The original six-part political thriller is the first co-developed series under the wide-ranging, creative partnership between BBC Worldwide and AMC Networks, and will be distributed internationally by BBC Worldwide.

Starring opposite Sophie Okonedo (Criminal Justice, The Secret Life Of Bees, Hotel Rwanda) and Adrian Lester (Hustle, Red Band Society, London Spy, Primary Colors), Dennis Haysbert plays Rudy Jones – a man who has been on Death Row for 20 years, falsely imprisoned for murder. Maya (Okonedo) can only watch as her dearest friend and client refuses to go quietly, urging her to fight the deep-grained injustices that have tainted two decades of his life. Truths will emerge and Maya and Nick’s (Lester) lives will change forever.

Bold and gripping, Undercover takes on controversial and challenging issues that impact society on a global scale, with the narrative intercut over different decades, concurrently unfolding in both the US and UK. The new series follows Maya, who is about to become the first black Director of Public Prosecutions, the highest-ranking public prosecutor role in England. But just as Maya’s life comes under intense public scrutiny, she discovers that Nick, her husband and the father of her children, has been lying to her for years.

Twenty years ago, Nick was a fearless and dedicated undercover officer, infiltrating organisations considered a danger to society because of their political beliefs. Nick built himself a fake past, but now with his wife suspecting and his conscience killing him, his secret identity may end up compromising his wife’s new career.