The concept of a married (real or fake) couple becoming spies was the subject of a 1996 television show called Mr. & Mrs. Smith starring Scott Bakula and Maria Bello. In 2005, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie somewhat mirrored their personal lives in an explosive big screen makeover which certainly added some excitement to their routine marriage.

Now, Salvadoran-American writer Francesca Sloane (Atlanta, Fargo) adds her own complexion to the story of John and Jane Doe, two lonely and bored people who accept a glamorous and event-filled mission in the espionage world posing as a married couple. In this case, they are Donald Glover and Maya Erskine in the title roles.

Although inspired by the film, Sloane focuses more on the nuances of intimate relationships than big action sequences to make her point in this character exploration.

Inspired By The Film

“The idea of two people needing to be really good liars in order to be really good spies, but then, the notion of a healthy relationship relying on trust and honesty felt like something really interesting to explore,” says Sloane of her views on creating and maintaining successful relationships.

Francesca Sloane, didn’t simply lift the title and the character names from the movie for her TV series. There were character elements that resonated with her.

Francesca Sloane. Photo by Luis Mendoza

“Even within the film, there were certain things that were really intriguing. For instance, in the couples therapy scene, where they’re trying to connect, but they have to speak in code because of what they do for a living felt really funny and an interesting place,” Sloane continues.

“There were other moments where Angelina and Brad start to reconnect once they understand each other’s true identities where they’re revealing all of the truths of the past few years of them being together; things that were not honest and coming clean.” Sloane cites a scene when Jolie confesses that her father at the wedding was a hired actor. The screenwriter felt such scenes were “great seeds” for her television series.

Francesca Sloane took those seeds and planted them in her own garden. The project was set up with the express purpose of not being a remake or paying close fidelity to the movie or TV show when Donald Glover approached her. Not because they were rebels, but “that’s just not the kind of artist that we are. We just don’t tell stories in that way,” she asserts.

The creatives chose to make their version of Mr. & Mrs. Smith more of a slower-paced character study to make it more relatable and organic.

Writing The Television Series

Creating such a nuanced TV show requires a strong introduction and equally satisfying ending. “We wanted to open the show with what other creators might make if it were in their hands,” states Sloane. Then we let the audiences know quite quickly, this is actually the show that we’re going to tell once we get to the interview portion of Jane and John with the spy agency.” Francesca Sloane felt that the personal and professional stakes are better revealed at the top of the episode by showing the story that way.

“There are story components that felt important that this could be the fate of these two people and that there are consequences in signing up for something like this.”

“We also wanted to show that the two of them were lonely and loners and what they were sacrificing in order to sign up for this new life.”

Jane (Maya Erskine) Photo by David Lee / Amazon MGM Studios

“We also wanted to create a bit of mystery and intrigue so that there were places for them to go as we got to know them better, and as they got to know each other better, in becoming an actual relationship.”

“And what was also very important to us was to show this foundation of fantasy, this hipster dream of what you could actually get if you were to sign your name on the dotted line.”

We wanted to start the story with two really awkward people because that felt honest – Francesca Sloane

The screenwriter wanted the interview scenes to play like a dating show where contestants are asked cringe-worthy questions such as the worst moment your mom has walked in on you. Sloane deliberately didn’t want to discuss arranged marriages in her show. John and Jane Doe could have presented as married rather than actually exchanging their vows, but Sloane realized that their character arcs are better served as a married couple falling in love during the season.

Francesca watched many reality TV shows to contour her idea of two strangers getting married. “We also had all this inspiration from Bergman and The French Connection. But I really think that the greatest influence that we had was watching something like Married at First Sight,” she jokes.

The writer admits it was a difficult task to depart from the tone of the film. “We spent a lot of time deciding when the humor should come in and how long you want certain moments to linger. Director Hiro Morai ‘has such a sensibility of really allowing things to breathe. And then, he very slowly turned the knob to high, bringing more action into the mix without losing what you sort of started out of the gate with.”

The Spector Of Loneliness

In a truly noteworthy move, Sloane decided that the commonality between John and Jane was their utter loneliness. That is the driver of their marriage. What makes two people so lonely that they would want to agree to something like this? What are they gaining from that? What are they losing?

“I was really looking at what gap is there. Loneliness is one symptom, but there seems to be this big hole in both of their lives that they’re looking to fill with extreme sports.”

Mr. & Mrs. Smith explores the parallels between marriage and espionage. “In both rounds, you are committing to a life of risk. In both rounds, you have to have trust, you have to adjust very quickly to trying situations, or you could be screwed. And, in both rounds, you have to show many different sides of yourself in order to be able to get to the finish line,” states Sloane

“So, in building out this show, you obviously need to have elements of the married couple  – asking what do you like and all that really mundane stuff, which is actually very connecting and very bonding. I think it’s the same process as planning an espionage case.”

In plotting the show, Francesca and her co-writers used index cards to differentiate the marriage and espionage elements. “We called it the ‘spy sandwich’, where you would have some ingredients that felt like the love relationship and some ingredients that felt like a spy trope. In order to make that feel fresh, how do they each inform the other?”

Mr. & Mrs. Smith was not designed to be a collection of spy tropes. It is a blending of two worlds. “We only wanted to include those things in the show if they supported the relationship and it would reveal insecurities in them as individuals, or how it could bring them together to the next relationship milestone because they endured this or that spy trope,” mentions Sloane.

Who Are John And Jane Doe?

John and Jane Doe are both strong-willed individuals who complement each other. Similar as they are different. Donald Glover described John as a “golden retriever. He’s really excited and is like a fifteen year old boy’s fantasy of what a spy is supposed to be.” Curiously, John starts their journey as the leader. As the show progresses, their roles converge and Jane takes on a more prominent role by constantly bailing him out instead of taking the reins.

John (Donald Glover) Photo by David Lee/ Amazon MGM Studios

“That has an impact on the dynamic between two people. Jane has her walls up so high, she’s far more cagey and a lot more protective of herself. But her feelings for John chip away at those walls and bring out this vulnerability in her that she’s experiencing for the first time. She starts to look up to his way of connecting to people and his kindness.”

Both profoundly transform each other in a positive way. “It begins with both of them holding so much to themselves, but in very different ways. As the season progresses, their masks come off, their real names and the real selves are revealed. They become two people who actually really know each other.”

We asked Francesca Sloane to identify a moment in the series that truly defines their relationship.

“One of my favorite moments is in episode four when the two of them are in bed together, decompressing from the day and having this really sweet moment of laughing with each other… and it’s a real us versus the world. We’ve got each other.”

“That felt like a true turning point for them and a real authentic grounding moment of why people want to be that close. The world may be hard, but at the end of the day, we have this intimacy between the two of us.” The initial event of their arranged marriage melts away into insignificance.

Francesca Sloane’s Writing Voice & Advice

We asked Sloane what are the elements that define her writing style. “I live in between moments. I really like classical music. The thing that really makes classical music such an emotional experience are the moments where the music cuts out. You have these moments of silence and then the music comes back in again.”

“Those are always the moments where I feel like my eyes getting watery. I love to write with that in mind.”

“I also feel like anything that makes me feel uncomfortable to the point of wanting to laugh at it is something that I try to include someplace in my scripts.”

Sloane offers some advice to other screenwriters. “It has to start with you. You have to feel it first. You either have to find it funny or sad. If it doesn’t mean anything to you, then how do you expect it to mean anything to anyone else?”