Emilia Clarke is set for a lead role in the espionage thriller “Ponies,” which has been ordered straight to series at Peacock.
The series hails from co-creators Susanna Fogel (“The Flight Attendant,” “The Spy Who Dumped Me”) and David Iserson, with Clarke set to executive produce in addition to starring.
The official description for the series states:
“Moscow, 1977. Two ‘PONIES’ (‘persons of no interest’ in intelligence speak) work anonymously as secretaries in the American Embassy. That is until their husbands are killed under mysterious circumstances in the USSR, and the pair become CIA operatives. Bea (Clarke) is an over-educated, Russian-speaking child of Soviet immigrants. Her cohort, Twila, is a small-town girl who is as abrasive as she is fearless. Together, they work to uncover a vast Cold War conspiracy and solve the mystery that made them widows in the first place.”
Fogel will also direct for the series, while Iserson will serve as showrunner. Jessica Rhoades executive produces under her Pacesetter Productions banner. Pacesetter’s Alison Mo Massey will co-executive produce along with Katherine Bridle. Universal Television will produce.
This is the second TV role Clarke has lined up in recent months. Variety exclusively reported in July that the “Game of Thrones” alum would also star in the upcoming Amazon series “Criminal.” She is of course best known for playing Daenerys Targaryen in the megahit HBO series “Game of Thrones” throughout its eight season run, receiving four Emmy Award nominations in the process. Her other recent TV credits include the Marvel-Disney+ series “Secret Invasion.” Clarke’s film credits include “Me Before You,” “Last Christmas,” “The Pod Generation,” “Solo: A Star Wars Story,” and “Terminator Genisys.” She made her West End debut in 2022 in Anya Reiss’ adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s “The Seagull.”
She is repped by CAA, Range Media Partners, Hamilton Hodell, Narrative, Hansen, Jacobson. Fogel is repped by UTA and Felker Toczek. Iserson is repped by UTA, 3 Arts Entertainment, and Hansen Jacobson.
“Ponies” is now the second espionage thriller series that Peacock has commissioned this year. The NBCUniversal streamer previously ordered an untitled spy project starring Simu Liu from executive producer James Wan.
