‘Becoming Elizabeth’ future confirmed: Is Season 2 cancelled?
We’ve got some bad news for fans of Becoming Elizabeth!
The period drama series premiered on Starz this summer, starring Alicia von Rittberg as the young Elizabeth Tudor, daughter of King Henry VIII.
Becoming Elizabeth received mostly positive reviews upon its debut in June, with Hollywood Reporter saying it turned “a centuries-old tale into something both timeless and fresh.”
Sadly, Deadline reports that the show “failed to capture audiences meaningfully,” only averaging a rather disappointing 136,000 viewers for the season.
Apparently this audience wasn’t “within the ad-friendly 18-49 demographic,” so the inevitable decision by Starz won’t come as a huge surprise.
Yes, Becoming Elizabeth has been officially cancelled by Starz after just one season.
It’s always sad to lose a period drama series, and Becoming Elizabeth boasted a great cast of British actors.
Call the Midwife star Jessica Raine was playing Henry’s widow Catherine Parr, while Tom Cullen (Downton Abbey) was Thomas Seymour, Romola Garai (The Hour) played Henry’s eldest child Mary, and Bella Ramsey (Catherine Called Birdy) appeared as Lady Jane Grey.
If you missed Becoming Elizabeth when it aired, you can catch up on all eight episodes with a free 7-day trial of Starz here!
Showrunner Anya Reiss had previously revealed her exciting plans for Season 2.
She’d hinted: “We have a plan. Edward’s not even dead, so we have a lot of story, a lot of room.”
Reiss said: “I’m genuinely devastated that I’ve lost some of my [characters]. I went to write a scene without Somerset, and I was like, “How?” But I’m really excited about the room that opens up for us and opening up peoples’ families and seeing a little bit more of their home lives.”
Luckily, there’s more Tudor drama coming in 2023 in a new movie about Catherine Parr!
Firebrand began shooting earlier this year, starring Alicia Vikander (The Danish Girl) and Jude Law (Fantastic Beasts).
Becoming Elizabeth is available to watch on Amazon Prime Video.