Undercurrent

Undercurrent is a gritty true-crime drama based on the popular podcast Whisper in the Shadows—with over 36,000 downloads and a growing weekly audience. Created and written by Jason Somerville, the series is inspired by his true undercover police experiences.
Set in post-Fitzgerald Inquiry Queensland in the mid-1990s, Undercurrent plunges into the murky depths of undercover policing. It follows Jack Sullivan, a promising young police officer, as he navigates the perilous divide between his real identity and his fabricated criminal persona, “Michael Bates.” Tasked with infiltrating a sophisticated drug network, Jack's idealism is pushed to the brink as he battles temptations, psychological toll, and the constant threat of his cover being blown.
The series explores the enduring legacy of corruption and the personal cost of justice in a city grappling with its criminal past, driven by themes of moral ambiguity and blurred lines between law and lawlessness. Drawing from true events with first-hand authenticity, Undercurrent delivers a tense, character-driven narrative. It is envisioned as an 6-part limited series, fully scripted and production-ready, aimed at bringing this true crime story to the screen with unflinching realism and emotional depth.

  • Jason Somerville
    Writer
  • Project Type:
    Television Script
  • Genres:
    True Crime, Psychological Drama
  • Number of Pages:
    52
  • Language:
    English
  • First-time Screenwriter:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Melbourne International Screenplay Awards
    Melbourne, Australia
    December 1, 2025
    Best TV Pilot Screenplay
Writer Biography - Jason Somerville

Jason Somerville is an emerging Australian screenwriter whose work explores identity, control, and the hidden cost of perception. His television pilot White Lies draws on his real undercover police experience to examine corruption, morality, and the personal toll of living behind a façade. Across his writing, Jason returns to a central theme — how people construct identity under pressure, and what happens when the lies they tell to survive begin to consume them.

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Writer Statement

I spent twelve years in the Queensland Police Service, two of them deep undercover in the heroin trade. But Undercurrent was not written to capitalize on 'war stories' or procedural mechanics. It was written to deconstruct them.

Most crime dramas focus on the external threat—the wire, the gun, the bust. My goal with this series is to invert that gaze and focus on the internal cost: the erosion of identity. 'Michael Bates' was not just a cover; he was a necessary infection that allowed me to survive, but nearly cost me my self.

I wrote this script to capture the specific, humid dread of 1990s Brisbane—a setting rarely seen on screen—and to explore the universal terror of losing oneself in a role. This is an anti-glamour story about the price of walking both sides of the line.