Two and a half years after the debut of the Golden Globes® and Primetime Emmy®-nominated The White Queen, Starz has greenlit the miniseries’ sequel, The White Princess.
Starz had a massive hit with The White Queen, the first Original series for the pay cable network to attract more women (55%) than men viewers. It also consistently ranked in the top 10 cable shows for each premiere night.
Not only did viewers and critics adore the miniseries, the awards community did, too. The White Queen garnered a host of nominations, including three at the 2014 Golden Globes (Best Miniseries, Best Performance by an Actress for Rebecca Ferguson, and Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role for Janet McTeer) and four at the Primetime Emmys (Outstanding Miniseries, Musical Composition, Costumes, and Hairstyling).
With such accolades, it’s no wonder Starz greenlit The White Princess.
Said Carmi Zlotnik, Managing Director for Starz:
“There is a dearth of programming that tells women’s stories and ‘The White Queen’ was embraced with great success by audiences worldwide. The passionate fanbase for Philippa Gregory’s historical novels are undeniable and we are confident ‘The White Princess’ will become the next must-see fandom drama series.”
Adapted from the bestselling The White Princess, part of the “Cousins War” series of historical novels written by Philippa Gregory, the new Starz limited series drama tells the story of a fascinating period of British history from the perspective of the women.
The White Princess concludes the story of England’s War of the Roses and charts the rise of the House of Tudor through the tortuous marriage between Princess Elizabeth of York and King Henry Tudor.
The year is 1485 and Henry Tudor is King, having snatched the crown from Richard III in a surprise victory at the Battle of Bosworth. Elizabeth of York, the White Princess, is faced with marrying Henry, the man who has just killed her lover.
While Elizabeth’s mother, Dowager Queen Elizabeth, the White Queen, encourages her to marry to preserve the York claim of title and ensure her family’s safety, Henry’s mother, Margaret Beaufort, detests the idea, but knows it is the only way for her son to stay on the throne and unify a country divided by war.
In the court of Burgundy, the Duchess rules over a new enemy stronghold for disenfranchised Yorkists and all of Henry Tudor’s enemies. It is from here that a Pretender is mustering an army. He claims to be the brother to the Queen and the true heir to the throne, but is he really the missing prince from the tower sent by his mother, the White Queen, or a counterfeit prince — a low-born enemy to Henry Tudor and his York princess wife?
Princess Elizabeth must choose between being Tudor wife and York princess — between her new husband and baby son, and the boy who claims to be her beloved lost brother.
The White Princess is written by showrunner Emma Frost (The White Queen, The Man in the High Castle, Jamaica Inn), who serves as Executive Producer on the eight-part drama with Philippa Gregory. Lachlan MacKinnon (Burton and Taylor, Silent Witness, MI-5) is the Producer, and Playground Entertainment’s Colin Callender (The White Queen, The Missing, Wolf Hall) and Company Pictures’ Michele Buck (Inspector Lewis, Endeavour, Agatha Christie’s Poirot) are Executive Producers.
The new miniseries is currently in pre-production, with filming to take place on location in Bristol, UK. It will air on Starz in 2017.
__________________
Add your comments on our Facebook and Twitter pages.
Share this post/page.