The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has awarded one of its agents with a sought-after challenge coin to honor his ‘courageous actions’ in preventing terrorists from smuggling a deadly dose of the Russian nerve agent Novichok on a packed passenger airplane.
If this story sounds familiar, then you’ve probably already seen the new Netflix smash hit movie ‘Carry On,’ starring Taron Egerton, which has been the streaming platform’s biggest English movie opening this year with more than 42 million views in its week of release.
For those of you who aren’t familiar, Carry On pits Ethan, a TSA officer at Los Angeles International Airport who has been coasting in life, against a mysterious traveler who threatens to kill the people he loves most in life unless Ethan lets a dangerous carry on bag through the security scanners undetected.
Set on Christmas Eve, Ethan suddenly finds himself in a race against time to prevent the terrorists from succeeding in their dastardly plan to kill hundreds of innocent travelers by releasing one of the world’s most deadly nerve agents on a passenger plane.
Helped along by LAPD detective Elena Cole, fellow TSA officer Eddie Dominguez, and Ethan’s pregnant girlfriend, Nora Parisi, who is the director of airport operations for make-believe airline Northwind, will he manage to stop the terrorists in time?
Responding to the fictional drama, the real-life TSA took to social network X to congratulate Ethan and his helpers for their “heroic actions on December 24th that saved the lives of many.”
“They bravely, calmly, and epically foiled the plans of individuals with malicious intent to bring something we would describe as ‘a big no-no’ on the plane.”
The tongue-in-cheek statement continued: “These individuals went above and beyond to ensure the safety of the traveling public and secure air travel for all Netflixians. When they saw something, they said something… and did something (which is fantastic).”
The Department of Homeland Security has used its ‘If you see something, say something’ public awareness campaign since 2001, and is used to encourage travelers to report unusual or suspicious activity on public transit.
“The Transportation Security Administration is proud to present TSA Kopek, TSO Dominguez, Detective Cole, and Director Parisi with official TSA challenge coins in appreciation of their courageous actions on Christmas Eve,” the statement signed by TSA Assistant Administrator Alexa C. Lopez concludes.
Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, behind action thrillers like Non-Stop and The Commuter, and written by T.J. Fixman, Carry On is the first film made for Netflix as part of a collaboration with Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Partners.
Taron Egerton is best known for starring in Rocketman and Kingsman: The Secret Service, while Jason Bateman plays his dangerous foe.
Egerton says that he initially turned down the role, saying that when Director Collet-Serra first approached him about the project, he told him that he “didn’t want to do something that felt like an archetypal action hero.”
Although all the action in Carry On is set at Los Angeles International Airport, the movie was actually filmed in New Orleans, and the film crew ended up taking over the old MSY terminal building to bring the story to life.
To make the movie as realistic as possible, the crew brought in two former TSA officers as advisors, which included providing proper TSA training for the actors.
Dr. Erroll G. Southers, a counterterrorism expert and the former chief of Homeland Security and Intelligence for the Los Angeles World Airports Police Department, also provided his expertise as a technical advisor on the shoot.
And if you’re wondering whether the fact that Carry On is set on Christmas Eve makes it a Christmas movie, well, both Netflix and Director Collet-Serra say, yes, the film should be considered a Christmas movie.
It’s funny that you posted this article about this movie today, 22/12. I saw this movie last night, and it was an amazing movie; I loved it 🙂