Everything We Know About HBO’s Catherine the Great
The fervor for royal period dramas shows no sign of cooling down: HBO recently announced a new miniseries focused on the tumultuous reign of Catherine the Great, Russia’s longest-ruling empress. The network has entrusted the role to none other than the Academy Award–winning actress Dame Helen Mirren, who made a regal red carpet entrance of her own at the series’s London premiere.
Catherine the Great is sure to be a sumptuous delight and one of fall TV’s biggest attractions, so here’s everything we know about the forthcoming series.
Who was the real-life Catherine the Great?
While television is sometimes criticized for overdramatizing reality, HBO seems to have plenty of source material to work with here. The real-life history behind the show is legendary: Catherine the Great was born Princess Sophie to the ruling family of a small German principality. Her marriage to her second cousin, Peter III (then the heir to the Russian throne), was a political maneuver, decided for her when she was just a child. At age 15 she left home to live at the Russian court, where she studied under her future husband’s aunt (and Russia’s monarch at the time), Empress Elizabeth. At 16, she converted to the Russian Orthodox Church and married.
Surviving historical documents suggest her time with Peter fell a great deal short of wedded bliss, so it’s perhaps no surprise that six months into Peter’s reign as emperor, Catherine successfully staged a military coup, dethroned her husband, and installed herself as Russia’s empress. A documented supporter of the Enlightenment, she fostered the development of the arts, sciences, and higher education in Russia. She also led government reform and played a key role in normalizing vaccines. Oh, and she was known for keeping no shortage of lovers. The series will follow the empress’s great romance with Russian military leader Grigory Potemkin (played by Jason Clarke).
Who’s in the cast?
The trailer (more on that in a second) indicates Mirren and Clarke will have the most screen time. Richard Roxburgh will play Grigory Orlov, another of Catherine’s lovers, while Joseph Quinn will play Catherine’s son, Prince Paul, and Gina McKee plays the empress’s lifelong friend and confidante, Countess Bruce.
When does Catherine the Great premiere?
Mark your calendars for the series premiere on October 21.
Is there a trailer?
Yes—you can take a look at Mirren in the role of Catherine the Great below. It shows Catherine clad in military garb as well as full court finery, and it spotlights the mettle that doubtless elevated Catherine to her station. “I have survived in a world that does not want me,” she warns. “It would be a terrible mistake to go against me.”
Originally Appeared on Vogue
