| Director | Dominic Cooke, Zackary Adler |
|---|---|
| Box office | $26 million |
In 1960, Oleg Penkovsky, a high-ranking Soviet official and GRU intelligence officer, with access to top secret nuclear information, is disillusioned with the leadership of Nikita Khrushchev in the light of the growing threat of a nuclear war with the United States. He contacts the CIA and offers to provide information that could help de-escalate the situation. The CIA and MI6 decide that it would be best to use an ordinary businessman as an intermediary, rather than an intelligence officer.
They approach salesman Greville Wynne to go to Moscow under the pretense of exploring commercial opportunities. Wynne establishes seemingly normal business relations with Penkovsky and the latter makes arrangements with western intelligence agencies to feed them information. He asks that they continue to use Wynne as their regular courier, reasoning that he will be under the Soviets' radar. Initially opposed to the task, Wynne eventually agrees, partly because CIA officer Emily Donovan emphasizes that his efforts could help prevent a nuclear war, and also after Penkovsky visits Wynne at his home and tells him that he is betting his life on Wynne's success.
Wynne uses his regular business travels to Moscow to carry messages and packages provided to the CIA by Penkovsky. However, that takes a toll on Wynne's personal life and he becomes agitated, leading his wife to think that he might be having an affair.
Penkovsky learns that the Soviets want to turn Cuba into a nuclear threat to the United States, and relays that information, along with photographs and military plans, to the CIA, who eventually verify it using their own intelligence. The Americans are able to use that early lead to their advantage during the Cuban Missile Crisis. However, the Soviets, using their own double agents, realize they have an information vulnerability. In Moscow, Wynne realizes that his hotel room has been searched but leaves the country before he has a chance to warn Penkovsky.
Worried about Penkovsky's fate should he be left behind, Wynne volunteers, against the advice of MI6, to go back to Moscow to help arrange Penkovsky's defection. However, the Soviets, having previously poisoned Penkovsky and searched his belongings while he was in the hospital, foil the plan and arrest both men.
Wynne is sent to prison where he endures harsh conditions, which result in his health significantly deteriorating. He adamantly maintains his innocence, claiming that he knew Penkovsky only as a business client and did not know what was in the packages he had delivered. Several months later, Wynne is allowed a visit from his wife, who tells him that the Soviets have removed their missiles from Cuba, boosting his morale. He also gets to meet Penkovsky in prison while being interrogated. Wynne tells Penkovsky that his sacrifice has been worth it and the two men emotionally clutch hands.
In April 1964, Wynne is released in exchange for the Soviet spy Konon Molody and returns to London. It is revealed that Penkovsky has been tried for treason and executed, and is buried in an unmarked grave, although his family are allowed to live in Moscow. The U.S. and Soviets establish a communications hotline between their leaders to help prevent future nuclear disasters.