The Americans (TV Series)
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''The Americans'' is an American
period Period may refer to: Common uses * Period (punctuation) * Era, a length or span of time *Menstruation, commonly referred to as a "period" Arts, entertainment, and media * Period (music), a concept in musical composition * Periodic sentence (o ...
spy drama television series created by
Joe Weisberg Joseph Weisberg (born 1965/1966) is an American television writer, producer, novelist, and school teacher. Weisberg is best known as the creator and showrunner of the FX TV series ''The Americans'' and '' The Patient'' (co-created with Joel Fie ...
for FX. It aired for six seasons from 2013 to 2018. Weisberg and Joel Fields also served as
showrunner A showrunner is the top-level executive producer of a television series. The position outranks other creative and management personnel, including episode directors, in contrast to feature films, in which the director has creative control over th ...
s and executive producers. Set during the
Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
, the show follows
Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Empress Elisabeth (disambiguation), lists various empresses named ''Elisabeth'' or ''Elizabeth'' * Princess Elizabeth ...
(
Keri Russell Keri Lynn Russell (born March 23, 1976) is an American actress. She played the title role in the drama series '' Felicity'' (1998–2002), which won her a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama, and later portrayed El ...
) and Philip Jennings (
Matthew Rhys Matthew Rhys Evans ( ; born 8 November 1974) is a Welsh actor. He gained recognition for playing Kevin Walker in the family drama series '' Brothers & Sisters'' (2006–2011) and Philip Jennings in the spy drama series ''The Americans'' (2013 ...
), two Soviet
KGB The Committee for State Security (, ), abbreviated as KGB (, ; ) was the main security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 to 1991. It was the direct successor of preceding Soviet secret police agencies including the Cheka, Joint State Polit ...
intelligence officer An intelligence officer is a member of the intelligence field employed by an organization to collect, compile or analyze information (known as intelligence) which is of use to that organization. The word of ''officer'' is a working title, not a r ...
s posing as an American married couple living in
Falls Church Falls Church City is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,658. Falls Church is part of both Northern Virginia and the Washington metropolitan area. As of 2020, it has ...
, a
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
suburb of
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
The couple combine their spying duties with raising their American-born children Paige (
Holly Taylor Holly Taylor is a Canadian and American actress and dancer. She began her career in the Broadway production of ''Billy Elliot'' at the age of eleven as Sharon Percy (Ballet Girl) and continued in the role for almost two years. She played the r ...
) and Henry (
Keidrich Sellati Keidrich Sellati (born ) is an American actor. He played the role of Henry Jennings in the FX television series ''The Americans'' (2013–2018) for its entire run. Life and career Sellati has been described as having Korean, Irish, Italian, a ...
). ''The Americans'' also explores the conflict between Washington's
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
office and the KGB ''
Rezidentura A resident spy in the world of espionage is an agent operating within a foreign country for extended periods of time. A base of operations within a foreign country with which a resident spy may liaise is known as a "station" in English and a (, 'r ...
'' there, from the perspectives of agents on both sides, including the Jenningses' neighbor
Stan Beeman Stanley Beeman is a fictional character in the American television drama series ''The Americans'' on FX. He was created by series creator Joe Weisberg and is portrayed by Noah Emmerich. Stan is an FBI agent and a neighbor of the lead characters ...
(
Noah Emmerich Noah Nicholas Emmerich (born February 27, 1965) is an American actor and director best known for his roles in films such as '' Beautiful Girls'' (1996), ''The Truman Show'' (1998), ''Frequency'' (2000), ''Miracle'' (2004), '' Little Children'' (2 ...
), an FBI agent working in
counterintelligence Counterintelligence (counter-intelligence) or counterespionage (counter-espionage) is any activity aimed at protecting an agency's Intelligence agency, intelligence program from an opposition's intelligence service. It includes gathering informati ...
. The series begins in the aftermath of the
inauguration In government and politics, inauguration is the process of swearing a person into office and thus making that person the incumbent. Such an inauguration commonly occurs through a formal ceremony or special event, which may also include an inau ...
of President
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
in January 1981 and concludes in December 1987, shortly before the leaders of the United States and the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
signed the
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF Treaty) was an arms control treaty between the United States and the Soviet Union (and its successor state, the Russia, Russian Federation). President of the United States, US President Ronald Rea ...
. The show's themes of marriage, identity, and parenthood were structured around the metaphorical connection between the Cold War and the Jenningses' marriage. ''The Americans'' was acclaimed by critics, many of whom considered it among the best television shows of its era; its writing, characters, and acting were often singled out. The series's final season earned Rhys the
Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Owned and operated by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the P ...
for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, while Weisberg and Fields won Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series; it also received the
Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Drama The Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series– Drama is one of the annual Golden Globe Awards, given to the best drama television series. Documentary series and mini-series are also eligible for this award. From 1962 to 1968, the category wa ...
.
Margo Martindale Margo Martindale (born July 18, 1951) is an American character actress who has appeared on television, film, and stage. In 2011, she won a Primetime Emmy Award and a Critics' Choice Television Award for her recurring role as Mags Bennett on '' ...
twice won the
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series is an award that is presented annually by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS). It is given in honor of an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance i ...
for her performances in the
third Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', i.e., the third in a series of fractional parts in a sexagesimal number system Places * 3rd Street (di ...
and fourth seasons. It was one of the rare drama shows to receive two
Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Foster Peabody, George Peabody, honor what are described as the most powerful, enlightening, and in ...
s during its run.


Episodes


Cast and characters

The surnames of most of the Russian characters are not revealed. In scenes in the
Soviet embassy This is a list of diplomatic missions of Russia. These missions are subordinate to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Russian Federation has one of the largest networks of embassies and consulates of any country. Russia has significant ...
, the characters address each other in a familiar but respectful manner, using given name and
patronymic A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (more specifically an avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. It is the male equivalent of a matronymic. Patronymics are used, b ...
, without mentioning surnames (for example, "Ivanovich" means "son of Ivan" and "Sergeevna" means "daughter of Sergei").


Main

*
Keri Russell Keri Lynn Russell (born March 23, 1976) is an American actress. She played the title role in the drama series '' Felicity'' (1998–2002), which won her a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama, and later portrayed El ...
as Elizabeth Jennings (Nadezhda), a KGB officer and wife of Philip. In comparison to Philip, Elizabeth's allegiance to the KGB and the Soviet Union, as well as the ideology of
communism Communism () is a political sociology, sociopolitical, political philosophy, philosophical, and economic ideology, economic ideology within the history of socialism, socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a ...
, is stronger and more straightforward. *
Matthew Rhys Matthew Rhys Evans ( ; born 8 November 1974) is a Welsh actor. He gained recognition for playing Kevin Walker in the family drama series '' Brothers & Sisters'' (2006–2011) and Philip Jennings in the spy drama series ''The Americans'' (2013 ...
as Philip Jennings (Mischa), a KGB officer and husband of Elizabeth. Although loyal to his cause, Philip holds little animosity towards the United States. Philip is close friends with Stan Beeman. As Clark, one of his false identities, Philip romances Martha, an FBI secretary, to obtain classified information. *
Maximiliano Hernández Maximiliano Hernández (born September 12, 1973) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Agent Jasper Sitwell in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and FBI Agent Chris Amador in the first season of ''The Americans''. Early life A nativ ...
as Chris Amador, Stan's FBI partner (season 1) *
Holly Taylor Holly Taylor is a Canadian and American actress and dancer. She began her career in the Broadway production of ''Billy Elliot'' at the age of eleven as Sharon Percy (Ballet Girl) and continued in the role for almost two years. She played the r ...
as Paige Jennings, Elizabeth and Philip's daughter *
Keidrich Sellati Keidrich Sellati (born ) is an American actor. He played the role of Henry Jennings in the FX television series ''The Americans'' (2013–2018) for its entire run. Life and career Sellati has been described as having Korean, Irish, Italian, a ...
as Henry Jennings, Elizabeth and Philip's son *
Noah Emmerich Noah Nicholas Emmerich (born February 27, 1965) is an American actor and director best known for his roles in films such as '' Beautiful Girls'' (1996), ''The Truman Show'' (1998), ''Frequency'' (2000), ''Miracle'' (2004), '' Little Children'' (2 ...
as
Stan Beeman Stanley Beeman is a fictional character in the American television drama series ''The Americans'' on FX. He was created by series creator Joe Weisberg and is portrayed by Noah Emmerich. Stan is an FBI agent and a neighbor of the lead characters ...
, an
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
counterintelligence agent and the Jenningses' neighbor. Unaware of the Jenningses' true nature, he is very close with the family and best friends with Philip. *
Annet Mahendru Anita Devi "Annet" Mahendru (born November 5, 1985) is an American actress. She is known for playing Nina Sergeevna Krilova on the FX period drama series ''The Americans'' (2013–2016), for which she garnered a nomination for the Critics' C ...
as Nina Sergeevna Krilova, a clerical worker turned KGB agent at the Soviet Embassy, and Stan's former informant and lover (main seasons 2–4; recurring season 1) *
Susan Misner Susan Misner (; born February 8, 1971) is an American actress and dancer. She has appeared in a number of TV series as a guest star, as well as several recurring roles. Early years Misner was born on February 8, 1971, in Paterson, New Jersey. C ...
as Sandra Beeman, Stan's wife (main seasons 2–3, recurring seasons 1 and 4) *
Alison Wright Alison Wright (born 12 July 1976) is an English actress. She is best known for her starring role as Martha Hanson on the FX period spy drama series ''The Americans'' (2013–2017), for which she received critical acclaim and a Primetime Emmy ...
as Martha Hanson, Agent Gaad's secretary and Philip's informant (main seasons 2–4; recurring seasons 1 and 5) *
Lev Gorn Lev Gorn (; born 1971) is a Russian-born American stage, film, and television actor. He is best known for his role as KGB officer Arkady Ivanovich Zotov in ''The Americans''. Later, he had a recurring role as Mikhail Vassily Tal in '' The Enemy W ...
as Arkady Ivanovich Zotov, the KGB's
Rezident A resident spy in the world of espionage is an agent operating within a foreign country for extended periods of time. A base of operations within a foreign country with which a resident spy may liaise is known as a "station" in English and a (, 'r ...
at the Soviet embassy (main seasons 3–4; recurring seasons 1–2 and 6) *
Costa Ronin Konstantin "Costa" Ronin (; born 3 February 1979) is a Russian actor and cinematographer, best known for appearances in '' Red Dog'', as Gregorovich on the SBS drama '' East West 101'', as Oleg Igorevich Burov in the FX drama ''The Americans' ...
as Oleg Igorevich Burov, originally the Soviet embassy's Science and Technology officer, a privileged son of a government minister who was appointed thanks to his father's connections so he could enjoy the comforts of the United States; at the end of season 4, returned to the USSR after his brother's death, in the KGB at first and then at his father's ministry (main seasons 3–6; recurring season 2) *
Richard Thomas Richard Thomas or Dick Thomas may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Dick Thomas (singer) (1915–2003), American singing cowboy and actor * Richard Thomas (actor) (born 1951), American actor * Richard Thomas (author) (born 1967), America ...
as Frank Gaad, an FBI Special Agent and Stan's supervisor (main seasons 3–4; recurring seasons 1–2) *
Dylan Baker Dylan Baker (born October 7, 1959) is an American actor. He gained recognition for his roles in films such as '' Planes, Trains and Automobiles'' (1987), ''Happiness'' (1998), '' Thirteen Days'' (2000), '' Road to Perdition'' (2002), ''Spider-Man ...
as William Crandall, a Russian agent and biochemical warfare scientist (season 4) * Brandon J. Dirden as Dennis Aderholt, an FBI agent (seasons 4–6; recurring season 3) *
Margo Martindale Margo Martindale (born July 18, 1951) is an American character actress who has appeared on television, film, and stage. In 2011, she won a Primetime Emmy Award and a Critics' Choice Television Award for her recurring role as Mags Bennett on '' ...
as Claudia, the Jenningses' second and fifth KGB handler (main season 6; recurring seasons 1–2, 4–5; guest season 3)


Recurring

*
Daniel Flaherty Daniel Flaherty (born June 11, 1993) is an American actor, known for his role as Stanley Lucerne on the MTV teen drama series ''Skins (American TV series), Skins''. Life and career Flaherty started to pursue acting at age 11. When he turned 13, ...
as Matthew Beeman (seasons 1–5), Stan and Sandra's son * Peter Von Berg as Vasili Nikolaevich (seasons 1–4), a former KGB Rezident *
Derek Luke Derek Nathanial Luke (born April 24, 1974) is an American actor. He won the Independent Spirit Award for his big-screen debut performance as the titular character in the 2002 film '' Antwone Fisher'', directed and produced by Denzel Washingto ...
as Gregory Thomas (season 1; special appearance season 6), an American militant and Elizabeth's longtime lover *
Wrenn Schmidt Melinda Wrenn Schmidt (born February 18, 1983) is an American actress. She is best known for her starring role as NASA engineer, flight director, and later director of NASA Margo Madison in the Apple TV+ original science-fiction space drama ser ...
as Kate (season 2), the Jenningses' third KGB handler *
Lee Tergesen Lee Allen Tergesen (; born July 8, 1965) is an American actor. He is known for his portrayals of Chett Donnelly on USA Network's '' Weird Science'' (1994–1998), Tobias Beecher on HBO's '' Oz'' (1997–2003), Peter McMillan on the second seas ...
as Andrew Larrick (season 2), a
United States Navy SEAL The United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the United States Navy's primary special operations force and a component of the United States Naval Special Warfare Command. Among the SEALs' main funct ...
blackmailed into working for the KGB *
Michael Aronov Michael Aronov (born May 4, 1976) is an American actor who has worked in film, television and theatre. In 2017, he won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play for his role as Uri Savir in the Broadway play ''Oslo''. He is also known for ...
as Anton Baklanov (seasons 2–4), an émigré
Russian-Jewish The history of the Jews in Russia and areas historically connected with it goes back at least 1,500 years. Jews in Russia have historically constituted a large religious and ethnic diaspora; the Russian Empire at one time hosted the largest po ...
scientist working on secret
stealth technology Stealth technology, also termed low observable technology (LO technology), is a sub-discipline of military tactics and passive and active electronic countermeasures. The term covers a range of military technology, methods used to make personnel ...
*
Karen Pittman Karen Pittman is an American actress. She began her career with small appearances on television shows such as ''30 Rock'', ''Law & Order'' and ''House of Cards''. She went on to land recurring roles in ''The Americans'' (2014–2016) and ''Luke Ca ...
as Lisa (seasons 2–4), a Northrop employee from whom Elizabeth is gleaning information *
Kelly AuCoin Kelly AuCoin (born February 14, 1967) is an American actor who has appeared in film, television, and theater. He is best known as "Dollar" Bill Stern on '' Billions'' ( Showtime) and Pastor Tim on ''The Americans'' ( FX). He has had recurring rol ...
as Pastor Tim (seasons 2–6), a pastor who heads the church which Paige Jennings attends *
Frank Langella Frank A. Langella Jr. (; born January 1, 1938) is an American actor. He eschewed the career of a traditional film star by making the stage the focal point of his career, appearing frequently on Broadway. He has received four Tony Awards (out of ...
as Gabriel (seasons 3–5), the Jenningses' first and fourth KGB handler * Vera Cherny as Tatiana Evgenyevna Vyazemtseva (seasons 3–6), a KGB officer at the
Rezidentura A resident spy in the world of espionage is an agent operating within a foreign country for extended periods of time. A base of operations within a foreign country with which a resident spy may liaise is known as a "station" in English and a (, 'r ...
* Peter Mark Kendall as Hans (seasons 3–5), a South African member of the Jenningses' operational team *
Julia Garner Julia Garner (born February 1, 1994) is an American actress. She gained recognition for playing Ruth Langmore in the Netflix crime drama series ''Ozark'' (2017–2022), for which she received critical acclaim and won three Primetime Emmy Awar ...
as Kimberly "Kimmy" Breland (seasons 3–6), the daughter of the head of the CIA's
Afghan Afghan or Afgan may refer to: Related to Afghanistan *Afghans, historically refers to the Pashtun people. It is both an ethnicity and nationality. Ethnicity wise, it refers to the Pashtuns. In modern terms, it means both the citizens of Afghanist ...
group, later head of the
Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
group *
Laurie Holden Heather Laurie Holden (born December 17, 1969) is an American-Canadian actress, producer, model, and human rights activist. She is best known for her portrayals as Marita Covarrubias in ''The X-Files'' (1996–2002), Andrea Harrison in AMC's ...
as Renee (seasons 5–6), Stan's girlfriend and later wife *
Scott Cohen Scott Cohen may refer to: * Scott Cohen (actor) (born 1961), American actor * Scott Lee Cohen (born 1965), American politician from Illinois * Scott Cohen (music industry executive) See also * *Cohen (surname) Cohen () is a surname of Jewish, ...
as Glenn Haskard (season 6), a member of a
State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs o ...
negotiating team *
Miriam Shor Miriam Ruth Shor (born July 25, 1971) is an American actress. She gained prominence for her performance in the Off-Broadway rock musical ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' (1998–2000) and in the 2001 film adaptation of the same name. She later sta ...
as Erica Haskard (season 6), the ailing wife of Glenn Haskard for whom Elizabeth works as a home nurse and who coerces Elizabeth into art therapy


Production


Concept

''The Americans'', a
period piece Period may refer to: Common uses * Period (punctuation) * Era, a length or span of time *Menstruation, commonly referred to as a "period" Arts, entertainment, and media * Period (music), a concept in musical composition * Periodic sentence (or r ...
set during the
Reagan administration Ronald Reagan's tenure as the 40th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1981, and ended on January 20, 1989. Reagan, a Republican from California, took office following his landslide victory over ...
, was outlined by series creator
Joe Weisberg Joseph Weisberg (born 1965/1966) is an American television writer, producer, novelist, and school teacher. Weisberg is best known as the creator and showrunner of the FX TV series ''The Americans'' and '' The Patient'' (co-created with Joel Fie ...
, a former
CIA officer The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA; ) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with advancing national security through collecting and analyzing intelligence from around the world and ...
. The series focuses on the personal and professional lives of the Jennings family—a married couple of
Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
deep-cover agents placed in the
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
area in the 1960s and their initially unsuspecting, American-born children. The story picks up in the early 1980s. The show's creator has described the series as being focused on the personal, despite its political content: "International relations is just an allegory for the human relations. Sometimes, when you're struggling in your marriage or with your kid, it feels like life or death. For Philip and Elizabeth, it often is." Joel Fields, the other executive producer, described the series as working different levels of reality: the fictional world of the marriage between Philip and Elizabeth, and the real world involving the characters' experiences during the
Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
. In 2007, after leaving the CIA, Weisberg published '' An Ordinary Spy'', a novel about a spy who is completing the final stages of his training in Virginia and is being transferred overseas. After reading Weisberg's novel, executive producer
Graham Yost Graham John Yost (born September 5, 1959) is a Canadian film and television screenwriter. His best-known works are the films ''Speed'', '' Broken Arrow'', and '' Hard Rain'' and the TV series '' Justified'' and ''Silo''. Early life, family and ...
discovered that Weisberg had also written a pilot for a possible spy series. Yost read the pilot and discovered that it was "annoyingly good", which led to developing the show. Weisberg says the CIA inadvertently gave him the idea for a series about spies, explaining, "While I was taking the polygraph exam to get in, they asked the question, 'Are you joining the CIA in order to gain experience about the intelligence community so that you can write about it later'—which had never occurred to me. I was totally joining the CIA because I wanted to be a spy. But the second they asked that question ... then I thought, 'Now I'm going to fail the test. The job at the CIA, which Weisberg later described as a mistake, has helped him develop several storylines in the series, basing some plot lines on real-life stories. He stated: Weisberg was partially influenced to write a pilot script for the series by the 2010 events of the
Illegals Program The Illegals Program (so named by the United States Department of Justice) was a network of Russian sleeper agents under unofficial cover. An investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) culminated in the arrest of ten agents on ...
. His research material included notes on the KGB's Cold War left by
Vasili Mitrokhin Vasili Nikitich Mitrokhin (; March 3, 1922 – January 23, 2004) was an archivist for the Soviet Union's foreign intelligence service, the First Chief Directorate of the KGB, who defected to the United Kingdom in 1992. Mitrokhin first offer ...
and conversations with some of his former colleagues at the CIA. However, in a departure from the circumstances involving the Illegals Program, he said he opted to set the story in the early 1980s because "a modern day
etting Etting (; ; Lorraine Franconian: ''Ettinge'') is a commune in the Moselle department of the Grand Est administrative region in north-eastern France. The village belongs to the Pays de Bitche. See also * Communes of the Moselle department ...
didn't seem like a good idea", adding, "People were both shocked and simultaneously shrugged at the
010 010 may refer to: * 10 (number) * 8 (number) in octal numeral notation * Motorola 68010, a microprocessor released by Motorola in 1982 * 010, the telephone area code of Beijing * 010, the Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , ; ; ) is the second-largest ...
scandal because it didn't seem like we were really enemies with Russia anymore. An obvious way to remedy that for television was to stick it back in the Cold War." In a 2017 interview, Weisberg said that the show tried hard to resist the influence of the current political climate: "What you don't want is for people watching the show and thinking 'Oh, those clever writers, they did little things here and there that have to do with
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
or what's going on with Russia today'".


Casting

Weisberg said he had no idea about who would star in the series before casting began. FX president
John Landgraf John Phillip Landgraf (born May 20, 1962) is the Chairman of FX Networks. He is also a member of the Peabody Awards board of directors, which is presented by the University of Georgia's Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication. ...
had the idea to cast Keri Russell in the series. Leslie Feldman, the head of casting at DreamWorks, saw Matthew Rhys in a play and suggested him to Weisberg. Russell and Rhys had met briefly at a party years before, but were not fully introduced. They both were attracted to the series because of its focus on the relationship between their characters. Rhys said, "You have two people who have led the most incredibly strange life together with incredibly high stakes, in this scene of domesticity that is an absolute lie, and at the end of the pilot they're finding each other for the very first time." Russell described the pilot script as "interesting", continuing, "It was so far from a procedural. And riginally,I didn't know that I wanted to do it... I never want to do anything. But I just couldn't stop thinking about it." Rhys said of his character, "When you meet him, he's at this great turning point in his life where everything's changing for him... It's the full package for an actor. It's a dream." Noah Emmerich was initially hesitant about taking a role in the series. He explained: "The truth is, from the very beginning, I thought, 'I don't want to do a TV show where I carry a gun or a badge. I'm done with guns and badges. I just don't want to do that anymore.' When I first read it I thought, 'Yeah, it's really interesting and really good, but I don't want to be an FBI guy.'" His friend, Gavin O'Connor, who directed the
pilot episode A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie) in United Kingdom and United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television netwo ...
, convinced him to take a closer look at the role. Emmerich stated that he responded to the aspect of marriage and family. After recurring in the first season,
Susan Misner Susan Misner (; born February 8, 1971) is an American actress and dancer. She has appeared in a number of TV series as a guest star, as well as several recurring roles. Early years Misner was born on February 8, 1971, in Paterson, New Jersey. C ...
,
Annet Mahendru Anita Devi "Annet" Mahendru (born November 5, 1985) is an American actress. She is known for playing Nina Sergeevna Krilova on the FX period drama series ''The Americans'' (2013–2016), for which she garnered a nomination for the Critics' C ...
, and
Alison Wright Alison Wright (born 12 July 1976) is an English actress. She is best known for her starring role as Martha Hanson on the FX period spy drama series ''The Americans'' (2013–2017), for which she received critical acclaim and a Primetime Emmy ...
, who play Sandra Beeman, Nina, and Martha Hanson, respectively, were promoted to series regulars beginning with season two. After recurring in the first two seasons,
Lev Gorn Lev Gorn (; born 1971) is a Russian-born American stage, film, and television actor. He is best known for his role as KGB officer Arkady Ivanovich Zotov in ''The Americans''. Later, he had a recurring role as Mikhail Vassily Tal in '' The Enemy W ...
, who plays Arkady Ivanovich, was promoted to series regular for season three.


Writing

Weisberg wrote the first two episodes of the series. Landgraf, who did not know Weisberg but liked the series, suggested to Weisberg that he work alongside Joel Fields as co-showrunner and the other head writer. Fields, in turn, persuaded TV writer
Joshua Brand Joshua Brand is an American television writer, director, and producer who created ''St. Elsewhere'', '' I'll Fly Away, A Year in the Life,'' and ''Northern Exposure'' with his writing-and-producing partner John Falsey, with whom he worked throu ...
, with whom he had been working on a new pilot, to join the show's writing team as consulting producer shortly after the start; between them, Weisberg, Fields, and Brand wrote or co-wrote ten of the first season's thirteen episodes. In the second season, Gibson wrote one episode, and the show added other producers to the writing team: screenwriter and journalist
Stephen Schiff {{Infobox person , name = Stephen Schiff , image = Stephen Schiff at the Peabody Awards 2019.jpg , image_size = 140 , alt = , caption = Schiff at the Peabody Awards 2019 , birth_na ...
, playwright and children's book author Peter Ackerman, and playwright
Tracey Scott Wilson Tracey Scott Wilson is an American playwright, television writer, television producer, and screenwriter. She graduated from Rutgers University with a BA in English and from Temple University with an MA in English Literature. Early life Born in ...
. All six of those writers (Weisberg, Fields, Brand, Schiff, Ackerman, and Wilson) remained with the show throughout its run. In addition, playwright and ''Americans'' story editor
Hilary Bettis Hilary Bettis is a playwright, a producer, and a writer. Life and career She won the 2019 Writers Guild of America Award, and was nominated in 2018, for her work on the Emmy and Golden Globe winning series ''The Americans'' on FX, which she wro ...
was added to the writing staff in season 5, and ''Americans'' script coordinator Justin Weinberger and showrunner's assistant Sarah Nolen were added to the writing staff in the sixth and final season.


Use of Russian language

The main characters of the show, despite being Soviet KGB officers, have to behave as American-born citizens, and therefore do not generally speak
Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...
on-screen. Other Soviet agents, immigrants, and—later in the show—ordinary Soviet people converse in Russian. Joe Weisberg explained that achieving believable Russian pronunciation was very important because the show was "so much centered on the world of the Russian Russians and the Russian illegals". In most cases, Russian was the native language for the actors playing Soviet characters. Other actors mastered their lines to sound almost native. Peter von Berg, cast as Vasili Nikolayevich, brought his expertise in Russian theater and skills as an accent coach to the role. Annet Mahendru, who portrayed Nina, has a Russian mother and is multilingual, speaking six languages. Mahendru praised Matthew Rhys for his efforts in delivering a few phrases in Russian, adding: "It's really important to everyone, so they're all trying, but it's a difficult language for all of us — even those of us who are fluent in it!" Weisberg underscored the importance of the authenticity. According to him, there were "some perfectly good people n the Rezidenturawho were easy to relate to even if you didn't believe in the cause they were serving". He concluded: "Once you bring that level of detail into a show, you can't do cardboard cutouts anymore. You're not in the realm of cliché. You will invariably build a real person."


Filming and locations

The series filmed in New York City at Eastern Effects Studios in
Gowanus, Brooklyn Gowanus ( ) is a neighborhood in the northwestern portion of the New York City borough of Brooklyn, within the area once known as South Brooklyn. The neighborhood is part of Brooklyn Community Board 6, Brooklyn Community District 6. Gowanus is ...
, with Brooklyn street locations in Boerum Hill, Carroll Gardens and Cobble Hill. Other shooting locations included: Prospect Park, Astoria, Washington Heights,
Mamaroneck Mamaroneck ( ), is a town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 31,758 at the 2020 United States census over 29,156 at the 2010 census. There are two villages contained within the town: Larchmont and the Villag ...
,
Coney Island Avenue Coney Island Avenue is a road in the New York City borough of Brooklyn that runs north-south for a distance of roughly five miles, almost parallel to Ocean Parkway and Ocean Avenue. It begins at Brighton Beach Avenue in Coney Island and goes n ...
,
Kew Gardens Kew Gardens is a botanical garden, botanic garden in southwest London that houses the "largest and most diverse botany, botanical and mycology, mycological collections in the world". Founded in 1759, from the exotic garden at Kew Park, its li ...
,
Morningside Heights Morningside Heights is a neighborhood on the West Side of Upper Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Morningside Drive to the east, 125th Street to the north, 110th Street to the south, and Riverside Drive to the west. Morningsi ...
, Farmingdale, and
Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...
. Shooting of the
pilot episode A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie) in United Kingdom and United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television netwo ...
began in May 2012 and lasted until mid-June. Filming began for the rest of the first season in November 2012 in the New York City area. The production used location shots to simulate a dramatic setting of Washington, D.C. Early filming was delayed by flooding caused by
Hurricane Sandy Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as Superstorm Sandy) was an extremely large and devastating tropical cyclone which ravaged the Caribbean and the coastal Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States in late ...
. Filming for the second season commenced in October 2013. Some scenes in the fifth and sixth seasons were filmed in
Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
.


Release


Broadcast

''The Americans'' aired internationally in Australia on
Network Ten Network 10 (commonly known as the 10 Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Paramount Global's Paramount Networks UK & Australia, UK & Australia division and is o ...
, Canada on
FX Canada FX is a Canadian English-language television channel majority owned by Rogers Sports & Media, a division of Rogers Communications (which owns a controlling 66.64% interest and serves as managing partner), with a minority stake held by the FX Net ...
, Ireland on
RTÉ Two (; ; RTÉThe É in RTÉ is pronounced as an English E () and not an Irish É ()) is an Republic of Ireland, Irish Public broadcasting, public service broadcaster. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on RTÉ Television, television, RT ...
, and the United Kingdom on
ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: Television TV stations/networks/channels ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network and company, including: **ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network in the United Kingd ...
. ITV dropped the series in January 2015 and did not acquire the third season. On July 20, 2015, ITV acquired seasons three and four for their subscription channel
ITV Encore ITV Encore was a British drama pay television channel in the United Kingdom that was owned by ITV Digital Channels Ltd, a division of ITV plc. The channel was exclusive to Sky's digital satellite platform, Sky Go, Now TV, and Sky Store. The c ...
.


Reception


Critical response

Over the course of its run, the series received widespread critical acclaim. The
American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the History of cinema in the United States, motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private fu ...
listed ''The Americans'' as one of the top ten television series of 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2018. After it ended its six-season run, Tim Goodman from ''
The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'' considered ''The Americans'' to be among the "Hall of Fame" dramas, and stated it was one of his top five favorite television dramas of all-time. '' IndieWire'' and ''
Paste Paste is a term for any very thick viscous fluid. It may refer to: Science and technology * Adhesive or paste ** Wallpaper paste ** Wheatpaste, a liquid adhesive made from vegetable starch and water * Paste (rheology), a substance that behaves as ...
'' named it the best FX TV series of all-time. ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' named the series one of the best 20 TV dramas since ''
The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The series follows Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey American Mafia, Mafia boss who suffers from panic attacks. He reluct ...
'', while ''
Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, Habit (psychology), habit or item generally considered morally wrong in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character trait, a defect, an infirmity, or a bad or unhe ...
'' called it "''The Sopranos'' of this decade". In September 2019, ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' ranked the show 43rd on its list of the 100 best TV shows of the 21st century, stating that the "gorgeous, slow-burning drama" was "terminally overlooked in favour of flashier, flimsier fare". In September 2022, ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'' ranked the show 14th on its list of the 100 greatest TV shows of all time.


Season 1

The first season of ''The Americans'' received positive reviews from critics. On
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
, it received an 88 percent approval rating with an average score of 7.9 out of 10 based on 58 reviews, with a critics' consensus of: "''The Americans'' is a spy thriller of the highest order, with evocative period touches and strong chemistry between its leads."
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
scored the show a 78 out of 100 based on 35 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". David Hinkley of the ''
New York Daily News The ''Daily News'' is an American newspaper based in Jersey City, New Jersey. It was founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson in New York City as the ''Illustrated Daily News''. It was the first U.S. daily printed in Tabloid (newspaper format ...
'' praised the pace, noting that "It's a premise that requires as much clever dramatic footwork as you might expect, and creator
Joe Weisberg Joseph Weisberg (born 1965/1966) is an American television writer, producer, novelist, and school teacher. Weisberg is best known as the creator and showrunner of the FX TV series ''The Americans'' and '' The Patient'' (co-created with Joel Fie ...
, a former CIA agent, handles the challenge". Verne Gay of ''
Newsday ''Newsday'' is a daily newspaper in the United States primarily serving Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island, although it is also sold throughout the New York metropolitan area. The slogan of the newspaper is "Newsday, Your Eye on LI" ...
'' called it a "smart newcomer with a pair of leads that turns ''The Americans'' into a likely winner" and gave it a grade of an "A−". Some reviews were not as optimistic. ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'' was cautious in its outlook, stating "it's easy to see how stale it might get in a matter of episodes." ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'', while finding the concept "intriguing and provocative", ultimately concluded that " e execution ... isn't worthy of the premise".


Season 2

The second season received critical acclaim. On Rotten Tomatoes, it received a 97 percent approval rating with an average score of 8.8 out of 10 based on 38 reviews, with a critics consensus of: "Adding fuel to the fire, ''The Americans'' retains all the suspense and action of season one while enhancing the level of excitement... and wigs." Metacritic scored the show an 88 out of 100 based on 31 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". Several entities have rated the show among the best television for 2014, including the American Film Institute, ''
The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...
'', and ''
Grantland ''Grantland'' was a sports and pop-culture blog owned and operated by ESPN. The blog was started in 2011 by veteran writer and sports journalist Bill Simmons, who remained as editor-in-chief until May 2015. ''Grantland'' was named after famed ...
''. Tim Goodman of ''
The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'' called the series "one of television's finest dramas" and praised the ability of the writers in "nailing down season two ... by picking up where the story left off and making sure that this spy-vs.-spy thing has real-life costs". Rob Owen of the ''
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', also known simply as the PG, is the largest newspaper serving Greater Pittsburgh, metropolitan Pittsburgh in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Descended from the ''Pittsburgh Gazette'', established in 1786 as the fi ...
'' praised the series for doing "the near-impossible of making viewers cheer for Russian spies in America and at the same time for the American FBI agents who are trying to unmask those Russians living in suburbia". The ''New York Daily News'' questioned its survivability: "Credibility starts to fray when our heroes, or anti-heroes, keep needing miraculous last-second evasions and escapes."


Season 3

On Rotten Tomatoes, the third season received a 100% approval rating with an average score of 9 out of 10 based on 53 reviews, with a critics consensus of: "Family-driven drama and psychological themes propel ''The Americans'' tautly drawn tension, dispensing thrills of a different ilk this season." Metacritic lists a score of 92 out of 100 based on 23 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".
Alessandra Stanley Alessandra Stanley (born October 3, 1955) is an American journalist. As of 2019, she is the co-founder of a weekly newsletter "for worldly cosmopolitans" called ''Air Mail'', alongside former ''Vanity Fair'' editor-in-chief Graydon Carter. Biog ...
's review in ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' states that, "'The Americans' is an unusually clever, subtle drama that uses the conventions of a Cold War thriller to paint a portrait of a complicated, evolving but not unhappy marriage... ery season gets more complicated, and is all the better for it." Maureen Ryan of ''
The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers p ...
'' declared that the first four episodes were "every bit as taut and finely crafted as the stellar prior season of the show". Emily VanDerWerff of '' Vox'' said "''The Americans'' is in the kind of incredible stretch of episodes TV dramas sometimes hit in the middle of their runs" and that it is "on one of the best runs of episodes in TV drama history".


Season 4

The fourth season received widespread acclaim from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, it received a 99% approval rating with an average score of 9.2 out of 10 based on 248 reviews, with a critics consensus of: "With its fourth season, ''The Americans'' continues to deliver top-tier spy drama while sending its characters in directions that threaten to destroy their freedoms—and their lives." On Metacritic, the season has a score of 95 out of 100 based on 28 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". Brian Tallerico of ''
RogerEbert.com ''RogerEbert.com'' is an American film review website that archives reviews written by film critic Roger Ebert for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' and also shares other critics' reviews and essays. The website, underwritten by the ''Chicago Sun-Times ...
'' praised the series and wrote, "It is that depth of character and nuance in the writing that elevates ''The Americans'', along with its willingness to offer stunning narrative developments. ..I'm now convinced that when we close the final chapter of this televised novel we may finally appreciate one of the best shows we've ever seen." James Poniewozik of ''The New York Times'' characterized the fourth season as a melancholy "catalog of loss", which adds "a note of gloom even to the tensest moments in this drama".


Season 5

On Rotten Tomatoes, season five received a 94% approval rating with an average score of 9 out of 10 based on 216 reviews, with a critics' consensus of: "In its penultimate season, ''The Americans'' brings long-simmering storylines to a boil while heightening the spy-thriller stakes and deepening the domestic drama—all brought vividly to life by superb performances from its veteran cast." On Metacritic, the season has a score of 94 out of 100 based on 19 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". Matthew Gilbert of ''
The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe,'' also known locally as ''the Globe'', is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Boston Globe'' is the oldest and largest daily new ...
'' gave it a highly positive review and wrote, "The drama remains as tense as ever, with strong, careful writing and an abundance of fine performances." Tim Goodman of ''
The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'' also lauded the series, "It's extremely well-constructed, with slow-burning storylines that are paying off in superb dramatic depth" and praised its "top-tier acting" and "artfully crafted visuals". As the season progressed, some criticized it for being too slow. Showrunners Weisberg and Fields admitted that they did not expect "this much of a backlash" for "hitting the brakes too hard". They were upset by the criticism but suggested viewers wait until the series was over, hoping for the response to become more muted in context of the sixth and the final season. After the series ended, Travis Clark of ''
Business Insider ''Business Insider'' (stylized in all caps: BUSINESS INSIDER; known from 2021 to 2023 as INSIDER) is a New York City–based multinational financial and business news website founded in 2007. Since 2015, a majority stake in ''Business Inside ...
'' said the end of the series made him reconsider and appreciate what he initially thought was the weakest and most disappointing season of the show.


Season 6

On Rotten Tomatoes, the sixth season received a 99% approval rating with an average score of 9.3 out of 10 based on 199 reviews, with a critics consensus of: "''The Americans'' powerful final season pumps up the volume on an already intense show, concluding the complex series arc with epic familial conflict... and a high body count." On Metacritic, the season has a score of 92 out of 100 based on 18 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". '' Vox''s Emily VanDerWerff named it one of the best final seasons ever made. Matt Brennan from ''Paste'' echoed the sentiment: "''The Americans'' to its most consequential moment, and in the midst of a final season that so far deserves consideration alongside ''
Breaking Bad ''Breaking Bad'' is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Vince Gilligan for AMC (TV channel), AMC. Set and filmed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the series follows Walter White (Breaking Bad), Walter White (Bryan Cran ...
''s, ''
The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The series follows Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey American Mafia, Mafia boss who suffers from panic attacks. He reluct ...
'', and a handful of others' as the medium's all-time best." The series finale, "
START Start can refer to multiple topics: * Takeoff, the phase of flight where an aircraft transitions from moving along the ground to flying through the air * Starting lineup in sports * Track and field#Starts use in race, Starts use in sport race * S ...
", was critically acclaimed as one of the best finales of all time.


Themes

''The Americans'' explores complex themes of loyalty, identity, and morality, often framing these issues within the context of
Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
espionage Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering, as a subfield of the intelligence field, is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information ( intelligence). A person who commits espionage on a mission-specific contract is called an ...
and family dynamics. Central to the series is the marriage between Philip and Elizabeth Jennings, who struggle with their Soviet loyalty and growing affinity for American culture. The show's creator, Joe Weisberg, a former
CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA; ) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with advancing national security through collecting and analyzing intelligence from around the world and ...
officer, has described it as "essentially about a marriage", using international espionage as a metaphor for the personal secrets and conflicts within relationships. Scholars Hopf and Creighton have argued that the metaphor works both ways, with the series using the Jenningses' marriage to personalize the Cold War. The course of Philip and Stan's friendship, with its complexities and betrayals, is compared to the development and breakup of a marriage. Another recurring theme is the conflict between personal morality and duty to one's country. Philip and Elizabeth often confront moral dilemmas that put their sense of duty at odds with their compassion, especially in their interactions with their children and American neighbors. This tension is heightened by the show's historical setting in the early 1980s, a time marked by
political polarization Political polarization (spelled ''polarisation'' in British English, Australian English, and New Zealand English) is the divergence of political attitudes away from the center, towards ideological extremes. Scholars distinguish between ideologi ...
and heightened
nuclear Nuclear may refer to: Physics Relating to the nucleus of the atom: *Nuclear engineering *Nuclear physics *Nuclear power *Nuclear reactor *Nuclear weapon *Nuclear medicine *Radiation therapy *Nuclear warfare Mathematics * Nuclear space *Nuclear ...
tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union. Parenthood also emerges as a central theme, as Philip and Elizabeth grapple with the challenges of raising their children while maintaining their cover. Smita Rahan of
Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...
has argued that the series portrays motherhood as an effectively corrupting influence. The strain of their double lives forces them to make difficult choices that affect their family's future.


Accolades

Over the course of the series, ''The Americans'' received 18
Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award catego ...
nominations. For its fourth and sixth seasons, the series was nominated for Outstanding Drama Series.
Keri Russell Keri Lynn Russell (born March 23, 1976) is an American actress. She played the title role in the drama series '' Felicity'' (1998–2002), which won her a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama, and later portrayed El ...
and
Matthew Rhys Matthew Rhys Evans ( ; born 8 November 1974) is a Welsh actor. He gained recognition for playing Kevin Walker in the family drama series '' Brothers & Sisters'' (2006–2011) and Philip Jennings in the spy drama series ''The Americans'' (2013 ...
were each nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress and Actor in a Drama Series, respectively, for the last three seasons. Rhys won the award for the sixth season. The prior omissions that the show had received at the Emmys were considered to be
snub A snub, cut, or slight is a refusal to recognise an acquaintance by ignoring them, avoiding them or pretending not to know them. For example, a failure to greet someone may be considered a snub. In awards and lists For awards, the term "snub ...
s by the Emmys in the drama and acting categories by critics.
Margo Martindale Margo Martindale (born July 18, 1951) is an American character actress who has appeared on television, film, and stage. In 2011, she won a Primetime Emmy Award and a Critics' Choice Television Award for her recurring role as Mags Bennett on '' ...
was nominated four times and won twice for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series, and
Alison Wright Alison Wright (born 12 July 1976) is an English actress. She is best known for her starring role as Martha Hanson on the FX period spy drama series ''The Americans'' (2013–2017), for which she received critical acclaim and a Primetime Emmy ...
received a nomination in the same category for the fifth season. The show received four nominations for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series, for " Do Mail Robots Dream of Electric Sheep?" written by
Joshua Brand Joshua Brand is an American television writer, director, and producer who created ''St. Elsewhere'', '' I'll Fly Away, A Year in the Life,'' and ''Northern Exposure'' with his writing-and-producing partner John Falsey, with whom he worked throu ...
; and Joel Fields and
Joe Weisberg Joseph Weisberg (born 1965/1966) is an American television writer, producer, novelist, and school teacher. Weisberg is best known as the creator and showrunner of the FX TV series ''The Americans'' and '' The Patient'' (co-created with Joel Fie ...
were nominated for the award three consecutive years for the fourth, fifth, and sixth-season finales. Fields and Weisberg won the award for the series finale, "
START Start can refer to multiple topics: * Takeoff, the phase of flight where an aircraft transitions from moving along the ground to flying through the air * Starting lineup in sports * Track and field#Starts use in race, Starts use in sport race * S ...
".
Nathan Barr Nathan Barr (born February 9, 1973; also known as Nate Barr) is an American film and television composer and musician. His television scores include ''True Blood'', ''The Americans'', ''Carnival Row'', and ''The Great''. He won a Primetime Emmy A ...
also received a nomination for Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music for the first season. ''The Americans'' was strongly praised for its writing. The series was nominated for four Writers Guild of America Award for Television: Dramatic Series awards, and won in both 2016 and 2018. ''The Americans'' won a rare second Peabody Award, "for ending one of TV's best dramas with one of the television's best series finales", becoming the first drama series since ''
Breaking Bad ''Breaking Bad'' is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Vince Gilligan for AMC (TV channel), AMC. Set and filmed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the series follows Walter White (Breaking Bad), Walter White (Bryan Cran ...
'' to win two Peabody Awards during its run.


See also

*
Illegals Program The Illegals Program (so named by the United States Department of Justice) was a network of Russian sleeper agents under unofficial cover. An investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) culminated in the arrest of ten agents on ...
, ten Russian sleeper agents under
non-official cover A cover in foreign, military or police human intelligence or counterintelligence is the ostensible identity and role or position in an infiltrated organization assumed by a covert agent during a covert operation. Official cover In espionage, ...
arrested in 2010 by the FBI *
Jack Barsky Jack Philip Barsky (born Albrecht Dittrich, 18 May 1949) is a German-American author, IT specialist and former operative of the KGB who spied on the United States from 1978 to 1988. Exposed after the Cold War had ended, Barsky became a resource ...
, former KGB sleeper agent * ''
Deutschland 83 ''Deutschland 83'' is a 2015 German spy thriller television series starring Jonas Nay as a 24-year-old native of East Germany who is sent to West Germany in 1983 as an undercover spy for the HVA, the foreign intelligence agency of the Stasi. I ...
''


Notes


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Americans, The 2010s American drama television series 2013 American television series debuts 2018 American television series endings Television series about the Cold War American English-language television shows American spy television series FX Networks original programming Peabody Award–winning television programs Primetime Emmy Award–winning television series KGB in fiction Serial drama television series Television series about totalitarianism Television shows filmed in New York (state) Television shows set in Moscow Television shows set in Washington, D.C. Television series by Amblin Entertainment Television series by DreamWorks Television Television series by 20th Century Fox Television Best Drama Series Golden Globe winners American spy thriller television series American spy drama television series Multilingual television series Television series set in the 1980s