Genre Historical fiction | Original language(s) English | |
Starring Jodie ComerJacob Collins-LevyEssie DavisMichelle Fairley Country of origin United StatesUnited Kingdom Executive producer(s) Emma FrostPhilippa GregoryColin CallenderScott HuffMichele Buck | ||
The White Princess is an upcoming British-American historical fiction television series for Starz, based on Philippa Gregory's 2013 novel of the same name. It is a sequel to The White Queen, a 2013 BBC-produced miniseries adapting three of Gregory's previous novels.
Contents
The eight episode series sees England ostensibly united by the marriage of Elizabeth of York and Henry VII, but their individual and partisan rift runs deep, and the war that furies between them portends to tear the kingdom apart again.
Cast
Development
The 10-part 2013 television series The White Queen adapted Gregory's previous novels The White Queen (2009), The Red Queen (2010) and The Kingmaker's Daughter (2012). The series was broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom and on Starz in the United States, and features Freya Mavor as a young Elizabeth of York. Despite initial plans for a second series, on 20 August 2013 the BBC announced they were not commissioning one, possibly due to the lukewarm reception the series received.
However, in October 2013,The Telegraph reported that Starz was planning to develop a sequel miniseries called The White Princess, based on Gregory's novel. Starz CEO Chris Albrecht announced in January 2014 that the network was working with White Queen screenwriter Emma Frost on the project. Starz would produce the White Princess miniseries without involvement from the BBC. Gregory confirmed that the project was underway in August 2015. On 7 February 2016, Gregory announced on Facebook that the sequel was officially confirmed to be in production, with the scripts being written. The series was confirmed to be eight episodes in May 2016.
Casting
Jodie Comer was cast in the title role of Elizabeth of York in April 2016, with Michelle Fairley added as Margaret Beaufort in May. In June 2016, Starz announced the casting of Essie Davis as Dowager Queen Elizabeth, Jacob Collins-Levy as Henry VII, Suki Waterhouse as Cecily of York, Rebecca Benson as Margaret Plantagenet, and Joanne Whalley as Margaret, Duchess of Burgundy. The remaining cast includes Caroline Goodall as Duchess Cecily, Kenneth Cranham as Bishop Morton, Vincent Regan as Jasper Tudor. and Rhys Connah as Teddy Plantagenet.
Production
Production on The White Princess began in June 2016, with locations including Bradford on Avon, Bristol including Berkeley Castle and Gloucester Cathedral and in other areas of England including the historic city of Wells, Somerset.
Jamie Payne, who directed three episodes of The White Queen, is directing episodes 1, 2, 3, 7 and 8. Frost is showrunner and executive producer. Lachlan MacKinnon is serving as producer, with Gregory as executive producer. Playground’s Colin Callender and Scott Huff are serving as executive producers with Company Pictures' Michele Buck. In early January, 2017, the producers released a video clip from the series as a teaser trailer.
Marketing
In February 2017, Starz announced that The White Princess would premiere on April 16, 2017.