The Diplomat Season 2 Cast & Character Guide

The cast of The Diplomat continues to shine in the Netflix political drama’s sophomore season, with their compelling performances making the journey to make sense of the chaos brought forth by The Diplomat season 1’s cliffhanger finale extraordinary. If The Diplomat season 1 began with Kate Wyler begrudgingly taking over the position of US ambassador to the UK, unaware of Hal and Billie’s plans to use that posting as a trial run to see if Kate could be vice-president material, The Diplomat season 2 is set to have a different tone. Indeed, Kate’s priorities greatly changed after season 1’s finale.

With the car bomb of season 1’s finale endangering three characters, The Diplomat season 2 has many knots to untangle, having yet to reveal the culprits behind the attack on HMS Courageous. This continued to make the core six characters at the center of The Diplomat season 1 just as fundamental in season 2, even as the political drama has yet to reveal what part, if any, they played in The Diplomat season 1’s multiple deadly incidents. With some secondary characters appearing much less, The Diplomat season 2 saw some key additions to the cast, joining the already successful ensemble.

Actor’s Picture	Actor’s Name	The Diplomat Season 2 Role
	Keri Russell	Kate Wyler
	Rufus Sewell	Hal Wyler
	David Gyasi	Austin Dennison
	Ali Ahn	Eidra Park
	Rory Kinnear	Nicol Trowbridge
	Ato Essandoh	Stuart Heyford
	Allison Janney	Grace Penn
	Michael McKean	William Rayburn
	Pearl Mackie	Alysse
	Celia Imrie	Margaret Roylin
	Adam Silver	Howard
	Nana Mensah	Billie Appiah
	Jess Chanliau	Ronnie
	Penny Downie	Frances
	Georgie Henley	Pensy
	Bhav Joshi	Anu
	Graham Miller	Neil Barrow

Actor Keri Russell As Kate Wyler

Date Of Birth: March 23, 1976

Actor: Born in Fountain Valley, California, Keri Russell’s breakout role was the titular character in J.J. Abrams and Matt Reeves’ Felicity in 1998, for which the actor also earned a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Drama Series. Among Russell’s most critically acclaimed roles is that of Elizabeth Jennings in The Americans, but the actor also starred in multiple films, including Mission Impossible III as Lindsey Farris, August Rush and Austenland. More recently, Keri Russell starred in Cocaine Bear and Antlers, and in an episode of the limited anthology series Extrapolations.

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Character: Keri Russell reprises her role as Kate Wyler in The Diplomat season 2, the frank and pragmatic US ambassador to the UK, who found herself investigating the conspiracy that blew up the HMS Courageous after she strongly opposed the idea Iran was behind the attack in The Diplomat season 1. Relatable and hard-working, Kate despises the more ceremonial side of her posting. After the car bomb involved Hal and two of her employees in season 1’s finale, Kate’s motive to find who was behind the attacks exponentially increased, putting her even more at the front of season 2’s story.

Actor Rufus Sewell As Hal Wyler

Date Of Birth: October 29, 1967

Actor: Rufus Sewell was born in Twickenham, England, and has his TV breakout role in BBC’s adaptation of George Eliot’s Middlemarch as the protagonist’s love interest Will Ladislaw in 1994. Sewell’s prolific career included plays in the West End and Broadway. However, he also attracted attention in films, playing roles like John Murdoch in 1998’s Dark City and Crown Prince Leopold in 2006’s The Illusionist. On TV, he famously played Lord Melbourne in ITV’s Victoria in 2015 and John Smith in The Man in the High Castle. In 2024, Sewell appeared in The Uninvited and played Prince Andrew in Scoop.

Character: Rufus Sewell plays Hal Wyler in The Diplomat season 2, Kate’s husband and ex-ambassador who cannot seem to leave things be and whose machinations often endanger their marriage and Kate’s position. Hal is partly behind Billie Appiah’s plan to have Kate replace the US vice president to Kate’s chagrin. While their marriage seemed almost done toward season 1’s end because he accepted Merritt Grove’s invitation to dinner to talk, Hal’s involvement in the explosion of The Diplomat season 1’s finale may change things in season 2, also putting Hal to the forefront of the story after risking his life.

Actor David Gyasi As Austin Dennison

Date Of Birth: January 2, 1980

Actor: Born in London, England, David Gyasi landed his first major film role in 2005 as François in Shooting Dogs, the same year he also starred as player Jeremy Hands in ITV’s Mike Bassett: Manager. Gyasi appeared in multiple science fiction movies, including 2012’s Cloud Atlas, Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar in 2014 and 2018’s Annihilation. More recently, Gyasi starred as Agreus Astrayon in Carnival Row and voiced the Grey Cat in Netflix’s The Sandman.

Character: David Gyasi reprises the role of Austin Dennison in The Diplomat season 2, foreign secretary in Nicol Trowbridge’s government and Kate’s main ally due to her role and in her search for the truth about the attack on the HMS Courageous. Austin and Kate had a Will They/Won’t They dynamic throughout season 1, eventually confessing their attraction, with Kate’s choice of dress in Paris hinting at her willingness to cross the line, had she not learned about Lenkov’s planned assassination or the car bomb in London. Given their theories, Austin will have a central role also in season 2.

Actor Ali Ahn As Eidra Park

Date Of Birth: July 24, 1981

Actor: Ali Ahn was born in Pasadena, California, and played recurring characters in Billions in 2016 and Orange Is the New Black in 2018, before landing her main role of CEO Suzanne Wu in Netflix’s Raising Dion from 2019 to 2022. Ahn’s film roles include playing Vanessa in 2012’s Liberal Arts and Libby in 2019’s Anya, but she was also involved on the stage in both Broadway and off-Broadway productions. Ahn appeared in various TV shows like Ugly Betty, White Collar and Nurse Jackie, but the actor’s most notable 2024 role is undoubtedly Alice Wu-Gulliver in Marvel’s Agatha All Along.

Character: Ali Ahn plays Eidra Park in The Diplomat season 2, CIA chief of station in London and one of Kate’s closest allies in her search for the culprits behind the HMS Courageous attack. Eidra didn’t immediately like the ambassador, but Kate eventually grew on her after their close work to untangle the conspiracy. The Diplomat season 1 revealed Eidra in a relationship with the London embassy deputy chief of mission Stuart before breaking them up in the finale following her realization that Stuart would follow Kate if she replaced the vice-president, setting up their season 2’s different bond.

Actor Rory Kinnear As Nicol Trowbridge

Date Of Birth: February 17, 1978

Actor: Born in London, England, Rory Kinnear’s film breakout role was that of Bill Tanner in 2008’s Quantum of Solace, which he reprised in 2012’s Skyfall, 2015’s Spectre and 2021’s No Time to Die. Kinnear has an extensive career in theatre, having appeared in multiple Shakespeare plays, including Royal National Theatre’s Othello which won him the Olivier Award in 2014. Kinnear played John Clare and the Creature in Penny Dreadful, and more recently appeared as the Badminton brothers in Our Flag Means Death in 2022 and Tom Bombadil in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power in 2024.

Character: Rory Kinnear plays Nicol Trowbridge in The Diplomat season 2, Prime Minister of the UK and the presumed mastermind of the HMS Courageous attack at the end of The Diplomat season 1. While an unpleasant character throughout The Diplomat season 1, Kate and Austin only really started to view him as the mastermind after they learned that Trowbridge’s The Diplomat mission to arrest Lenkov was an assassination. The Diplomat season 2 will have to reveal whether Trowbridge was involved in the HMS Courageous attack or not, but season 1’s finale set the PM up as the biggest villain potentially.

Actor Ato Essandoh As Stuart Heyford

Date Of Birth: July 29, 1972

Actor: Ato Essandoh was born in Schenectady, New York, and his breakout film role for which he is known is Commander Rambo in 2006’s Blood Diamond. Essandoh appeared in various TV shows, playing secondary characters in Law & Order, Royal Pains and The Good Wife. Essandoh is known for playing Craig Jeffers in 2006’s Jason Bourne and Jones in 2019’s X-Men: Dark Phoenix. Before his main role on The Diplomat, Essandoh played the recurring character of Isidore Latham on Chicago Med from 2016 to 2021 and Kwesi Weisberg-Abban in 2020’s Away.

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Character: Ato Essandoh reprises his role of Stuart Heyford in The Diplomat season 2, deputy chief of mission at the London embassy and Kate’s second. He was initially tasked by White House Chief of Staff Billie Appiah to see if Kate would make a good vice-president and is often referred to by her as the kingmaker as a result. Stuart was in a relationship with CIA’s chief of station Eidra Park throughout The Diplomat season 1. Stuart’s conditions are unknown after the car bomb targeting Merritt Grove in The Diplomat season 1’s finale exploded near him, Hal and Ronnie.

The Diplomat Season 2 Supporting Cast & Characters

Allison Janney as Grace Penn:The Diplomat season 2’s first new character, Allison Janney plays US Vice President Grace Penn, whom Kate is supposed to replace if Hal and Billie’s plan pan out. Known for playing C.J. Cregg in The West Wing, Janney more recently appeared as Bonnie Plunkett in Mom and Evelyn Rollins in Palm Royale.

Michael McKean as William Rayburn: Michael McKean plays US President William Rayburn, who wants Kate as his vice-president when Penn is eventually outed. McKean is known for playing Chuck McGill in Better Call Saul and also played Jack in Grace and Frankie.

Pearl Mackie as Alysse: Pearl Mackie returns as Alysse, part of Kate’s team at the US embassy in London. Mackie’s breakout role was as the Doctor’s companion Bill Potts in Doctor Who season 10 and has also appeared in 2020’s Horizon Line and 2022’s The Deal.

Celia Imrie as Margaret Roylin: Celia Imrie reprises her role as Margaret Roylin, infamous Tory advisor and secret advisor to Prime Minister Nicol Trowbridge. Imrie is known for her role in 2003’s Calendar Girls and for playing Una in 2016’s Bridget Jones’s Baby.

Adam Silver as Howard: Adam Silver plays Howard, Eidra’s right-hand man who works with the CIA at the London embassy. In 2024, Silver appeared as Charles in 3 Body Problem and David Solomon in Masters of the Air.

Nana Mensah as Billie Appiah: Nana Mensah plays the White House Chief of Staff Billie Appiah, the head behind the search for a new VP. Mensah is known for playing Nico in After Yang and Sarah Obeng in Queen of Glory.

Jess Chanliau as Ronnie:Jess Chanliau plays Ronnie in The Diplomat, deputy to Stuart at the London embassy. Chanliau is known for playing BJill23 in Brave New World and Stone in Patients of a Saint.

Penny Downie as Frances: Penny Downie plays Frances, Winfield House’s manager. Downie is known for playing Judy Trenor in 2000’s The House of Mirth and Janet Lee in 2016’s Jackie.

Georgie Henley as Pensy: Georgie Henley plays Pensy, a staff member of Winfield House. Henley rose to fame as Lucy Pevensie in The Chronicles of Narnia movies, but is more recently known for playing Meg Tudor in The Spanish Princess.

Bhav Joshi as Anu: Bhav Joshi plays Anu, Stuart’s counterpart for Austin Dennison at the Foreign Ministry. Joshi is known for playing Deerborne in BBC’s Vigil and Anil in Wedding Season.

Graham Miller as Neil Barrow: Graham Miller plays Neil Barrow, one of Kate’s new employees at the London embassy. Miller has appeared in Pushing Daisies and FBI: International, but playing Neil in The Diplomat season 2 is the actor’s biggest role to date.

The Diplomat is a Netflix drama/thriller series that tells the story of a career diplomat named Laura Simmonds as she wrestles with the complexities of her new job as ambassador to the U.K. As Laura attempts to acclimate to her high-profile, high-stress job, her marriage, and personal life begin to suffer in the midst of an international crisis.

Cast

Keri Russell , David Gyasi , Rufus Sewell , Rory Kinnear , Ato Essandoh , Ali Ahn , Jon Moore , Adam Silver

Release Date

April 20, 2023

Seasons

1

Directors

Liza Johnson , Simon Cellan Jones

Showrunner

Debora Cahn

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