Complicit (2013)

Interesting facts

• Filmed in: Morocco

Complicit is a 2013 British television film, produced by Many Rivers Films for Channel 4. It was directed by Niall MacCormick, written by Guy Hibbert, and produced by Jolyon Symonds and Kevin Toolis. David Oyelowo plays an MI5 officer who travels to Egypt to question a young man he believes is planning a terrorist attack using ricin.

Production

The genesis of the film was an idea by producer Kevin Toolis, prompted by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's denial that British intelligence were involved or complicit in conducting torture in other countries. He began to research the topic of torture, and in 2010, joined with screenwriter Guy Hibbert to continue research and draft a script.

The film was shot in May and June 2012 in London and Morocco (which doubled for the film's Egypt setting). Toolis was keen to film in Egypt itself, but acknowledged that the country's political turmoil in 2012, as well as the nature of the film's content regarding the conduct of Egyptian intelligence services, made filming there impractical or even dangerous.

Actor David Oyelowo had previously played an MI5 officer, Danny Hunter, in the BBC drama series Spooks. He told the Radio Times when he signed on for Complicit that he did not want to do a "film version of Spooks", and that he considered Complicit to be a far more realistic depiction of an intelligence officer's work than his previous role, which he described as "James Bond for the telly".

Actor Arsher Ali took a 'method acting' approach to his role and as a result, he did not speak to David Oyelowo between takes so as not to break character.

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