This is Fresh Air, I'm Terry Gross. On Thursday, Netflix will begin streaming a new political drama called The

Diplomat, starring Carrie Russell and Rufus Suel. The show's creator was a writer on Homeland and

the West Wing. Our producer Sam Brigger spoke to Carrie Russell about the diplomat and her career.

Here's Sam. In the Diplomat, Carrie Russell stars as Kate Wiler, a career foreign service officer

with an excellent reputation for handling international crises, often behind the scenes.

Her husband, Hal, played by Rufus Suel, is also a diplomat and former ambassador,

whose heroic and sometimes rash behavior has embraced in certain halls of Washington and

cursed to others. Kate is preparing to go to Afghanistan when an attack on a British aircraft

off the coast of Iran to rails those plans. The White House calls her into the Oval Office.

Here's Russell as Kate Wiler, speaking to the president, played by Michael McKeon,

and his chief of staff Billy, played by Nana Mensa.

We don't have anyone in London right now. A bad time not to have anyone in London.

25 of their sailors get killed because Iran wants to send me a message.

We don't know it was Iran. Whoever it was, we need someone substantial to be the ambassador in London.

He'll be great. He's a great choice. I'm sorry. Hal, and you didn't have to ask me. We've

worked in different countries before. We're not talking about Hal.

You're experienced. You'd signal we're taking this extremely seriously.

You'd be at every funeral, every memorial. Sorry. I'm going to Kabul. We'll take care of that.

They'll love Hal in London. He's good at all that. It's not going to be Hal. Why not? Because he called

the Secretary of State a war criminal. I promised I wouldn't send him anywhere ever again.

I realize London has a ceremonial component to it, and you were ready to do more substance of work in Kabul.

I'm hoping to save a shred of what we spent 2400 American lives building. It feels substantive.

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