Tales of secret agents and conspiracies are becoming more popular on television. In recent months, fans have been treated to amazing shows like Black Doves, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, and The Agency (the American adaptation of the French thriller Le Bureau des Légendes), among others.

In film, the genre has always been popular. It began to flourish during the two World Wars, where counterintelligence was crucial in victories. Later, during the Cold War, spy work was essential in preventing another major global conflict. Even better, talented authors like Ian Fleming and John le Carré preferred the genre, so Hollywood and other film industries always had somewhere to look.

Ideally, spy tales need to play out for more minutes (or on more pages), for them to be intriguing, and in the age of streaming services, television has proved to be the perfect platform. Most importantly, today’s espionage stories aren’t monotonous. For example, in the 2000s, most ‘Secret Agent’ productions were linked to terrorism, stemming from 9/11. In the 2020s, spy shows cover several issues, allowing viewers to enjoy several unique years. Among the many new and continuing small-screen projects, The Day and the Jackal and The Night Agent have found a ton of mainstream success. But which of these two is better?

The Two Shows Cover Wildly Different Aspects of the Spy Business

Sky and Peacock’s The Day of the Jackal is a modern reimagining of Frederick Forsyth’s similarly titled 1971 novel. Played with steaming ferocity by English actor Eddie Redmayne, “The Jackal” is a loose cannon characterized by teeming meticulousness. A renowned assassin, he has no qualms about killing anyone who tries to get in his way. He uses various disguises to avoid getting caught, but he doesn’t stay in the shadows forever.

“The Jackal” catches the attention of MI6 firearms expert Bianca Pullman (Lashana Lynch) after he assassinates a far-right German politician with a record-distance sniper rifle shot. After that, the cat-and-mouse games begin.

A parallel plot involves The Jackal’s love life. He has a family tucked somewhere in Spain that he is eager to protect at all costs. Contrarily, the book concerns a professional assassin who is contracted by the OAS, a French dissident paramilitary organization, to assassinate the President of France.

Netflix’s The Night Agent, based on the 2019 novel by Matthew Quirk, follows Peter Sutherland (Gabriel Basso) who works for the FBI’s secret counterintelligence program known as Night Action. He starts on the graveyard shift in the White House’s basement, keeping his ear on a phone line that rarely rings. His boredom eventually ends when a young tech CEO calls the line, having discovered a major conspiracy that threatens the U.S. government. The development forces Peter to juggle between protecting the woman and uncovering the conspiracy.

Both The Day of the Jackal and The Night Agent have done incredible numbers. The former scored three million viewers in its first week, becoming the biggest Sky Original ever. In addition to that, the show has sold to more than 200 territories worldwide. At the 2024 Golden Globe Awards, it was nominated for Best Television Series – Drama and Best Actor for Eddie Redmayne.

The latter, on the other hand, became the third-most-viewed new series on Netflix in only its first four days. Within a month, it had become the streaming giant’s sixth-most-viewed series. On top of that, it has been nominated for various awards, notably Best Action Series, Limited Series, or Made-for-TV Movie at the Critics’ Choice Super Awards.

‘The Day of the Jackal’ Has a Precise ‘Hunter vs Hunted’ Tale

Most spy TV shows have the same format. A super agent (or a group of agents) takes on the evil people whose actions threaten world peace. The mission proves tough but they eventually succeed. In these shows, the central characters are the agents. Thankfully, The Day of the Jackal breaks the monotony by structuring most of the events around an assassin.

As is the case with most well-written shows, the viewer realizes the contract killer’s precarious mental state way before those close to him do, and as the proceedings play out, we sense the primal trepidation of a human time bomb just about to go off. So well-plotted is The Jackal that we find ourselves loving the assassin and hating Bianca. He is almost Bond-like. He drives expensive cars, outfoxes his enemies easily, and casts a romantic spell over women.

For the most part, it feels like the spies are interfering with “great work” yet they are the ones trying to do the right thing. It takes incredible writing to pull off this approach, so, in this way, the Sky series beats The Night Agent and many of its kind. Even better, the story is straightforward. We aren’t forced to bear witness as MI6 tries to solve a worldwide conspiracy. The rivalry is narrowed down to two characters: Bianca and The Jackal. Who will come out on top?

Beyond that, The Day of the Jackal keeps itself within the confines of realism. Everything that happens on the show looks like it could happen in real life. After all, there are multiple tales of criminals evading intelligence agencies for long periods, and, the Season 1 finale, though bittersweet, carts a ray of hope that feels natural and merited.

Most importantly, the show has superior performances. Lashana Lynch is familiar with this kind of material, having portrayed the newest Agent 007 in No Time to Die, so she looks very comfortable here. She makes us understand her character, a cynical, hardened spy who dedicates all her energy to pursuing a dangerous criminal, leaving behind a shaky, barren marriage.

Eddie Redmayne, on his part, is an Oscar winner, having bagged the trophy for his 2015 performance in The Theory of Everything. His weary face is perfect for the lead role, and his character’s expressions make words completely superfluous. “The Jackal” becomes ever more unhinged as his pretentious life crumbles around him, and Redmayne captures all this perfectly. It’s nice to see him show his range in a welcome departure from his usual drama roles.

Like a Globetrotting Agent, ‘The Night Agent’ Covers More Ground

The Night Agent was created by Shawn Ryan (best known for The Shield and SWAT). His forte is his feel for atmosphere and characterization, and on this occasion, he builds the Netflix series from a quiet, drab career drama to a riveting espionage thriller, especially once Amanda Warren steps into the picture as Peter’s overbearing handler.

This sure is a better option for those looking for a proper spy show. It features all the standard agency procedures we would expect. Cyber espionage? You got it. Shadowing? You got it. Plus, there is a major conspiracy that keeps us glued. The situation gets labyrinthine, but such a formula works well for these types of shows.

Gabriel Basso evokes an affecting combination of pluckiness and vulnerability as Peter. He plays the character as an empty soul who begins to discover his conscience through the circumstances he finds himself in. And Luciane Buccarian provides vital emotional relief as an overly eager yet curiously charming ordinary citizen caught up in the mix.

On top of that, the protagonist rises the ranks in a way that most agents do. At first, Peter comes off as an Average Joe. As the show progresses, he grows into a Jack Bauer type of agent, dispatching foes with ease, and getting himself out of all dangerous scenarios. Because of the character’s growth, the show gives us more action, making the Netflix series perfect even for viewers intrigued by espionage.

The Night Agent is, therefore, a perfect treat for casual TV viewers and those who miss intense, fast-paced shows. Evoking shades of 24 and Homeland, this dense, twisty saga screams for repeated viewings. It’s arguably more entertaining, but from an overall filmmaking standpoint, it doesn’t match up to The Day of the Jackal. The cinematography isn’t as great as that of the Sky series and neither is the acting. Despite that, it would be a crime for a genre lover to miss either of the two shows.

The Day of the Jackal is available to stream in the