Richard Jenkins’ career is not over now that he hit the age of 70.
On the contrary, it’s picking up! In the new EPIX original series “Berlin Station”, Jenkins plays Steven Frost who is heading up the Berlin office of the CIA. And his character is not only a desk jockey … Jenkins has several intimate partners. This man gets a lot of bedroom action.
“The venues now and the material is amazing, and it’s changed so fast,” the actor admitted to the media about his evolving career. “And I’ve been incredibly fortunate to fall into ‘Olive Kitteridge,’ (2014 miniseries) [and]fall into ‘Berlin Station.’ And to read these pieces, and it’s like, ‘Wow, this is really great.’ Luck has a big part of it, but what can I say?” This is a man who really appreciates his life and his work.
Jenkins had a breakout role in the 2001-2005 series “Six Feet Under” and has appeared in a variety of films including the Jennifer Aniston 2005 comedy “Rumor Has It,” and dozens of other films, however never as the “leading man” type. He has been a solid actor who is still doing what he loves.
“Berlin Station” is a story of espionage. The core is a “Snowden-type” whistleblower who is outing CIA agents. Jenkins revealed, “We live in that world through the script, and you start not to trust anybody. I mean, that’s the thing that really was amazing for me is that I’m telling this guy something. Should I be telling him this? I don’t know how they do it. I don’t understand how you live your life as a spy and then live your life. And we did meet a couple of CIA people there, who are just these folks who have jobs that happen to be CIA agents, but you know that it’s so much more than that. It’s a fascinating predicament to be in.”
For Jenkins, the world of espionage is a difficult road to maneuver. The show looks at the personal lives of the agents as well as their work lives, which sometimes cannot overlap but sometimes do. Who is the good guy? Who is the bad guy?
Since Berlin is a big part of the story, filming there was mandatory. Berlin – and Germany – is an interesting place. The country has welcomed refugees from the Middle East without any concern. However, as we now know, that policy has disrupted the lives of the Germans who are getting fed up with what is going on. By having a whistleblower in the show, not only are the lives of the agents in peril, but also the lives of the public. Sometimes secrets need to remain secret for the safety of the people.
“Berlin Station” is a serialized drama that needs to be seen from start to finish to get the whole story. It promises to be a thought-provoking series for viewers. The series premiers October 16 on EPIX.
