Zero Day cast: Full list of stars in Robert De Niro Netflix thriller

De Niro, whose role in Zero Day marks his first major TV gig, recently told The Guardian that the experience was like "doing three features at once".

"I likened it to being in the Channel between France and England and looking back," he continued. "I can’t see France any more and I can’t see England. So I’ve got to keep swimming, staying up with the scenes, the endless information, the thrust of the story. Stay ahead of it, stay on it. So it was a whole other kind of experience for me.”

The Netflix series was created by Eric Newman and Noah Oppenheim, with the former admitted that "as a lifelong fan of American cinema, no actor looms larger for me than Robert De Niro", adding that "to have him as a producing partner and star in this show is beyond our wildest dreams".

Wondering who else stars in the show, what have they been in before and who do they all play? Read on for everything you need to know about the cast of Zero Day.

Who's in the cast of Zero Day on Netflix?

Here are the main cast members and characters in Zero Day – read on below for more info about who they are and where you've seen the actors before.

• Robert De Niro as George Mullen
• Jesse Plemons as Roger Carlson
• Lizzy Caplan as Alexandra Mullen
• Connie Britton as Valerie Whitesell
• Joan Allen as Sheila Mullen
• Matthew Modine as Richard Dreyer
• Angela Bassett as President Evelyn Mitchell
• Dan Stevens as Evan Green
• Bill Camp as Jeremy Lasch
• Gaby Hoffmann as Monica Kidder
• Clark Gregg as Robert Lyndon
• McKinley Belcher III as Carl Otieno
• Mark Ivanir as Natan

Robert De Niro plays George Mullen

Who is George Mullen? George Mullen is a former US president who left after his first term, and remains well-liked and known as the last president to command bipartisan support. He is pulled out of retirement to head the Zero Day Commission and investigate a devastating cyberattack.

Where have I seen Robert De Niro? De Niro is one of the most acclaimed actors of his generation, having won Oscars for his work in The Godfather Part II and Raging Bull.

He has starred in a number of beloved movies, including the likes of Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, The Deer Hunter, The King of Comedy, Once Upon a Time in America, Goodfellas, Cape Fear, Heat, Jackie Brown, Meet the Parents, Silver Linings Playbook, Joker, The Irishman and Killers of the Flower Moon.

Jesse Plemons plays Roger Carlson

Who is Roger Carlson? Roger is Mullen's former political aide and advisor who has now become his fixer, and returns to help him run the Zero Day Commission.

Where have I seen Jesse Plemons? Plemons shot to fame for his roles as Landry Clarke in Friday Night Lights and Todd Alquist in Breaking Bad, before going on to star in films including Bridge of Spies, The Post, Game Night, Vice, The Irishman, Judas and the Black Messiah, The Power of the Dog, Killers of the Flower Moon, Civil War and Kinds of Kindness. He has also had prominent roles in series including Black Mirror and Fargo.

Lizzy Caplan plays Alexandra Mullen

Who is Alexandra Mullen? Alexandra Mullen is George's daughter, who is herself a young congresswoman who is trying to distance herself from her dad's legacy.

While speaking exclusively with RadioTimes.com, Caplan said that it was "a little creepy when things [from the series] start to come true, just moments or character notes that we put in the show that are then reflected in the actual news. I don't love it. Like, usually that would be a fun thing, but in this case it's not."

Where have I seen Lizzy Caplan? Caplan has had roles in films including Mean Girls, 127 Hours, The Interview, The Night Before, Now You See Me 2 and Cobweb, as well as series such as Party Down, Masters of Sex, Truth Be Told, Fleishman Is in Trouble and Fatal Attraction.

Joan Allen plays Sheila Mullen

Who is Sheila Mullen? Sheila is George's wife and Alexandra's mother, who is also herself a nominee to the federal bench.

Where have I seen Joan Allen? Allen is known for her roles in films including Manhunter, Nixon, The Crucible, Face/Off, The Notebook, The Bourne Supremacy and Room. She has also appeared in series such as Luck and The Family.

Matthew Modine plays Richard Dreyer

Who is Richard Dreyer? Richard is the speaker of the house, who is a member of the opposition party to George's former party and Evelyn's current one.

When speaking with RadioTimes.com about the series, Modine said that he thinks there is an "inevitability of a cyber attack on the United States – not just on the United States, it could be any big country around the world".

He continued: "We're analogue creatures and we're living in a digital world that we don't understand. And it's changing so quickly, it's hard to understand it. It's hard to absorb it.

"So the AI aspect that is in this story of a cyber attack, the inevitability of that, I think, is real and even more frightening today than it was when we were making the show."

Where have I seen Matthew Modine? Modine has become known in recent times for his role in Stranger Things, while he has also starred in other shows including Weeds and Proof, and films such as Full Metal Jacket, The Dark Knight Rises, Sicario: Day of the Soldado and Oppenheimer.

Connie Britton plays Valerie Whitesell

Who is Valerie Whitesell? Valerie is Mullen's former chief of staff who returns to help him lead the Zero Day Commission.

While speaking with RadioTimes.com exclusively, Britton said she was "shocked" by the show's twists and turns when reading the scripts, "especially towards the end".

"I'm not going to give anything away," she continued, "but there were things towards the end that I was kind of like, 'Oh, okay! I did not see that coming. That's an interesting intention or motivation to have carried through.'"

Where have I seen Connie Britton? Britton is known for her roles in series including Spin City, Friday Night Lights, American Horror Story, Nashville, 911, The White Lotus and Dear Edward, while she has also had roles in films including Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, Bombshell and Promising Young Woman.

Angela Bassett plays President Evelyn Mitchell

Who is President Evelyn Mitchell? Evelyn is the current president of the United States, who enlists Mullen to head the Zero Day Commission.

When speaking exclusively with RadioTimes.com, Bassett said that playing the president was "daunting and a huge responsibility", but an opportunity she was "very excited" about taking on.

She said: "Just to see that imagery of a woman in that seat, and a black woman in particular, in that position, behind that desk. And I would hope against hope… you start out all these things not knowing what the end result will be, but I was hoping that I would do the representation in the office some justice, and I believe we have, and I have."

Where have I seen Angela Bassett? Bassett is known for her roles in films including Green Lantern, Olympus Has Fallen, Chi-Raq, Black Panther and its sequel Wakanda Forever, Mission: Impossible – Fallout, Bumblebee, Avengers: Endgame, Soul and Damsel, as well as series such as ER, American Horror Story, BoJack Horseman and 911.

Dan Stevens plays Evan Green

Who is Evan Green? Evan is the divisive host of a popular political talk show, who is quick to come out with his opposition to Mullen and the Zero Day Commission.

While speaking exclusively with RadioTimes.com Stevens explained how he got cast as Evan, saying: "They were looking for this Evan Green character, and I met Eric Newman, and I told him that I'd been sort of increasingly fascinated by this kind of archetype of character.

"This sort of basement media personality that there are so many examples from both sides of the political spectrum, that I've been sort of consuming and absorbing over the last few years. And so they sent me a bit of Evan Green, a bit of the show, and he said, 'Well, you know, if you want to put something on tape and we can show it to Bob'.

"And so I immediately opened my laptop and created an Evan Green show in my house for the benefit of Eric and Bob, which was a very rough approximation of what ended up on the show. But you know, I think my enthusiasm for the kind of character that it was came through, thankfully. And yeah, I got to be grilled by De Niro, which was incredible."

Where have I seen Dan Stevens? Stevens first shot to prominence as Matthew Crawley in Downton Abbey, while he has also starred in shows including Legion, Gaslit, Welcome to Chippendales and Solar Opposites. His film roles have included parts in Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb, Colossal, Beauty and the Beast, The Man Who Invented Christmas, Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga, The Boy and the Heron, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire and Abigail.

Bill Camp plays Jeremy Lasch

Who is Jeremy Lasch? Jeremy is the current CIA director.

Where have I seen Bill Camp? Camp has had roles in films including Public Enemies, Lincoln, 12 Years a Slave, Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), Black Mass, Loving, Jason Bourne, The Killing of a Sacred Deer, Vice, Joker and Drive-Away Dolls, as well as series such as The Leftovers, The Night Of, The Queen's Gambit, American Rust, A Man in Full and Presumed Innocent.

Gaby Hoffmann plays Monica Kidder

Who is Monica Kidder? Monica Kidder is a tech entrepreneur and Silicon Valley billionaire.

Where have I seen Gaby Hoffmann? Hoffmann has had roles in films including You Can Count on Me, Veronica Mars, Wild and C'Mon C'Mon, as well as series such as Girls, Transparent, Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty and Eric.

Clark Gregg plays Robert Lyndon

Who is Robert Lyndon? Robert is a corporate raider and billionaire.

Where have I seen Clark Gregg? Gregg is perhaps best known for playing Agent Phil Coulson in the MCU, while he has also had roles in films including AI Artificial Intelligence and 500 Days of Summer, as well as series such as The West Wing, The New Adventures of Old Christine, Florida Man, How I Met Your Father, Painkiller, Criminal Minds: Evolution and Snowpiercer.

McKinley Belcher III plays Carl Otieno

Who is Carl Otieno? Carl is a Department of Justice lawyer who is appointed as the lead investigator for the Zero Day Commission.

Where have I seen McKinley Belcher III? Belcher is known for his roles in films such as Marriage Story and series including Power, Mercy Street, Ozark, The Passage, One Piece and Eric.

Mark Ivanir plays Natan

Who is Natan? Natan is an intelligence operative who used to work with Mullen.

Where have I seen Mark Ivanir? Ivanir has had roles in films including The Terminal, Mr & Mrs Smith, Johnny English Reborn, Heart of Stone and Emilia Pérez, as well as series such as Homeland, For All Mankind, Litvinenko and Mayor of Kingstown.

Zero Day will stream on Netflix on 20th February 2025. Sign up for Netflix from £5.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.

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