[Warning: The following post contains MAJOR spoilers for Duster Episode 5.]
Nina (Rachel Hilson) gets put to the test in a very big way on the latest episode of Duster and puts on a masterclass in subterfuge to get through it unscathed.
First, the episode begins with a rather shocking aside. Two administrative officials — one from the Pentagon and one from the FBI — are summoned to the White House for an emergency meeting with none other than Richard Nixon, who declares from the Oval Office, “Gentlemen, we’ve got a big f***ing problem.” Later, we see the Watergate cleanup operation begin … with the help of Agent Grant (Dan Tracy), no less.
This CGI-enhanced cameo is just the start of a pseudo-history subplot involving the disgraced former president that was first envisioned by cocreator LaToya Morgan.
“That was one of the MacGuffins that I pitched that J.J. [Abrams, cocreator] really got excited about because it’s something in history that we all know about, but we don’t know about, right? So there was a lot of wiggle room for us to have it be sort of this device,” she told TV Insider. “That is the mystery for our characters to unpack… I’m a big fan, having worked on so many historical shows, of finding little nuggets of history that people don’t really know about and really highlighting them to have them be a meaningful part of the story. It’s fun.”
It’s not the first time that Duster has shed new light on famous pieces of the past. Previously, of course, there was the whole journey to steal Elvis’ blue suede shoes, and in Episode 4, Howard Hughes‘ infamous aero-mobile came into play in a big way as Jim Ellis (Josh Holloway) traded it away — despite it belonging to his boss Saxton (Keith David) — to save his own skin. However, it is the most direct… so far, at least.
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The fallout from the car trade comes here when Saxton reveals that the aero-mobile was meant to be payment for a deal with the Russians and fires Jim for letting the car go. However, Nina cooks up a plan: She gets Saxton’s Russian interpreter picked up for tax fraud and plans to step in as the last-minute substitute. With Jim on the outs from Saxton, he tries and fails to convince his father to make the introduction, and it’s Nina who manages to convince Wade (Corbin Bernson) to vouch for her.
His word only goes so far, though. She’s then put to the test by Saxton’s right-hand man, Billy (Evan Jones), and she reveals her flawless linguistics skills enough to convince him and Saxton himself. By the end, Saxton is introducing Nina to Jim, and the two have to pretend it’s for the very first time.
“I can’t say enough about Rachel. She’s so amazing — a wonderful human. She works so hard. [She] brings a very iconic character to the small screen with Nina,” director Steph Green said of the performance. “When I pitched to J.J. and LaToya to direct, what I thought would just be one of two — and I’m so glad it was also five and six — that was one of my main [things]. The first page of my pitch deck was images of who could be Nina. We hadn’t cast her yet. We would try to create a new icon. What she does in those scenes is incredible.”
“We can’t tell a story where she just makes him an informant and stays detached from his environment. She doesn’t just use him to talk about Saxton. She wants to get in on the Saxton operation. And she goes in so deep, and suddenly she’s essential to this huge deal,” Green continued. “There’s this invisible conversation happening between Jim and Nina during that entire interaction…. So there’s the scene that’s happening on top of the subtext and the subjects. The stakes are so high, right? Because now, by this episode, they really care for each other, and Nina is in so much danger if she’s caught, as is Jim. And then, of course, because it’s Duster, things get more complicated, go more wrong.”
Things will only continue to escalate on all fronts as the season progresses.
Duster, Thursdays, HBO Max