Anthology series seem to be the TV du jour. Thanks to Ryan Murphy’s hugely successful “American Horror Story,” networks and streaming services are launching more and more anthology series featuring some of the biggest names around. Murphy, of course, also has “Feud” and “American Crime Story,” but he is joined by creators such as Jordan Peele (with no less than two anthologies coming soon) and Steven Spielberg.
And now, not to be outdone, “Mad Men” mastermind Matthew Weiner is looking to outdo them all with his star-studded, uniquely structured anthology series “The Romanoffs,” coming soon to Amazon Prime Video. The premise to the series, as seen in the new trailer, is unique in that each episode will feature a new story, new cast, and new location, but will all revolve around the titular Russian royal family. Each episode is produced, written, and directed by Weiner, marking the first time the creator has taken sole ownership of all those roles.
As mentioned, the biggest way that Weiner is attempting to outdo all other series on TV is with his incredible cast. Just to be thorough, and to prove our point, here’s the cast list, straight from Amazon: Academy Award-nominee Isabelle Huppert (Elle), Golden Globe Award-nominee Marthe Keller (Marathon Man), Aaron Eckhart (Sully), Academy Award-nominee Diane Lane (Unfaithful), Emmy Award-nominated Christina Hendricks (Mad Men), Emmy Award-nominated John Slattery (Mad Men), Amanda Peet (Togetherness), Jack Huston (Boardwalk Empire), Corey Stoll (The Strain), Grammy Award-winner Andrew Rannells (Girls), Mike Doyle (Odd Mom Out), JJ Feild (TURN: Washington’s Spies), Janet Montgomery (Salem, This Is Us), Emmy and Golden Globe Award-nominated Paul Reiser (Red Oaks), Noah Wyle (Falling Skies), Kathryn Hahn (Transparent), Kerry Bishé (Halt and Catch Fire), Jay R. Ferguson (Mad Men), Ben Miles (Collateral), Mary Kay Place (Big Love), Griffin Dunne (Imposters), Cara Buono (Mad Men), Ron Livingston (The Conjuring), Jon Tenney (Hand of God), Clea DuVall (Veep), Radha Mitchell (Silent Hill), Hugh Skinner (Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again), Juan Pablo Castañeda (The Debt of Maximillian), Emily Rudd (Electric Dreams), Adèle Anderson (Company Business), Annet Mahendru (The Americans), Louise Bourgoin (I Am a Soldier), Hera Hilmar (Two Birds), Inès Melab (Agathe Koltès), Michael O’Neill (Dallas Buyers Club) and David Sutcliffe (Gilmore Girls).
One thing of note, it’ll be interesting to see how audiences react to Weiner’s return to TV. The creator has been the subject of sexual harrassment allegations from his work on “Mad Men.” We’ll have to see if viewers are quick to forgive and forget, or if the controversies will be brought back to light as we approach the premiere.
READ MORE: Former ‘Mad Men’ Producer Marti Noxon Calls Matthew Weiner An “Emotional Terrorist”
The first two episodes of “The Romanoffs” premieres on Amazon Prime Video on October 12, with the remaining six episodes debuting weekly thereafter.
Here are the synopsis and new teaser:
From the creator of Mad Men, The Romanoffs is a contemporary anthology series set around the globe featuring eight separate stories about people who believe themselves to be descendants of the Russian royal family. Starring Aaron Eckhart, Diane Lane, Isabelle Huppert, Christina Hendricks, John Slattery, Amanda Peet, Jack Huston, Kathryn Hahn, Noah Wyle, Paul Reiser, Andrew Rannells and more.