Ron Howard has been teasing us with his plans for his espionage comedy Spy vs. Spy for more than a decade - even reportedly unveiling a star-studded cast including Ryan Gosling as ‘The Spy in Black’ and Tom Fetner as ‘The Spy in White’ (although some reports say Fetner made that up!).

Lately, Howard’s team is quieter than a spy placing a booby trap, so we’re tip-toeing around behind the scenes.

If you’re not familiar with the premise, Spy vs. Spy revolves around two secret agents entangled in a long-standing rivalry. The beaked spies satirize Cold War geopolitical tensions with absurd acts of sabotage, creating iconic symbols of US-Soviet brinkmanship. Here are three sneaky secrets about Spy vs. Spy.

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1. The Spy vs. Spy cartoonist was accused of spying

Antonio Prohías was a prominent Cuban cartoonist in the 1950s - even earning praise from former leader Fidel Castro. As his satirical attacks focused on Castro's communist regime though, Prohías was labeled a spy, leading to job losses. His career floundered and Prohías traded in the Havana heat for the vibrant chaos of New York in 1960. Even though he was celebrated at Cuba's grandest newspaper, El Mundo, Prohías was a complete unknown in America when he dropped by the MAD Magazine offices and won them over. He sold three strips on his first visit and the stage was set for Prohías's mad journey into the heart of American humor. 

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2. Spy vs. Spy is inspired by El Hombre Siniestro

Prohías had already crafted popular characters including the viciously funny El Hombre Siniestro - the precursor to the Spy vs. Spy characters engaged in wordless capers. There was a key distinction between Spy vs. Spy and El Hombre Siniestro (The Sinister Man) though. The two spies exclusively target each other, while El Hombre Siniestro - a dark and dastardly character - menaces anyone in his path. Both comic scripts were born out of the national psyche of the Cuban people. Interestingly, Prohías recycled some of El Hombre Siniestro's mischievous exploits in Spy vs Spy, creating a bridge between the two iconic series. 

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3. Prohías is gone but MAD isn’t!‍

Prohías, unable to speak English, excelled at drawing universally appealing characters whose actions spoke louder than words in a strip that carried a subversive commentary on the futility of war. Prohías continued drawing the strip until the late 1980s, with US comic illustrator Peter Kuper taking over in ‘97 and drawing the monthly Spy vs. Spy page for MAD Magazine. Even though Prohías died in 1998 and MAD stopped publishing regularly in 2019, Kuper is confident MAD will go on as long as there is madness in the world. “There was the un-American Activities Committee in 1954… And the only thing left standing was MAD,” Kuper told CBC Television. “I live in the United States where we just say whatever we want and you sort it out.”

The genius of Spy vs. Spy is that it skips the elaborate gadgets of high-concept espionage, opting instead to illuminate the petty, low-stakes reality of the spies' eternal struggle. So far, Spy vs. Spy has been turned into a comic strip, animated segments on MADTV, and a video game. Is Ron Howard finally going to deliver on the big screen or will this project blow sky high? Stay tuned. Boom!

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