apple TV+ series "Tehran" -- as it should be in a spy thriller.
The series opens with a commercial flight from Jordan to India that's suddenly diverted to Iran. A few of the passengers on board have secrets. Those secrets will soon have war jets scrambling and a covert manhunt launching.
As audacious as the premise, "Tehran" is equally bold: an Israeli production that offers viewers a sympathetic view of Iran -- one of Israel's greatest foes -- without anyone from the production setting foot in the Islamic Republic.
"The core of the show is dealing with the question of identity, nationality, immigration and family roots," Moshe Zonder, the show's co-creator and co-writer, says from Tel Aviv. "It asks how we connect to them and our obligation to them and can we get free from them? This is relevant to everyone on the globe."
The show's eight episodes aired in Israel in June and July, to largely rave reviews. The espionage thriller, with dialogue in Hebrew, English and Farsi, debuted on Apple TV+ on Friday.
"Tehran" centers on a computer hacker-agent undertaking her very first mission in Iran's capital, which is also the place of her birth. When the mission goes wrong, the agent has to survive by her wits.
