David Fleming interview: ‘Mr. and Mrs. Smith’ composer

“The primary thing when I talked to Donald Glover at the start of this was, he said that the show is about trust,” reveals”Mr. and Mrs. Smith” composer David Fleming. For our recent webchat he adds, “trusting your professional partner, trusting your romantic partner; it really was trying to tell those two stories, of their relationship as spies and their blossoming romance as one story and the music had to serve both purposes.” We talked with Fleming as part of Gold Derby’s special “Meet the Experts” Q&A event with 2024 awards contenders. Watch our exclusive video interview above.

SEE Exclusive Video Interview: Carmen Cuba (‘Mr. and Mrs. Smith’ casting director)

“Mr. and Mrs. Smith” was created by Francesca Sloane and Emmy winner Donald Glover (“Atlanta”), who also stars in the series alongside Maya Erskine (“PEN15”) as the eponymous John and Jane Smith. The eight-episode spy drama opens with the duo meeting for the first time and shacking up as an undercover married couple after they sign up to be secret agents for a mysterious organization. They must work through missions as their espionage skills and developing relationship are put to the test. Inspired by the 2005 film of the same name, the Amazon Prime Video drama boasts a star-studded list of guest stars, including Sarah Paulson, Paul Dano, Michaela Coel, Sharon Horgan, John Turturro, Ron Perlman, Alexander Skarsgard, Eiza Gonzalez, Wagner Moura and Parker Posey.

“When starting a relationship, there’s always an element element of espionage anyway, because there’s things about yourself that you’re holding back and you’re not quite sure what you’re getting on the other side,” Fleming explains. “As another person unfolds, the relationship deepens. The same thing happens in the show where they’re trying to figure each other out. There’s so much that they’re holding back about themselves and it takes a while for them to get on the same page, which was really interesting. I think it’s relatable too that they’re not a practiced super-cool spy team. They are just making it work and flying by the seat of their pants. I think there was something really relatable and refreshing about that.”