(Photo: AMC Networks)
Premiering today on Sundance Now and AMC+, Ten Percent is a new ensemble comedy series that's both very funny and unexpectedly touching. Written by W1A creator John Morton based on the cult French show Call My Agent!, it follows the chaotic goings-on at fictional London talent agency Nightingale Hart. Sometimes things get pretty messy in this office, but the agents always stay loyal to clients including Helena Bonham Carter, Dominic West, and Kelly Macdonald, who all cameo as fictionalized versions of themselves. 
Nightingale Hart is led by Stella (Maggie Steed) and Jonathan (Jack Davenport), who preside over a motley crew of agents that includes laser-focused Rebecca (Lydia Leonard) and fundamentally well-meaning Dan (Prasanna Puwanarajah). Here, Leonard and Puwanarajah discuss the show's distinctive tone and the way its characters develop in future episodes.
Even though it's based on a French show, Ten Percent has a very British feel to it. Why do you think that is?
Prasanna Puwanarajah: Yes, I think there's a sort of shambles to it. That sort of studied, curated shambles which is this country, in a way. I think it really does feel like it's authored in the context of these islands and the nature of the [entertainment] business on these islands. But I also think it has a humor that's closely linked with tragedy and sadness, which is very British in rhythm. 
Lydia Leonard: And then later on in the series, we see the relationship between our London agency and some agents on the West Coast [of America]. The friction between these very different types of people, all trying to work together, definitely leads to a lot of comedy.
Rebecca and Dan approach their jobs very differently. What are their respective motivations?
Prasanna Puwanarajah: How can I break it down? They're different in every single way! Dan is like a sheep in wolf's clothing. He's not there for the deal and he's not there for the hustle. He's there for building bespoke relationships with actors he completely adores. He could probably talk any actor down from a state of tension. But I think there's something about the machinery of this business that isn't really his flavor, you know?
Lydia Leonard: Rebecca is good at her job. I mean, I wish she was my agent! She's from a military background and you see that in the way she operates. She's very, very ambitious for herself and for her clients, but less good, perhaps, at diplomacy within the office environment. She has a bit of a temper because she cares so much and that doesn't always make her the easiest person to deal with. 

How much of their personal lives do we see as the series progresses?
Prasanna Puwanarajah: Oh, quite a bit. This show really is about the lives of these agents and how they support each other... or don't. Lydia and I always felt that Dan and Rebecca have quite a lovely, close, sibling-style relationship.
Lydia Leonard: Outside of work, especially. 
Prasanna Puwanarajah: Like, neither of them is on the other's patch; at work, they're circles on the Venn diagram that basically don't intersect. And so what you see as the series progresses is not only their personal lives outside the agency, but how those lives alter and grow the relationships within the agency as well. It really does become about their growth as people while you've got this kind of dramatic engine under it, which is, you know, the panicking actor of the week.
Talking of which, was it quite surreal when someone like Helena Bonham Carter arrived on set to play a fictionalized version of themselves?
Lydia Leonard: Very surreal and very wonderful, particularly Helena Bonham Carter, who was absolutely magic. I'm completely in love with her. But in that same episode with Helena, we also have Olivia Williams, who's a good friend of Jack Davenport's from drama school. So Jack had this very strange situation where he was acting with someone he knows who was playing herself when he wasn't playing himself. But it was really exciting as well, particularly because we didn't know [which guest actor] was appearing in each episode until quite late on because of schedules and things. 
Prasanna Puwanarajah: For me, there was this weird thing where I almost didn't feel like I was looking at another actor. Actually, at times I found it clearer to think: 'Oh, I'm just talking to Kelly Macdonald, or I'm just talking to David Harewood.' You know, if acting is sort of about inventing as little as possible, while actually you invent everything, this was really a very unique situation and a wonderful thing to try.
Sundance Now and AMC+ exclusively premiere the first two episodes of Ten Percent today (Friday, April 29) with one new episode following weekly on Fridays. An encore airing of the first episode will debut linearly on BBC America Sunday, May 1 at 10pm EST with one episode weekly thereafter.