International political thriller 'Deep State' was filmed in Cape Town

David Jonsson as Isaac Turner, Karima McAdams as Leyla Toumi, Joe Dempsie as Harry Clarke, Alistair Petrie as George White and Walton Goggins as Nathan Miller in "Deep State". Picture: Fox

David Jonsson as Isaac Turner, Karima McAdams as Leyla Toumi, Joe Dempsie as Harry Clarke, Alistair Petrie as George White and Walton Goggins as Nathan Miller in "Deep State". Picture: Fox

Published May 31, 2019

Share

The story lines he writes may make many think he’s a dark soul but writer and director, Matthew Parkhill, promises he’s a happy guy.

The first season of "Deep State" proved to be an instate hit with audience worldwide that Fox could not help but offer Parkhill a second season.

With interior scenes filmed in Cape Town, the political thriller returned to our screens recently with a host of new actors like Victoria Hamilton and Alexander Siddig led by Emmy-nominated actor, Walton Goggins.

"When we did the first season, we didn’t know we are going to come back. We didn’t know the show was so successful until Fox offered us a second season. This season we delve delve deeper into the murky and political world of the deep state," said Parkhill.

He said much of what he’s based the season on are well documented, factual events.

"I built a story. We live in funny times, where the very notion of truth itself is questioned: whether there is a truth, whether there are facts, or ‘alternative facts’. Everyone seems to have their own version of what the deep state is. The reality of the deep state is that there is more than one kind,” he said.

The season will also explore the original stories of some characters from season one alongside witnessing the fall of a hero and orchestrating the making of a terrorist in the eyes of the West

“I don’t consider myself a conspiracy theorist, I don’t sit and indulge or surf these dark chatrooms. I am I relatively happy person which is surprising considering the dark stuff I write. I am however profoundly sad with the way things are across the western world - but it doesn’t change how I see things,” said Parkhill about his writing.  

The season was filmed last year in Cape Town, Parkhill said the reason for this was to get more bang for your buck.  

“Even though the show is filmed in Cape Town, there will be no scenes that depict Cape Town. The settings for this season are Mali, London and Washington. There’s a lot of tax breaks in South Africa and this is a way countries and governments entice the film industry, to shoot. It’s fantastic in terms of the level of experience, crews, logistical support and the variety of locations,” Parkhill said.

About Deep State’s entertainment value, Parkhill said while it’s still entertainment and he is taking the viewer on a ride with thrills and spills, he still tries to strike a balance.

“It’s a show with high entertainment, it breaks your heart and make you smile but whilst our job is to entertain, it is also about striking a balance and doing it in the most truthful way possible. Hopefully it’s not entertainment at the expense of emotional truth,” said Parkhill.

Deep State season 2 airs on Fox, DStv channel 125 on Wednesdays at 8.45pm, and is also available on Black channel 201 and Starsat, channel 131.   

Related Topics: