Robert De Niro stars in his first major television role, as a respected former US president, George Mullen, who comes out of retirement to find the perpetrators of a devastating cyberattack in the limited series Zero Day. Photo: Supplied.
Zero Day is a political conspiracy thriller in which global intrigue becomes the main focus of attention. It stars the winner of two Academy Awards, Robert De Niro, in his first major television role.
De Niro (The Godfather Part II, Raging Bull, Taxi Driver) plays respected former US president George Mullen, who, as chairman of the Zero Day Commission, is charged with finding the perpetrators of a devastating cyberattack that caused chaos and thousands of fatalities across the country.
As Mullen searches for the truth, he is forced to confront his own dark secrets and hallucinations, risking everything he holds dear in his life. He begins to question what’s real. All the while, misinformation becomes widespread, and when personal aspirations of power brokers in government, technology and Wall Street crash, paranoia prevails.
While the drama quotient seizes you instantly, there are some convincing, elaborate themes that may not always consciously take shape. Nonetheless, we are swept along with feeling paranoid when it comes to political conspiracy theories. Before long, we are plunged in the direction of an unpredicted conclusion in the deadly act of cyberterrorism known as Zero Day.
Mullen is a popular former president, former prosecutor and Vietnam War veteran, who comes out of retirement to search for the truth in a world where facts have become subjective.
De Niro leads a star-studded cast. As President Evelyn Mitchell, played by Angela Bassett (What’s Love Got to Do with It, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever), points out, here is a woman who “gets business done”.
She is the incumbent president who appoints Mullen as head of the Zero Day Commission. Mitchell is a brilliant and perceptive political tactician who hires Mullen to take on an unprecedented role in American history.
Mitchell is quick to tell Mullen: “People will believe what they need to believe.”
As the US leader amid a crisis, President Mitchell walks the fine line of caring but “not flying too emotionally off the handle, because people have to believe in you and trust in you. You have to be clear-headed and focused, even when you don’t know [all the answers].”
Joan Allen (The Bourne Ultimatum, The Contender) is Sheila Mullen, former first lady and nominee to the federal bench. Elegant and always poised, Sheila is a supportive and present wife and mother with strong professional ambitions of her own – and she’s nobody’s fool.
Jesse Plemons (The Power of the Dog, Fargo) is Roger Carlson, George Mullen’s former aide. Carlson is now a trusted fixer and an unabashed hustler seeking a return to the national stage alongside Mullen.
Lizzy Caplan (Fleishman Is in Trouble, Fatal Attraction) is Alexandra Mullen, a young congressional representative from New York who’s worked hard to distance herself from her father’s political legacy and establish herself in her own right. She is intelligent, talented and tough.
Connie Britton (White Lotus, Friday Night Lights) is Valerie Whitesell, a savvy, intelligent political operative and Mullen’s former chief of staff (they have a history of emotional experiences!) who returns to public life to oversee Mullen’s new role back in the spotlight.
Matthew Modine (Stranger Things, Oppenheimer) is Richard Dreyer, a confident, colourful public figure. As the Speaker of the House, he’s an adept politician.
Bill Camp (News of the World, Sound of Freedom) is Jeremy Lasch, director of the CIA; finance billionaire is Robert Lyndon (Clark Gregg, Live by Night, Being the Ricardos); and Gaby Hoffmann (Wild, C’mon C’mon) takes on the role of tech billionaire Monica Kidder.
Zero Day asks the question on everyone’s mind: How do we find truth in a world in crisis, one seemingly torn apart by forces outside our control? In an era rife with connivance concepts and subterfuge, how many of those forces are of our own making – maybe even our own imagining?
De Niro appreciates that Mullen’s ethos is to just tell it straight.
“That’s the spine of my character in the show,” he said. “Don’t dodge anything. Don’t play games. Be honest about what’s going on so that the public knows what’s going on.”
At 81, De Niro still performs at a high level. The six-episode, tense miniseries also marks the actor’s first time executive producing a television series.
Zero Day, directed by Lesli Linka Glatter, is streaming on Netflix
