The miniseries was created and directed by Gideon Raff and is based on the life of real Mossad spy Eli Cohen, played by Sacha Baron Cohen (no relation to the character despite sharing a surname).

The show is based on the book 'L'espion qui venait d'Israël' (The Spy Who Came from Israel), written by Uri Dan and Yeshayahu Ben Porat.

The series was produced by French company Légende Entreprises for Canal+ and Netflix, with OCS airing it in France and Netflix streaming it internationally.

Although the story is set largely in Syria, filming there was impossible due to the Syrian Civil War, so production took place mainly in Casablanca, Morocco, as well as in Hungary and the UK.

Sacha Baron Cohen received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor in a Miniseries or Television Film for his portrayal of Eli Cohen.

Despite generally favorable reviews and an 86% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the series faced criticism for historical inaccuracies, including the claim that former Syrian President Amin al-Hafiz never actually met Cohen in Argentina and that the 'Deputy Defense Minister' position Cohen supposedly held did not exist at the time.

There is no independent verification of exactly whom Eli Cohen met within the Syrian elite while operating undercover in Buenos Aires or Damascus.