Paramount+ takes a dive into Tudor history with its three-part drama about Anne Boleyn.
When we begin this fresh take on one of history’s most complex and intriguing figures, we are forewarned that it is based on truth and lies.
Anne (Jodie Turner-Smith) has been Queen for two and a half years, has provided King Henry VIII (Mark Stanely) with one daughter, Elizabeth, has had two miscarriages, and is now pregnant again. She is the most powerful woman in England, and she has just five months left to live.
She’s not the Anne we are used to seeing in other portrayals that come to mind as her being a scheming person. Here, she care about her people, going as far to help support an English translation of the bible so that her subjects can read the word of God in their own tongue. She’s earned that privilege because she can produce a male heir, a fact she’s reminded of by Thomas Cromwell (Barry Ward) in a tense exchange.
While we all know Anne’s fate, this doesn’t stop us from investing in the journey as Jodie Turner-Smith gives a compelling performance as she Anne navigates a crumbling marriage when Henry starts to look for wife number three in Lady-In-Waiting Jane Seymour (Lol Petticrew).
Creator Eve Hedderwick Turner tells Anne Boleyn through the historical figure’s eyes and it’s a bold move that succeeds. Anne’s sharp, powerful and not at all like you’d expect.
3 Stars
Anne Boleyn premiers on Paramount+ on Wednesday
