Marie Antoinette (TV series)

Marie Antoinette is a historical drama television series created and written by Deborah Davis. It is produced by the BBC and Canal+ and based on the life of the last queen of France before the French Revolution, who was 14 years old when she became Dauphine of France upon her marriage to the heir apparent, Louis-Auguste.

Marie Antoinette
Genre
Created by
Written by
Directed by
Starring
Music by
  • Guillaume Roussel
Country of origin
  • France
  • United Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes8 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
  • Aude Albano
  • Margaux Balsan
  • Stéphanie Chartreux
  • Claude Chelli
  • Alban Etienne
  • Deborah Davis
  • Christophe Toulemonde
Production locationVersailles Studios de Bry-Sur-Marne
Production companies
Release
Original network
Original release29 December 2022 (2022-12-29) –
present (present)

The first series premiered in France on 31 October 2022 and in the UK on 29 December, and consists of eight episodes. The series premiered in the United States on 19 March 2023 on PBS. German actress Emilia Schüle plays the title role.[2] A second series has been commissioned.

Cast

Production

Development

After the final season of Versailles aired, it was announced that Canal+ had commissioned Deborah Davis to write an eight-part series centred on Marie Antoinette.[3] Alongside Banijay Studios and CAPA Drama the French production company planned to create an English language series with the aim to distribute to a wide international audience in a similar fashion to Versailles.[4] In October 2021, it was announced that the BBC had pre-bought the series and the British broadcaster would be part of the production and distribution process.[5] Vogue and Variety reported that the series is being created by an all-female writing team and would offer a "feminist take" on Marie Antoinette's life.[6]

On 17 March 2023, Variety revealed that a second season had been commissioned with Davis as creator and a writing team led by Louise Ironside alongside Charlotte Wolf, Francesca Forristal and Andrew Bambfield. Ed Bazalgette will direct the first four episodes. "The upcoming season will portray how the royal couple at the height of their power faced an unprecedented financial crisis. The incessant attacks of Provence and Chartres against the royal couple stirred up the hatred of the nobles with disastrous consequences".[7]

Casting

Casting was announced in September 2021 with Schüle attached to play the lead role.[8] She was joined by an international cast including Louis Cunningham, Jack Archer, Jasmine Blackborow, Gaia Weiss, James Purefoy, Marthe Keller, Roxane Duran, Crystal Shepherd-Cross, Caroline Piette, Oscar Lesage, Liah O'Prey, Jonas Bloquet, Nathan Willcocks, Paul Bandey, Laura Benson and Yoli Fuller.[9][10][11]

Filming

In September 2021 it was announced filming had begun. Variety and Deadline reported that alongside the studios of Bry-Sur-Marne, filming would take place at locations that include the Châteaux of Versailles, Vaux-le-Vicomte, Palace of Fontainebleau, Lésigny, Champs and Voisins.[2][12]

Release

Marie Antoinette premiered on the French network Canal+ in October 2022.[13] The following month the series was distributed through BBC First in Australia and released on streamers Foxtel and Binge.[14][15] Banijay also announced PBS had pre-bought the series with a planned spring 2023 release.[16] The American premiere was later confirmed to be 19 March 2023.[17]

The series made its UK debut on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer on 29 December 2022.[18]

The series will be available in Germany on Disney+ from 21 June 2023.[19]

Episodes

Series 1
No.TitleDirected byWritten byUK air dateUS air date[20]
1"The Slap"Pete TravisDeborah Davis29 December 2022 (2022-12-29)[21]19 March 2023
2"Rival Queens"Pete TravisLouise Ironside5 January 2023 (2023-01-05)[22]26 March 2023
3"Pick a Princess"Pete TravisDeborah Davis & Avril Russell12 January 2023 (2023-01-12)[23]2 April 2023
4"Queen of France"Pete TravisChloe Moss19 January 2023 (2023-01-19)[24]9 April 2023
5"Rebel Queen"Geoffrey EnthovenDeborah Davis26 January 2023 (2023-01-26)[25]16 April 2023
6"Deus ex Machina"Geoffrey EnthovenLouise Ironside2 February 2023 (2023-02-02)[26]23 April 2023
7"The Ostrich Bitch"Geoffrey EnthovenChloe Moss9 February 2023 (2023-02-09)[27]30 April 2023
8"Queen of Hearts"Geoffrey EnthovenDeborah Davis16 February 2023 (2023-02-16)[28]7 May 2023

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 60% of 10 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.9/10.[29] The Guardian gave the series four out of five, complimenting Schüle's performance and commenting "Strange, funny, grotesque in places ... this drama from the writer of the Olivia Colman movie portrays the French queen as a naive and playful teenager – and it's hugely entertaining".[30] Both TV Times and Weekend magazine gave five out of five, with the latter stating the series "weaves an extravagant tapestry of excess and intrigue".[31][32]

The Telegraph gave three out of five, stating "after eight effervescent hours [Marie Antoinette] concludes in dynastic triumph" but "this is obviously not history".[33] The Financial Times also gave three out of five, concluding that "for all the fastidious details of the ambitious production, Marie Antoinette can at times feel like an indulgent serving of cake, when what we crave is a bit more of the bread-and-butter of storytelling".[34] The Evening Standard was more critical with a two-out-of-five review describing it as "a standard traditional period drama weighed down by expectation".[35]

Variety featured the show as one of its critic picks for Best International Series of 2022, describing Schüle's performance as "riveting".[36]

References
  1. "'Marie Antoinette' Cast and Crew". Cineserie. 20 October 2022. Retrieved 20 October 2022.
  2. "'Marie Antoinette' Drama Series From 'The Favourite' Writer Enters Production". Variety. 30 September 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  3. "Canal + series on Marie-Antoinette by the producers of Versailles". Allocine. 30 September 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  4. "After "Versailles", Canal + is preparing a series on Marie-Antoinette". Ozap. 30 September 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  5. "BBC Swoops on 'Marie Antoinette' From 'The Favourite' Writer Deborah Davis". Variety. 30 September 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  6. "A Lavish New TV Series Will Offer A Feminist Take On Marie Antoinette's Life". Vogue. 30 September 2021.
  7. "Marie Antoinette, Canal+'s Lavish Costume Drama, Renewed for Season 2 (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. 17 March 2023.
  8. ""Marie-Antoinette", the next historic series from Canal +, is revealed with a first image". Vanity Fair. 8 September 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  9. "'Marie Antoinette' Series From 'The Favourite' Writer Underway For Canal+ & Banijay". Deadline. 8 September 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  10. "Marie-Antoinette, the new Original Canal + Creation". VL-Media. 8 September 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  11. British Period Dramas (4 October 2021). "BBC acquires new 'Marie Antoinette' series from makers of 'Versailles'". British Period Dramas. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  12. "'Marie Antoinette' Series From 'The Favourite' Writer Underway For Canal+ & Banijay". Deadline. 30 September 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  13. "Marie-Antoinette (Canal+)". cnews. 14 September 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  14. "Banijay's 'Marie Antoinette' Licensed to BBC First in Australia". Variety. 22 July 2022. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
  15. "How to watch Marie Antoinette TV series in Australia". CompareTV. 11 November 2022. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
  16. "Canal + Drama 'Marie Antoinette' Sells to PBS Distribution". Variety. 16 October 2022.
  17. "'Marie Antoinette' to Premiere on PBS in March". inews. 17 November 2022. Retrieved 20 November 2022.
  18. "Christmas TV guide 2022: All the highlights of this year's TV schedule". inews. 10 December 2022. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  19. ""Marie-Antoinette": The series that is perfect for "Bridgerton" fans finally has a German start date!". Glamour (in German). 19 May 2023. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
  20. "Shows A-Z – Marie Antoinette on PBS". The Futon Critic. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  21. "Marie Antoinette, Series 1, The Slap". BBC. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  22. "Marie Antoinette, Series 1, Rival Queens". BBC. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  23. "Marie Antoinette, Series 1, Pick a Princess". BBC. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  24. "Marie Antoinette, Series 1, Queen of France". BBC. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  25. "Marie Antoinette, Series 1, Rebel Queen". BBC. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  26. "Marie Antoinette, Series 1, Deus Ex Machina". BBC. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  27. "Marie Antoinette, Series 1, The Ostrich Bitch". BBC. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  28. "Marie Antoinette, Series 1, Queen of Hearts". BBC. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  29. "Marie Antoinette". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
  30. "Marie Antoinette review – if you loved The Favourite, you'll adore this fun period drama". The Guardian. 30 December 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  31. "Marie Antoinette: The sofa hit of the season!". WeekendMagazine. 14 January 2023. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
  32. "Marie Antoinette is just one of the gems to watch tonight". WhatToWatch. 12 January 2023. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
  33. "Marie Antoinette, review: sex, snark and stropping – it's Love Island en Versailles". Telegraph. 29 December 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  34. "Marie Antoinette, BBC2 review — a commodity in search of compassion". Financial Times. 24 December 2022.
  35. "Marie Antoinette on BBC 2 review". The Evening Standard. 29 December 2022.
  36. "Best International TV Shows of 2022". Variety. 16 December 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
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