‘DIG’ Preview: Murder, Potential Global Catastrophe… and a Bossmance

The new USA Network show “DIG,” which premieres Thursday, is rife with intrigue, fanaticism, conspiracies, murder and, of course, a little sex.

The series itself has been shrouded in mystery, but the basic premise centers on FBI operative Peter Connelly (Jason Isaacs) stationed in Jerusalem and working with his former protégé-now-boss Lynn Monahan (Anne Heche), with whom he is also having a fling.

As he begins to investigate the murder of a young archeological student, he stumbles upon an ancient mystery that has far-reaching consequences, involving many other religious and political factions, and that could bring about the end of the world… or something like that.

Filmed in such varied locales as Jerusalem and Croatia, ExtraTV.com had a chance to visit the set in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and spoke with stars Isaacs and Heche, along with the show creators Tim Kring (“Heroes”) and Gideon Raff (“Homeland”) about making this epic show.

Heche explained about her character's relationship with Peter, “I'm head of the FBI attaché in Jerusalem, whatever that means, and she's smarter than I've ever been, so let's start there. I'm Peter's boss, so that's always good AND I've having sex with him, so that's doubly good. It's a very adult relationship. It's not a romance. It's not a bromance. It's a bossmance. Let's coin the phrase!”

The show has psychological drama, action, mysticism and so much more. Heche said, “I'm just so confused that they all come together. We have a murder of an American archeological student; a psychological, religious conspiracy, what's that? And then there are these stones that everyone is searching for that have been stolen. How these things come together -- and the mystery behind that -- drives this show.”

Isaacs added, “One of the great joys of this show is that Gideon [Raff] and Tim [Kring] are master storytellers. When I went to meet them, I thought they had made all this stuff up because there were these outrageous and fantastical plotlines. But it turns out they got it all from the real world, and there are groups at play in the world today, people in this country here, who absolutely think they are doing the right thing by trying to bring the world to an end because there will be a better world.”

The actor continued, “People have agendas and think that the ends will justify the means and the means are things to us that are morally repulsive and genocidal. That's what Peter is up against. He's haunted by the past but he's awake now. The things that were crippling him emotionally are the same things that hopefully lead him to save the world.”

Kring said, “We take no stand any particular religion but we do cast light on the idea of fanaticism, and not a good light. Fanaticism in any way is dangerous. So it needs to be elevated to point of discussion and if we don't, it could get ugly.”

As for filming in Jerusalem, Kring said they had “wrapped the pilot and were planning the next few episodes when it was clear things were happening. Missiles were fired over Tel Aviv, but the locals were telling us it would go away quickly. We kind of looked at each other and didn't think it was safe enough. We didn't want to put anyone in danger. It was a big disappointment to leave.”

Gideon, who is from Jerusalem, said, “I'm in love with the city. It is a city that means so much to so many people around the world. We study it, from Sunday school to synagogue to the Mosque. We all have this place in our head that we see as Jerusalem. When you grow up there, it's a normal place. The secular parts are extremely modern, and then there are the little bubbles of more secret and Orthodox Jews and then in the Arab communities, the history and gravitas of the city. I'm excited to bring Jerusalem to the American screens because they really haven't seen it as it is nowadays.”

Heche added about being in Jerusalem, “It was a life-changing experience for me. It was quite magical. Our hearts are changed because of it and care so much on what's going on over there. Not that we didn't before, but now it's certainly been rooted in my being and I hope for peace.”