SXSW London 2025 – Deep Cover ★★★★

Released: 12 June 2025 (Amazon Prime)

Director: Tom Kingsley

Starring: Bryce Dallas Howard, Orlando Bloom, Nick Mohammed, Sean Bean, Paddy Considine, Sonoya Mizuno and Ian McShane

It’s rare that a big screen British comedy will come along and have audiences audibly laughing out loud throughout, but crime caper Deep Cover, directed by Stath Lets Flats helmer Tom Kingsley and produced by Jurassic World director Colin Trevorrow, did exactly that at its world premiere at the inaugural SXSW London Festival. With an impressive star-studded cast, a hilarious premise based on a bonkers real-life case and gritty action shot on location in London, this Prime Video offering certainly has plenty of bang for its buck – and certain sequences are guaranteed to make you giggle!

Deep Cover follows three down and out improv performers – awkward office worker Hugh (Nick Mohammed), intense and washed up method actor Marlon (Orlando Bloom) and frustrated improv comedy teacher Kat (Bryce Dallas Howard) – who find themselves recruited by police officer Billings (Sean Bean) to go undercover in low-level stings to help bust London’s criminal gangs. However, their commitment to the key rules of improv – namely to “always say yes” without breaking character – leads the trio deeper inside the criminal underworld than ever expected, as they find themselves embroiled in a number of sticky situations.

With an absolutely ludicrous plot (think Line of Duty meets Hot Fuzz) and an eclectic leading trio – with Bloom especially playing against type – on paper, Deep Cover really shouldn’t work. And yet, it 100% does, thanks to the genuine chemistry, comedic timing and commitment of the leading line up. The brilliant script from Ben Ashenden and Alexander Owen (aka British comedy duo The Pin), based on a real-life New York police operation, goes a mile a minute, and is packed with plenty of undercover hijinks, hilariously bonkers twists and amusingly self-referential comedy. Offering a blend of humour, high stakes action and crime, with surprisingly good set pieces, there’s plenty for audiences to enjoy, even if the outlandish plot does become somewhat predictable as it veers into its absurd climactic showdown.

The outlandish crime caper wouldn’t work without the excellent chemistry and energy from Bloom, Dallas Howard and Mohammed. The trio are a true delight, with Orlando Bloom proving a comedic revelation. Known primarily for his leading roles in action blockbusters, he brings bags of hilarious self-referential humour – think Jason Statham in Paul Feig’s excellent comedy Spy – as the washed up method actor who increasingly commits to his undercover character. The Lord of the Rings actor often steals the show with his hilarious skits and improvisations while in increasingly dangerous situations. Ted Lasso’s Nick Mohammed – who has the most comedy experience with his alter ego Mr. Swallow – is also a hoot, particularly as his character (amusingly nicknamed The Squire) ends up having to do three lines of cocaine in front of a criminal gang as a test. The charm of the trio certainly draws you in into their increasingly absurd journey, with a surprisingly endearing friendship forming.

Furthermore, Sean Bean and Paddy Considine are tremendously good sports, leading an envious supporting cast. The former channels the exasperated vibe of Slow Horses’ Jackson Lamb, while Considine is clearly having a blast as a crooked criminal with a heart.

Kingsley, with the help of experienced blockbuster director Colin Trevorrow, shot the film as a dramatic crime thriller as opposed to a comedy, and it certainly pays off. It’s visually gritty with a raft of surprisingly excellent action set pieces, ranging from the opening motorbike and car chase sequence, to the outlandish climactic shoot out. Shooting on location from Shoreditch to Barking in London, there’s an authenticity to the film, which certainly lends itself to the growing stakes. One particular scene is a real standout, as a drug purchase goes wrong and the trio find themselves trying to escape a sprawling maze of a housing estate, to hilarious ends. This really is a comedy of errors, with some slapstick comedy thrown in for good measure.

A riotously funny crowd-pleaser and a rare gem of an action comedy, Deep Cover is one of the best British outings since Hot Fuzz. The campaign for more Orlando Bloom-led comedies starts now! It’s just a shame that it isn’t getting a cinematic release, instead relegated to streaming service Prime Video.