Kleo is a German action-thriller comedy television series co-created by Hanno Hackfort, Richard Kropf, and Bob Konrad for Netflix, premiering in 2022. It follows the revenge journey of a former East German Stasi assassin, Kleo Straub (Jella Haase), after her arrest and subsequent imprisonment until the fall of the Berlin Wall.
It premiered on Netflix on 19 August 2022, with the second season released on 25 July 2024.
Contents
Synopsis
In 1987, after successfully assassinating a double agent in a West Berlin club, East German Stasi assassin Kleo Straub is falsely imprisoned by her agency. When she is released after the Berlin Wall is taken down in 1989, she plans her revenge on the conspirators who framed her. Meanwhile, Sven Petzold, an underappreciated fraud policeman who witnessed the 1987 murder, finds connections between it and Straub, leading him to impede her vengeance quest.
Cast
Jella Haase as Kleo Straub, an unofficial East German Stasi assassin who was imprisoned for an alleged act of treason
Rosa Wirtz plays a younger version of her.
Dimitrij Schaad as Sven Petzold, an underachieving West Berlin police officer who initially worked in the fraud section
Julius Feldmeier as Thilo, current occupant of Kleo's old apartment who came from West Germany
Vincent Redetzki as Uwe Mittig, an unofficial East German Stasi agent who was an accomplice of Kleo's during her 1987 mission
Vladimir Burlakov as Andi Wolf, a former East German Stasi supervisor who was romantically involved with Kleo
Marta Sroka as Anja, Wolf's spouse who is pregnant with his child
Jürgen Heinrich as Otto Straub, an East German Stasi general commander and Kleo's grandfather
Alessija Lause as Anne Geike, a West German BND officer who previously met Otto Straub
Andrej Kaminsky as Nikolai Zhukov, a Soviet KGB officer based in Germany with a connection with Kleo
Recurring
Steffi Kühnert as Margot Honecker, the wife of East German leader Erich Honecker and a high-ranking communist party official in her own right, who is Kleo's aunt
Thandi Sebe as Jenny Schneider, Sven's wife who becomes emotionally distant from him
Taner Sahintürk as Frederick "Freddy" Lembach, Sven's friend and colleague in the police
Yun Huang as Min Sun, a BND officer of Chinese origin who works under Anne Geike
Zethphan Smith-Gneist as Mark Petzold, Sven and Jenny's teenage son
Alexander Hörbe as Ludger Wieczorek, a former East German colonel who was in charge of Kleo's 1987 mission
Rodrigo Rojo as Jorge Gonzalez, a Stasi agent who immigrated from Chile
Gunnar Helm as Erich Mielke, the head of the Stasi who is involved in Kleo's imprisonment
Anna Stieblich as Brigitte Straub, Kleo's mother who abandoned her for West Germany
Garry Fischmann as Matthias Frey, a man Kleo assassinated in West Berlin on 1987, setting the stage for her predicament
Jonas Stenzel as Dopi, Thilo's friend who is a techno music DJ
Robin Gooch as Rose Carmichael, a CIA agent
Alli Neumann as Ciana, Thilo's friend whom he met in a techno club
Guest starring
Harry Schäfer as Alexander Belov, a Soviet KGB agent who has made a deal with Wieczorek
Kathrin Angerer as Gabriela Wieczorek, Ludger's wife, who resides in Mallorca after faking their deaths
Bruno F. Apitz as Walter Blum, East German Party secretary and a close friend of Wieczorek's who knows his whereabouts
Lina Wendel as Ms. Lobrecht, Mielke's secretary, who has been assigned with the protection of a red briefcase
Anselm Bresgott as Holger, Kleo's childhood friend and former love interest
Jakob Albert plays a younger version of him
Thiago Braga de Oliveira as a concierge in Hotel Carrera
Show creators Richard Kropf and Hanno Hackfort also have cameo roles.
English dub
The English version was produced by Liquid Violet in London. Ed Hughes was responsible for adapting the script and directing the dub.
Episodes
Production
Development
On 8 February 2022, Netflix ordered Kleo as a part of 19 German-language productions worth US$571 million. Hanno Hackfort, Richard Kropf and Bob Konrad, co-creators of 4 Blocks, were revealed as series creators, writers and executive producers, with Elena Senft set to co-write. Michael Souvigner and Till Derenbach of Zeitsprung Pictures were also announced as co-producers, while Viviane Andereggen and Jano Ben Chaabane were signed as directors. The series was renewed on 29 September 2022. Series two was released on Netflix on 25 July 2024.
Casting
Upon the series announcement on 8 February 2022, Jella Haase was announced as the eponymus lead of the series.
Filming
Principal photography for the series reportedly began in June 2021, with Berlin, Eisenhüttenstadt, and Mallorca revealed as filming locations. In the second series Berlin and Belgrade were used as filming locations.
Release
The series' first official trailer was launched on YouTube on 14 July 2022. Kleo premiered worldwide on 19 August 2022,
and was renewed for a second season on 29 September 2022.
The second season was released on 25 July 2024.
Reception
The first season of Kleo received positive reviews from critics. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 100% of 10 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.3/10. Rebecca Nicholson of The Guardian rated the series 3/5 stars, criticizing its similarity with Killing Eve, but praised its casting, characterization, screenplay and pacing, calling it "nevertheless an entertaining, highly stylized and cinematic adventure". Maria Hunstig of Vogue Germany praised the casting, screenplay and pacing, calling it "fast, hard, and incredibly entertaining". Joel Keller of Decider similarly praised its pacing and acting, particularly lauding Haase's performance. Stephen King also praised the series, calling it "a breath of fresh air—suspenseful and also very funny". Historian Katja Hoyer said that Kleo evoked a new curiosity in East Germany through Ostalgie motives.
