They want to cuddle up beneath a blanket and watch a whole season of the TV all at once has been brought on by the arrival of fall. With the release of The Empress last week, a compelling new period drama created to fill the Bridgerton-shaped hole in your viewing schedule, Netflix certainly rose to the occasion.
If you don’t mind spoilers for potential future seasons, you may learn more about the real-world Duchess Elisabeth of Bavaria’s early life if you’re interested. She was an Austrian empress famous for both her beauty and her remarkably terrible life. Devrim Lingnau, a German actress, plays 16-year-old Elisabeth, also known as “Sisi,” in the television series. Phillip Froissant plays Emperor Franz Joseph, who breaks off his engagement to Sisi’s sister to wed her. After relocating to Vienna as the Emperor’s wife, Sisi quickly becomes involved in the plots and schemes of the court, all the while the nobility is heavily threatened by revolution.
So, will The Empress return for a second season? That hasn’t been confirmed as of yet. There’s no way to tell for sure how popular the program is since the streaming service is notorious for not disclosing viewership numbers, but based on social media chatter alone, it appears that many people are watching.
Lingnau and Froissant, along with other cast members including Melika Foroutan as Archduchess Sophie, Johannes Nussbaum as Archduke Maximilian, and Elisa Schlott as Helene, may be counted on to return in their leading roles if the program is renewed.
Season 1 ends on a crucial turning moment in Elisabeth’s rule and connection with the public, leaving plenty of room for future episodes. After learning about the extreme poverty experienced by many Austrian residents, the empress had grown more frustrated with the court and her husband in the second half of the season. After a severe argument with her mother-in-law, Elisabeth is about to leave the royal life and go back to Bavaria when she learns that she is pregnant and makes the announcement to the world.
This conclusion leaves a lot of exciting options for season 2 given how Elisabeth and Franz’s relationship had soured and the growing opposition to the court. Crossing our fingers for further news shortly.