The Americans star Matthew Rhys excitedly discusses the possibility of reviving the hit spy drama. Along with Keri Russell, Rhys led The Americans for six seasons on FX. Set during the Cold War, the show focused on Elizabeth (Russell) and Philip Jennings (Rhys) as two Soviet KGB intelligence officers and how they lived their lives undercover as American parents. Even though the story came to a definitive end in 2018, the actors and the creative team have occasionally been asked about possibly bringing back the Emmy-winning thriller.
In an interview on Perry Mason season 2, Rhys is asked about returning to The Americans. The actor starts off by mentioning that the group behind The Americans is planning to get together to celebrate the fact it's been a decade since the series first debuted. Rhys goes on to talk about the ending, explaining how it's "incredibly open-ended" and how that could allow for more stories to be told:
Yeah, funny enough… we’re having the whole team of us, including the writing side, and we’re all having a dinner very soon. Because we’re celebrating ten years. And we joke about doing a two-hour special where we close out or we go back to see where they all are, ten years on. I’m all in for it because as conclusive as it was, it’s incredibly open-ended as well because they abandoned the children. They had to, you know, they head to Moscow. You have absolutely no idea of what’s gonna happen.
Elizabeth & Philip Should Return To The Americans (But Not As The Main Characters)
There's a place for Rhys and Russell to return for an Americans revival, but they shouldn't be the main characters. Instead, the follow-up project should occur in the present-day or something close to it. There could be flashbacks to Elizabeth and Philip, and references to their story, but their arc already came to a devastating end. They returned to Moscow, and it cost them their children. To bring them back, and make them the focus, does a lot to cheapen the questions raised by the last episode.
Unlike a lot of reboots and revivals, there is real-life precedent that could make the potential Americans revival an interesting prospect. The writers could lean into that or away from it, perhaps charting their own largely fictional history. The benefit of that is it could appeal to viewers who are invested in a pulpy spy narrative, without needing to contend with real-world implications.
The alternative history approach worked for a show like For All Mankind on Apple TV+, earning it lots of praise, and it could work for The Americans. The approach of bringing in new undercover spies and finding interesting ways to involve Rhys and Russell, who have been married since 2021, could be a good foundation for the series. Short of that, the Cocaine Bear reunion will have to suffice.
Source: The Rich Eisen Show