Is The Diplomat based on a true story?

❘ Published: 2023-05-05T15:47:47

Netflix

Is The Diplomat based on a true story? The new political drama series has topped the charts on Netflix, but is it based on real events?

The Diplomat stars Keri Russell – best known for her role in The Americans – as a newly appointed US Ambassador in the UK, described as “a high-profile job she’s unsuited for, with tectonic implications for her marriage and her political future.”

The show comes from showrunner Deborah Cahn, a writer-producer who rose to prominence working on the later seasons of The West Wing and Homeland.

With The Diplomat reaching number one on the top 10 chart on Netflix, and more and more viewers set binging it this week, you may be wondering: is The Diplomat based on a true story?

Is The Diplomat based on a true story?

No, The Diplomat is an original fictional story – however, the show’s creator took inspiration from her earlier research and conversations with real-life figures on Homeland.

In a press release, Cahn said: “When I was working on Homeland, we met with an incredible array of experts from the policy world, the military, the CIA, journalists.

“And we had a number of ambassadors come through. The stories they told were breathtaking. They go to every war zone, every crisis zone that’s about to erupt into a war zone. The Foreign Service is the first in and the last out of every disaster in the world, and nobody knows who they are or what they do.”

From there, Cahn weaved in “the idea of couples who work together… there are a lot of ‘tandem
couples; in the Foreign Service.”

“They meet at work; they’re passionate about what they do, and become equally passionate about each other; and so they decide to spend their lives together,” she continued.

“It’s romantic and exciting and intense. But 10, 15 years later, you’re in a situation where the person you love most is also somebody you’re competing with all the time.”

The Diplomat is streaming on Netflix now. You can find out more about the show’s cast here. And check out other other Netflix hubs below: