Versailles (TV series)

Versailles
Genre	Biography, Drama, History
Created by	Simon Mirren; David Wolstencroft;
Written by	Simon Mirren; David Wolstencroft; Andrew Bampfield; Sasha Hails;
Directed by	Daniel Roby; Christoph Schrewe; Jalil Lespert; Thomas Vincent;
Starring	George Blagden; Alexander Vlahos; Tygh Runyan; Stuart Bowman; Amira Casar; Evan Williams; Noémie Schmidt; Anna Brewster; Sarah Winter;
Opening theme	"Outro" – M83
Composer(s)	Eduardo Noya Schreus
Country of origin	Canada; France;
Original language(s)	English; French;
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	10 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Jean Bureau; Claude Chelli; Simon Mirren; Benoit Runel; Anne Thomopoulos; David Wolstencroft;
Producer(s)	Aude Albano; Claude Albouze; Nathalie Juchet; Ian Whitehead;
Production location(s)	France; Canada;
Cinematography	Pierre-Yves Bastard;
Editor(s)	Mike Fromentin; Sarah Anderson; Jean-François Elie;
Running time	50-55 minutes approx
Production company(s)	Capa Drama; Incendo Productions; Zodiak Media Group;
Budget	27 million euros
Release
Original network	Canal+;
Picture format	16:9 SDTV; 1080i HDTV;
First shown in	France
Original release	16 November 2015 –; present
External links
	Official website

Versailles is a Franco-Canadian television series about the construction of Versailles Palace during the reign of Louis XIV that premiered on November 16, 2015 on Canal+ in France and Super Channel in Canada. A second season was already ordered ahead of the premiere.^[1] Filming for the second season will begin in January 2016 and its story will take place four years after that of the first season. The show will premiere in the U.S. on Ovation on October 1, 2016.^[2]

Synopsis

Versailles, 1667. Haunted by the trauma of the Fronde as the nobles of his court begin to rebel against the monarchy, 28-year-old Louis XIV (George Blagden), in a Machiavellian political move, decides to make the nobility submit by imposing a definite move of the court from Paris to Versailles, his father's former hunting lodge. Trapped by their king's "invitation", the nobles of Paris gradually come to see the castle as a gilded prison and soon even the most humble courtiers of the king begin to show their viciousness as the alcoves of secrets, politics and war are maneuvered through, revealing Versailles in all its glory and brutality.

Cast

Character	Actor
Louis XIV	George Blagden
Philippe I, Duke of Orléans	Alexander Vlahos
Maria Theresa of Spain	Elisa Lasowski
Alexandre Bontemps	Stuart Bowman
Fabien Marchal	Tygh Runyan
Anne of Austria	Dominique Blanc
Henrietta of England	Noémie Schmidt
Chevalier de Lorraine	Evan Williams
Béatrice Hiéronyme de Lorraine	Amira Casar
Françoise-Athénaïs, marquise de Montespan	Anna Brewster
Louise de La Vallière	Sarah Winter
Claudine	Lizzie Brocheré
Jean-Baptiste Colbert	Steve Cumyn
François-Michel le Tellier, Marquis de Louvois	Joe Sheridan
Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet	Geoffrey Bateman
André Le Nôtre	Thierry Harcourt

^[3]

Seasons

Season	Episodes	Season premiere	Season finale
Season 1	10	16 November 2015	14 December 2015

^[3]

International broadcast

Country	TV channel
France	Canal+
Spain	Canal+
Portugal	RTP1
Canada	Super Channel
United Kingdom	BBC Two
Germany	Sky Germany
Denmark	C More
Sweden	C More
Norway	C More
Finland	C More
Poland	NC+
Bulgaria	Btv
Belgium	VRT/ RTBF
New Zealand	SOHO SKY TV