The latest spy series in town, True Lies has finally started airing its episodes after years of rumors. Created by Matt Nix, the show’s plot is more or less based off of the 1994 movie that goes by the same name. Revolving around Harry Tasker and his wife Helen tasker, True Lies is going to be a one-of-a-kind action-packed series that’ll get you excited with each new episode.
It was announced to be in production back in 2017 but had years of changes in its production team as well as the plot that it would follow. The producer of the show was first thought to be Rene Echevarria but then shifted to McG as a producer and Fox as the main airing platform. In 2021, Flying Glass Milk Production and CBS came together to finally develop a pilot for the spy series.
With Matt Nix as the writer and Anthony Hemingway as its director, True Lies finally premiered on television on March 1st, 2023. CBS had also announced the cast of the series, with that being Steve Howey as Harry and Ginger Gonzaga as Helen. The show is set to premiere episodes all over the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
Up until now, the show has received good reviews from critics. Although the show isn’t too impressive or on par with the movie, it offers dramatic elements and action scenes on a toned-down level. Not everything is going to be the same between True Lies and its movie inspiration. If you’re into adventure or spy series without any intense gore-filled fight scenes, then True Lies could just be the show for you.
True Lies: Cast of The Spy Series
Most of the cast members are well-known actors who have appeared in other American television shows. These include Steve Howey, Ginger Gonzaga, Omar Miller, and many others. A few famous actors including Tom Arnold from the original movie will be appearing as guests on the episodes of True Lies, making the series much more exciting to watch.
With a Scottish lineage, Steve was born and brought up in Texas. The first ever role he received was in the series Reba, a sitcom with Reba McEntire as the protagonist. He later starred in Supercross (K.C. Carlyle) and Bride Wars. Other examples of his work include Unleashed (Sam), Day Shift (Mike Nazarian), and Shameless (Kevin Ball).
The actress who plays the role of Helen, Ginger Gonzaga was born in Modesto and is an alumnus of the University of California. Her interest in acting began when she took improv classes right after college. Gonzaga’s first ever role in TV series was through the show The Morning After followed by Mixology that used to air on ABC. Her most widely known role in the present times would be as Nikki in She-Hulk: Attorney At Law. Examples of Ginger Gonzaga’s other works include Room 104 (Vicki), Champions (Dana), and Space Force (Anabela Ysidro-Campos).
Other actors we’ll be seeing in True Lies include Mike O’Gorman (Luther), Erica Hernandez (Maria), Anabella Didion (Dana Tasker), and Lucas Jaye (Jake). Throughout the show, actors like Carlo Rota, Beverly D’Angelo, Tom Arnold, Keith David, and Matthew Lillard will be appearing as guests. Since we’ll be seeing the couple Helen and Harry come across all kinds of international criminals as well as friends, these actors have been cast to play minor roles.
True Lies: What’s The Show About?
Similar to the plot that was seen in the movie, Harry Tasker works as a top-class agent in an intelligence agency that hires spies. Called the Omega Sector, this company is filled with the best of the kind who handle serious cases that could threaten the peace of the whole nation. Helen assumes her husband is a computer salesman as he stays away from home often on meetings and sales deals.
She starts growing tired of the monotonous life she lives with her kids and spends most of her time learning Tae Bo and Yoga. Seeing her husband away so often causes Helen to worry about their marriage. They start to become distant even when neither of them wants to lose the other person. To make things better, Harry decides to fly to Paris with Helen and give her the surprise of her lifetime. Once there, they go on a lovely dinner date but things get out of hand fast as the enemies figure out Harry’s location and attack him while on the date.
While he’s busy fighting off these men, some of them manage to corner his wife Helen. As oblivious as she was, Helen uses some of the moves she had been practicing during her Tae Bo classes. Her flexibility from performing Yoga every day comes in handy as well as she’s able to fight off the man just as easily as Harry. They escape the place and later Harry discloses his double life in front of his wife. Instead of worrying her, the thought of her husband being a secret spy makes her much more ecstatic.
Both of them reach the Omega Sector, where everyone praises Helen for her fighting skills. They offer her a position at the agency where she would have to work with Harry and accompany him on missions that were dangerous and required international travel. Since she was tired of her everyday life, this was exactly what Helen needed, and she agrees to join the US intelligence agency.
The story will continue with her experiencing this new chapter of life while also making sure that her kids don’t find out about their parents’ dangerous jobs. The relationship between Harry and Helen gets better over time as well, with both of them experiencing each problem together for the sake of their families as well as the safety of those around them.
True Lies: Episode Schedule
The number of episodes that True Lies will be having isn’t confirmed yet. New episodes of the CBS drama will be aired on Wednesdays, and each episode of this Steve Howey series can last about 60 minutes or more. The Release Dates of the episodes are:
- Episode 1: March 1st, 2023
- Episode 2: March 8th, 2023
- Episode 3: March 15th, 2023
- Episode 4: March 22nd, 2023
- Episode 5: March 29th, 2023
- Episode 6: April 5th, 2023
- Episode 7: April 12th, 2023
- Episode 8: April 19th, 2023
- Episode 9: April 26th, 2023
- Episode 10: May 3rd, 2023
- Episode 11: May 10th, 2023
- Episode 12: May 17th, 2023
- Episode 13: May 17th, 2023
The first few episodes will show Helen getting ahold of the job at the intelligence agency and managing to impress everyone with her skills. They trust her to perform well and assign her the first mission where she would have to go to an academic conference to prevent an attack that the agency had predicted. This would involve bioweapons so it’s necessary to stop the bad guys on time in Madrid.
Unbeknownst to Helen, the couple was accompanied by Ximena, a woman who has had a history with Harry. She was a cryptographer who was essential for the mission. In the third episode, we’ll be seeing Helen and Harry try to stop yet another weapon dealer from making a huge transaction. To do the mission successfully, the couple will have to go disguise themselves as one of the richest billionaires in the area. As exciting as the new life was for Helen, keeping up with the tasks while also taking care of her children will be having a toll on her mental health.
The fourth episode of True Lies will be featuring a much more serious case than any of the previous missions. A large-scale international disaster is broadcasted live on television across the country. Omega Sector manages to get more details on what was going on and decides to call upon one of their finest pawns, The Wolf, who was known to be a heartless assassin that only cares about the job that needs to be done.
True Lies: Streaming Guide
New episodes of the Steve Howey starring Spy series will be released on CBS at around 10:00 pm ET & 9:00 pm CT. If you miss the airing, you can head over to CBS’s website, Paramount+, or even streaming platforms like Amazon to watch the episodes on your devices.
True Lies will be aired in Canada on the same day as the US, and CTV will take up the broadcasting for Canadian audiences. The timing of release on CTV will be 10:00 pm ET/PT on Wednesdays. New Zealanders and Australians can watch True Lies at Disney+.
Also Read: 42 Spy Movies Like Jason Bourne for Fans of Action-Packed Thrillers
