Abhiroop Das
Helmed by Samanou Acheche Sahlstrøm and Kasper Barfoed, Netflix’s ‘The Asset,’ originally titled ‘Legenden,’ tells the story of Tea Lind, who joins hands with Danish intelligence in a covert operation against a mysterious drug lord named Miran Shahrani. Donning a new name and persona, Tea embeds herself in the social circle of Miran’s girlfriend, Ashley, but things don’t go as smoothly as planned. Before long, the covert agent unlocks a whole new dimension to the case, one that rests on the suffering that is silently endured by her target’s family. As Tea’s conviction begins to waver, she is left uncertain about which side of the equation she truly stands on. This Danish Spy Thriller series takes the conventions of its genre and reapproaches them from a deeply human perspective. While the game of chess between Tea and Miran rages on, her navigation through the complex dynamics takes center stage in the narrative.
The Asset is a Fictional Examination of the World of Espionage
‘The Asset’ is a fictional story penned by the show’s writing team, spearheaded by Samanou Acheche Sahlstrøm and Adam August. Sahlstrøm, who also co-directed the series, stated in a conversation with Netflix that he was drawn to this story because of its intricate explorations of identity and loyalty. He continued, saying that Tea’s journey tracks the extent to which a person can follow through on their belief in righteousness, even when the distinction between good and evil blurs. Sahlstrøm further revealed that he has always wanted to work on a crime series like ‘The Asset’, which sets its characters, their developments, and relationships with each other at the core of the narrative. In a clip shown at the Copenhagen TV Festival, the director approached the narrative from a different angle, framing it as a quest for identity that essentially addresses who we are, what we desire to be, and how others see us.
While the themes that the characters engage with in the show have a real-life grounding, the story itself is invented in nature and utilizes the style, structure, and tone of a crime thriller to add further intrigue to what is being depicted. Notably, the show’s title is similar to ABC’s ‘The Assets,’ which is also a spy thriller narrative. However, unlike the Danish series, this show dramatizes the story of Aldrich Ames, a real-life former CIA operative who was convicted of espionage. As such, the two shows are not linked in any manner, and the overlap in names likely comes from the meanings of the “asset” in the realm of espionage. Furthermore, ‘The Asset’ is likely a contemporary tale, tapping into the modern world’s anxieties through the lens of a covert operation. As such, the story uses its initial premise as a springboard for deeper inquiries into a variety of other social and familial concerns.
The Asset is Potentially Informed by Real-Life Cases of Drug Trafficking in Denmark
Given that ‘The Asset’ tackles the rising underworld drug trade in Denmark, there is a distinct possibility of real-life cases serving as reference points for the narrative. In the past few years, Denmark has seen its fair share of drug-related incidents, and the response by the law authorities has been swift in that matter. As per the Organized Crime and Corruption reporting project, a cross-border investigation supported by Eurojust found that between 2019 and 2024, Danish authorities convicted 69 perpetrators within the drug trafficking network. The staggering number reflects many untold stories of how the police apprehended the culprits, and it is likely that ‘The Asset’ is loosely inspired by a composite of these drug busts. However, the use of covert operations as a narrative device is likely a creative addition by the writers, with no direct real-life antecedents.
Over the course of the season, the PET becomes a binding element, not just supervising Tea Lind’s heroic pursuits as a covert agent, but also engineering many of the twists and turns. The PET, also known as the Danish Security and Intelligence Service, is a real agency in Denmark that focuses on national security. According to studies, certain special operations units of the PET have the authority to recruit civilians as undercover agents in order to infiltrate crime groups and extract information. Reportedly, in 2009, the HUMINT or Human Intelligence unit of the PET infiltrated a cocaine smuggling network that was bringing drugs from South America into Europe. While this case bears a striking resemblance to the one depicted in ‘The Asset,’ the similarities are largely superficial in nature. As such, it is more likely that the show developed its own rendition of PET based on real-life information, while still retaining a creative touch.
Read More: The Asset Ending Explained: Who Shot Tea?
