Mini-series launched recently, The spies of terror will deliver its verdict this evening on M6. Based on the eponymous book Matthieu Suc, published by Editions Harper Collins in 2018, this fiction takes us into the daily life of the French secret services, in the aftermath of the attacks. But were the characters of Rachida Brakni, Fleur Geffrier, Vincent Elbaz, Pierre Perrier or even Louis Do de Lencquesaing inspired by real people involved in tracking down terrorists?
The spies of terror : a daring series imbued with reality
In a note of intent published by M6, Franck Philippon, the author and creator of the series, returned to the genesis of the Spies of Terror. How can we make this fiction realistic and stick very closely to the daily lives of French secret service agents? Here, it's very simple, he was able to count on the author of the original book, Matthieu Suc, but also on several consultants, former and current employees of the French services. A perfect working base for creating characters invented from scratch… as if inspired by very real individuals! Thus, the source exploited by the spies in the series, the “Minotaur”has very real roots: “To account for the extent of the painstaking work of the anti-terrorist services, we also had to restore their feeling of helplessness the day after the 13th in the face of the chaos of reality, their rage to defeat and prevent any new attack while throughout the year that followed, or their doubts in the face of the fragile human management of a source with inherently dubious reliability — our “Minotaur”, inspired by several existing sources, one of which in particular had a role crucial in 2016, but whose life we had to fictionalize to protect it from any risk of identification…”
The spies of terror : invented characters and others a little less…
Obviously, it was also a question for Franck Philippon “to invent purely fictional characters” to complete this restitution of reality that he judges “point list”. Best embody the “the obsessive priesthood” of the “authentic agents of the DGSI and the DGSE”here is the mission of the series and its casting: “Beyond the relentless realism of the facts, it is this strength of character and this sense of commitment that we wanted to tell. This series is dedicated to our anti-terrorist services, as it is to the victims of the attacks. “
