Agent Of Change

STRATTON I Never mind Bond or Bourne… there’s a new spy in town.

Aside-street in London’s Stratford is today playing host to Stratton, the new British action-thriller from Simon West. A navy Jaguar is being readied for a crunch scene in the tense final act – as a terrorist cell is hunted down by MI6. Leading the charge is Dominic Cooper, playing the titular member of the SBS (Special Boat Service), a little-known part of the British intelligence services.

It was this that attracted West, who explains all in between takes. “The British public know about the SAS but this is about the SBS, which is much more secretive,” he says, as his tanned LA agent – in town for a visit – glides by. More able to blend in, the real SBS specialise in diving and climbing – which may account for why West calls Stratton an “all-rounder”.

The director’s own mission was not just to highlight unsung SBS heroes, however. “I was looking for a new British action hero,” he says. “We’ve got Bond – he’s like a bit of architecture now. He’s like Big Ben. You’re never going to move that. And I’ve always been a fan of that kind of movie. And there’s Bourne out there and Mission: Impossible. But I felt there was a real need for a new British action hero.”

With Cooper having just shot a thrilling speedboat chase up the River

Thames, this afternoon sees his co-stars Gemma Chan and Tom Felton on set in a race against time. Well, almost. With the Jag mounted on a low-loader, it’s all fake driving. “I’ve had a bit of heckling from the locals,” laughs the elegantly attired Humans star Chan. “She’s not really driving!”

The vehicular action might be an illusion here, but Stratton is packed with stunts, as you might expect from the director of Con Air.

Cooper was particularly keen to do his own action, says West. “These actors love it. They spend so much of their time in their heads, with all this cerebral stuff, you give them a load of big toys and they can be a kid again.”

ETA | 1 SEPTEMBER / STRATTON OPENS THIS AUTUMN.