Cinema legend Robert Niro is starring in "Zero Day," a new Netflix political thriller which marks his first lead role in a limited series.

The 81-year-old actor will play the role of former United States president George Mullen, who is appointed by the current president, Evelyn Mitchell (Angela Bassett), to head the Zero Day Commission. His mission is to track down the masterminds behind a devastating cyberattack.

The six-episode series was co-created by producer Eric Newman (Netflix's "Narcos") and veteran journalists Noah Oppenheim (former president of NBC News) and Michael S. Schmidt (The New York Times’ Washington DC correspondent).

De Niro praised the creative team behind the project, noting that the script and their work were exceptionally well done.

"The script and what these guys have done was so good. There wasn’t any sort of preparations for us before," De Niro said in a press conference, as quoted by a media outlet.

"We rehearsed every scene, of course, but it was all there — the dialogue was good," he said.

"It could have been corny or this or that, or pretentious or tendentious or whatever it would have been," added the actor, known for his work in films like Taxi Driver (1976), Raging Bull (1980), The King of Comedy (1982), and Once Upon a Time In America (1984).

In addition to De Niro and Bassett, the cast includes Joan Allen as the former first lady, Lizzy Caplan as the ex-president's daughter, and other main cast members such as Jesse Plemons, Connie Britton, Dan Stevens, and Matthew Modine.

Leslie Linka Glatter, whose credits include "Homeland," "Pretty Little Liars," and "Mad Men," directed all six episodes set in New York and Washington DC.

Glatter emphasized the unique experience of filming in New York City, highlighting the energy of the streets and the authenticity it brought to the production.

She noted that while the story is also rooted in Washington, DC, and reflects broader American themes, filming in New York made the city itself a character. #