The Great (2020)

Genre

historical television series

Country

United Kingdom, United States

Length

3 seasons, 30 episodes

Rated

TV-MA

Rating

8.1 of 10 from 1,169 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A young German woman marries into the Russian court and decides to overthrow her erratic and childish husband, Emperor Peter III. The show follows her clumsy and bloody rise toward power in a version of history that is deliberately not accurate.

wittyirreverentfast-paceddarkly comicabsurdsatiricalbitinganachronistic

What happens

The Great (titled onscreen as The Great: An Occasionally True Story and in one episode as The Great: An Almost Entirely Untrue Story) is a British-American absurdist satirical dark comedy–drama historical fiction television series, very loosely based on the rise to power of Empress Catherine the Great of Russia. The series stars Elle Fanning as Catherine, and Nicholas Hoult as both Emperor Peter III and Peter's body double Yemelyan Pugachev. The Great was created, and mostly written, by Australian playwright and screenwriter Tony McNamara, based on his 2008 play of the same name. The series, which aired on Hulu, does not aim for historical accuracy; Hulu promotional materials described it as "anti-historical". All ten episodes of the first season were released on Hulu on May 15, 2020. In July 2020, it was renewed for a second season which premiered on November 19, 2021. In January 2022, the series was renewed for a third season which premiered on May 12, 2023. The first season received mostly positive reviews, while the second and third seasons received critical acclaim, with particular praise for its directing, writing, humor, costumes, and cast performances (particularly those of Fanning and Hoult). It has received numerous accolades, including seven Primetime Emmy Awards nominations, with both Fanning and Hoult being nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress and Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, respectively, in 2022. In August 2023, Hulu announced the series' third season had been its last. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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