Though he’s best known for his work in cinema, creating the influential “Evil Dead” horror franchise and directing the Tobey Maguire “Spider-Man” movies, Sam Raimi has occasionally tried his hand at TV production. In 1997, for example, Raimi created the ABC series “Spy Game” alongside his ER doctor and screenwriter brother, Ivan Raimi, and TV producer John McNamara.
Set in the wake of the Soviet Union’s collapse, “Spy Game” explores the problems that arise when former spies, left with nothing to do, go rogue. Linden Ashby plays Lorne Cash, a retired secret agent who’s recruited by Max London (Allison Smith) of the Emergency Counter Hostilities Organization to help reel in these troublemaking spies. Max and Cash are an archetypal odd couple, as Max prefers her fancy gadgets and tech while Cash is more old-school in his approach to spycraft.
The series was clearly made in conversation with classic 1960s shows like “I Spy” and “The Avengers,” though it failed to reach the heights achieved by those shows. Variety called the series “loud, unoriginal and unimaginative,” while The Los Angeles Times described it as “really bad television on just about every level.” The end came quickly, and “Spy Game” was canceled after airing just three episodes.
Sam Raimi’s TV career was far from a total failure
Though “Spy Game” crashed and burned, Sam Raimi has had his hand in several successful TV shows over the years. In the mid-1990s, he created the short-lived superhero show “M.A.N.T.I.S.” and produced the horror series “American Gothic,” which featured Sarah Paulson in an early role. Around the same time, he produced “Hercules: The Legendary Journeys” and then helped develop and executive produce its more successful spinoff, “Xena: Warrior Princess.”
Raimi’s interest in Ancient Greek and Roman culture didn’t end there. The “Spider-Man” director helped create “Spartacus,” the beloved Starz series about gladiators and a slave revolt. His most recent TV creation was “Ash Vs. Evil Dead,” the Starz revival of the “Evil Dead” franchise, which he developed alongside his brother, Ivan Raimi. Ivan and Sam’s brother, Ted Raimi, starred in that series, in addition to appearing in other Raimi-backed projects like “Spider-Man” and “Xena: Warrior Princess.” “Spy Game” co-creator John McNamara has gone on to bigger and better things as well, co-creating the great dark academia series “The Magicians” and serving as an executive producer on “Physical.”
