SPY THRILLER HUNTED, FROM CREATOR AND WRITER FRANK SPOTNITZ,
STARRING MELISSA GEORGE, DEBUTS OCT. 19 ON CINEMAX
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Kudos Produces In Association With Big Light For CINEMAX And BBC One
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“If ignorant both of your enemy and yourself, you are certain to be in peril.”
– Sun Tzu

From “The X-Files” writer and producer Frank Spotnitz comes HUNTED, an eightepisode
drama series set in the world of international espionage. Golden Globe nominee
Melissa George (HBO?s “In Treatment”) stars as Sam Hunter, a skilled, gutsy operative
for Byzantium, a secretive private firm involved in global intelligence and espionage. After
surviving an attempt on her life that may have been orchestrated by members of her own
team, she returns to work, but doesn?t know who to trust. Shot on location in Europe, the
primetime suspense show debuts FRIDAY, OCT. 19 (10:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT) on
CINEMAX.

The cast of HUNTED also includes Adam Rayner (“Hawthorne,” “Dragon Age:
Redemption”), Stephen Dillane (HBO?s “Game of Thrones” and “John Adams”), Stephen
Campbell Moore (“The Bank Job,” “The History Boys”), Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje
(“Lost,” CINEMAX?s “Strike Back”), Morven Christie (“The Sinking of the Laconia”), Lex
Shrapnel (“Captain America: The First Avenger”), Indira Varma (“Human Target,” HBO?s
“Rome”), Dhaffer L?Abidine (“Sex and the City 2”) and Patrick Malahide (“Billy Elliot,”HBO?s “Five Days”).
In addition to Frank Spotnitz, who wrote four episodes and co-wrote another
episode, writers on the series include Simon Allen (“M.I. High”), Smita Bhide (“The Blue
Tower”) and Christian Spurrier (“MI-5”), who each wrote one episode, and Amira El Nemr
(“Luther”), who co-wrote one episode.

Directors for the series include SJ Clarkson (“Life on Mars”), Daniel Percival (coexecutive
producer of season one of the CINEMAX series “Strike Back”), James Strong
(“Downton Abbey”) and Alrick Riley (“MI-5”), each of whom directed two episodes.
The executive producers are Frank Spotnitz, Kudos? Alison Jackson, Jane
Featherstone and Stephen Garrett; Christopher Aird and Polly Hill executive produce for
BBC One; Eliza Mellor produces.

HUNTED is produced by Kudos Film & Television (“MI-5,” “Life on Mars”) in
association with Big Light Productions for CINEMAX and BBC One.

HUNTED marks the second recent original primetime series on CINEMAX,
following last year?s Emmy®-nominated hit action drama “Strike Back,” which was the first
original primetime series on the network in more than 15 years, and is currently in its
second season. The third original CINEMAX series to debut will be “Banshee,” which is
executive produced by Alan Ball (HBO?s “True Blood”) and slated to debut in Jan. 2013.

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION

HUNTED follows two primary story lines: Sam Hunter?s journey to discover who is
behind the attempt on her life and Byzantium?s mission itself, both of which have larger
implications. As the story unfolds, it becomes hard to tell the good guys from the bad
guys. Uncertain of its clients? motives, the Byzantium team often finds itself working in a
gray area, forcing Sam to operate in complete secrecy for her own safety.
Frank Spotnitz envisioned HUNTED as a complex international thriller, noting, “I
love the spy genre. It?s one of my all-time favorite things. I grew up watching so many spy
movies and shows. Because the viewing choices have never been greater on television,
no longer does the work have to be homogenized the way it used to. It has allowed
writers and producers to do really interesting, sophisticated work. I think that television?s
never been better than it is today because of that – because of the freedom you have as
a creator.”

As he researched the background for his characters, he was intrigued to find real
firms and people to inspire the show?s stories and people.

“I was working on the character of Sam and her moral complexity when I
discovered that there were all these private security firms,” Spotnitz reveals. “I didn?t know
that there are actually thousands of these private spy agencies around the world. They
draw their personnel largely from special forces and government spy agencies. They are
really interesting because their operatives aren?t told who their clients are, and I realized I
haven?t seen that before in movies or TV.

“I first met a woman who had worked for a private security firm. She is nothing like
Sam?s character, but in terms of her biography, she is pretty much like Sam, and has
done the kind of work that Sam does. She?s a very attractive young woman who worked
for the British government and then worked for a private security firm after serving in
Afghanistan. After that, I met a number of operatives from different security firms in
London.”

“You don?t want to cross Sam,” says Melissa George of her character. “She is still
the firm?s best operative, but since the attempt on her life, any trust she had for the firm
and her co-workers is gone. That is why she is so determined to go back to work and face
her team – she really believes that one of them is behind it. She is a very complicated
person and not easy to get to know.”

Sam?s troubled childhood not only figures into the mystery of the series, but is key
to understanding George?s portrayal of her character. Spotnitz observes, “What happened
to her as a child has helped make her who she is, and that has made her very good at
what she does. You have to believe she has that strength, you have to believe she has
that intelligence, and you have to believe she is beautiful enough to be the type of woman
that could go and seduce these men.”

Embodying both strength and vulnerability, Sam is a contradiction. These
characteristics make her an asset to the team, allowing her the flexibility to maneuver
within her missions and adapt to the circumstances she encounters.

George underwent rigorous physical training for the role, including instruction in
martial arts techniques used for hand-to-hand combat, weapons disarming and highimpact
blows. She learned the Keysi fighting method, which focuses on self-defense by
studying natural instincts and evolving modern urban environments, and was previously
showcased in the feature film “The Bourne Supremacy.”

“The training for HUNTED was the hardest thing I think I will ever experience,”
George recounts. “Frank was adamant on having an actress who will go the distance and
fight for real – if I couldn?t physically do it, we wouldn?t shoot it. I learned Keysi, a
technique of realistic street fighting that employs moves that are very basic, but deadly. I
have never in my life felt more adrenaline than when we do the fight scenes. I don?t sleep
the night before, and I?m anxious to make Sam as skilled as she is written on the page.
For the first time, I forgot about me and was purely fighting for my life as Sam. I don?t
want to be an actress for hire and pretend; Sam is so wonderfully layered and deserves
whoever portrays her to do her justice. I think I actually want to be her.”
She continues, “When the trauma of her past resurfaces, it sends her down a
certain path. In many ways, she identifies with Eddie, the child she is tutoring in her
mission. Because of their similar experiences, he has a huge effect on her that she wasn?t
anticipating. She struggles with caring too much, which can be a liability in her business.”
From the top operative who can make or break a mission and the team leader
whose personal life is in sharp contrast to his work life, to the boss who has no trouble
reconciling his missions with the goals of his questionable clients and the new member
who is less comfortable with the morally ambiguous situations they face, the characters
on HUNTED offer different perspectives on the story.

“Each member of the team has a distinct point of view about what they do,”
Spotnitz explains. “The boss, Rupert Keel, refuses to judge his clients, thereby avoiding
any morality associated with it. New team member Ian Fowkes is somewhat like us,
discovering the true nature of the work bit-by-bit. He calls certain things into question, like
many of us would.”

For more on the series, please visit facebook.com/huntedmax, twitter.com
@Cinemax #Hunted and youtube.com/Cinemax.

October?s episodes:
Episode #1: “Mort”
Debut date: FRIDAY, OCT. 19 (10:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT)
Other CINEMAX playdates: Oct. 19 (11:00 p.m., midnight), 20 (9:00 p.m., 11:50
p.m.), 21 (12:45 p.m., 11:00 p.m.), 22 (11:50 p.m.), 23 (12:20 a.m.), 24 (8:00 p.m.) and 31
(7:00 p.m.), and Nov. 7 (6:00 p.m.), 14 (5:00 p.m.), 21 (4:00 p.m.) and 28 (3:00 p.m.)
Sam Hunter (Melissa George), an operative for the elite private intelligence and
security firm Byzantium, is finishing a mission in Tangier when an attempt on her life
leaves her critically injured. Not knowing who tried to kill her, she disappears to a remote
location to recover, regroup and retrain. Returning to work unannounced nearly a year
later, Sam surprises her co-workers, who are suspicious about her disappearance,
especially Aidan Marsh (Adam Rayner), her secret lover. Her bosses, Rupert Keel
(Stephen Dillane) and Deacon Crane (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), retain doubts about
her, but need their best agent for an important new assignment. The team devises a plan
to have Sam infiltrate a family headed by powerful millionaire Jack Turner (Patrick
Malahide), a man with a criminal past whose ambitions are at odds with Byzantium?s
secret client.
Written by Frank Spotnitz; directed by SJ Clarkson.

Episode #2: “LB”
Debut date: FRIDAY, OCT. 26 (10:00-11:00 p.m.)
Other CINEMAX playdates: Oct. 26 (11:30 p.m.), 27 (9:00 p.m., 11:45 p.m.), 28
(12:45 p.m.), 29 (11:40 p.m.), 30 (1:15 a.m.) and 31 (8:00 p.m.), and Nov. 7 (7:00 p.m.),
14 (6:00 p.m.), 21 (5:00 p.m.) and 28 (4:00 p.m.)
Brought into the household by Turner?s son Stephen (Stephen Campbell Moore) to
tutor his son Edward (Oscar Kennedy), Sam and the team continue surveillance of Jack
Turner?s secret activities. They know that he is bidding for a multi-billion dollar dam in
Pakistan, but his true motives elude them. Meanwhile, team members Zoe Morgan
(Morven Christie) and Ian Fowkes (Lex Shrapnel) track a briefcase that was delivered to
Turner.
Written by Frank Spotnitz; directed by SJ Clarkson.

BIOS
Frank Spotnitz (creator, executive producer, writer) wrote 48 episodes, produced
more than 120 episodes and directed two episodes of the landmark series “The X-Files,”
receiving three Emmy® nominations and winning three Golden Globes for Best Drama
Series. His other TV series include “Millennium,” “The Lone Gunmen,” “Harsh Realm,”
“Robbery Homicide Division” and “Night Stalker.” He was also a co-writer and producer on
both “X-Files” feature films. He recently wrote four episodes and co-executive produced
ten episodes of CINEMAX?s primetime hit action drama series “Strike Back.”

Melissa George (Sam Hunter) was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for the
first season of the acclaimed HBO series “In Treatment,” in which she starred with Gabriel
Byrne. She also starred in the BBC series “The Slap,” which was nominated for a BAFTA
Award, the British comedy “Swinging” and the Toronto After Dark Film Festival award
winner “A Lonely Place to Die.” Her other credits include “30 Days of Night,” “Down with
Love,” “The Limey,” “The Music Within,” “The Amityville Horror,” “Derailed,” “Turistas,”
“Dark City,” “Mulholland Drive,” “Alias” and “Grey?s Anatomy.”

As an entrepreneur, George developed and marketed the revolutionary product
Hemming My Way, which assists in hemming garments without sewing by employing
NASA technology and is sold in 21 countries. Fluent in Spanish, the Australian actress
now makes her home in New York, Buenos Aires and Paris. She won multiple awards as
a champion roller skater, including the Australian national championship title.

Adam Rayner (Aidan Marsh) began his career on the London stage, most notably
in the Royal Shakespeare Company and in the American play “This Is Our Life,” where he
took over Matt Damon?s role. His TV credits include “Hawthorne,” “Mistresses” and
“Dragon Age: Redemption.”

Stephen Dillane?s (Rupert Keel) extensive theater work includes “Hamlet” and “The
Real Thing,” for which he won a Tony Award. He recently portrayed Stannis Baratheon in
season two of HBO?s “Game of Thrones,” and was nominated for an Emmy® Award for
his portrayal of Thomas Jefferson in the Emmy®-winning HBO miniseries “John Adams.”
Dillane?s other credits include “The Hours,” “Goal! The Dream Begins,” “Spy Game,”
“Welcome to Sarajevo,” “King Arthur” and the upcoming UK series “Coup.”

Stephen Campbell Moore (Stephen Turner) appeared in the Alan Bennett play
“The History Boys” and the film adaptation of the same name. He was also seen in
“Season of the Witch,” “The Bank Job” and the recent miniseries “Titanic.”
Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Deacon Crane) is best known for his portrayals of Mr.
Eko on “Lost” and Adebisi on the HBO series “Oz.” His other credits include “Killer Elite,”
“The Thing,” “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra,” “The Bourne Identity,” “Best Laid Plans,”
“Unstoppable” and “The Mummy Returns.” He portrayed the warlord Tahir on the
CINEMAX series “Strike Back.”

Morven Christie (Zoe Morgan) played Juliet in “Romeo and Juliet” and Hero in
“Much Ado About Nothing” for the Royal Shakespeare Company. Her TV credits include
the BAFTA-nominated “The Sinking of the Laconia,” plus “Monday Monday” and the
acclaimed comedy series “Twenty Twelve.”

Lex Shrapnel (Ian Fowkes) portrayed Gilmore Hodge in the blockbuster “Captain
America: The First Avenger,” and appeared alongside Harrison Ford in “K-19: The
Widowmaker.” His other credits include “Flyboys,” “Minder” and the popular UK series
“Holby City.”

Indira Varma (Natalie Thorpe) recently starred as Zoe Luther in the acclaimed
series “Luther” and as Lisa Pucci in “Human Target.” Her other credits include “Hustle,”
“Silk,” “World Without End,” “The Whistleblowers” and HBO?s “Rome.”

Dhaffer L?Abidine (Bernard Faroux) is a former professional soccer player and was
host of the popular Middle Eastern talent show “Prince of Poets.” His acting credits
include “Sex and the City 2,” “Casualty” and “MI-5.”

Patrick Malahide (Jack Turner) recently appeared as Balon Greyjoy in season two
of HBO?s “Game of Thrones.” His other credits include “Billy Elliot,” “Law and Order: UK”
“Brideshead Revisited,” the HBO miniseries “Elizabeth I” and “Five Days” and HBO Films?
“Into the Storm.”