The Winter King wants to honor “the spirit” of Bernard Cornwell’s terrific novel
By Dan Selcke
The Winter King is a new medieval drama on MGM+. This one is based on The Warlord Chronicles by Bernard Cornwell, a trilogy about King Arthur that — full disclosure — I inhaled as a teenager and loved.
The show, so far, has been hit and miss for me, in large part because much of it doesn’t much resemble the books I remember. So I was interested in getting the perspective of executive producer Julie Gardner, who spoke to Newsweek about the series a couple weeks back. “We hope we’ve honored the spirit of the novel. That was hugely important to everyone involved,” she said. “One of our primary ambitions was to realize the intimate, human relationships that have made the Arthurian legends an enduring narrative over generations whilst also reaching for the epic.”
"Bernard Cornwell is a master storyteller; a master at historical fiction. In The Warlord Chronicles, Bernard not only dazzles in his worldbuilding but tells an intimate, emotionally epic story, full of the characters’ ambitions, sacrifices, failures and triumph.He is an incredible cheerleader and support. He has a light touch when it comes to the adaptation of his work. He trusts the ambitions of his collaborators. It was a thrill to have him join our table read and greet the work with enthusiasm and support. His approval is very important to us all."
The Winter King wanted to “get away from traditional ideas of Merlin”
I do get nervous when producers start talking about honoring “the spirit of the novel” rather than just…adapting the novel. I didn’t much like the first episode of The Winter King in part because it foregrounded Arthur (Iain De Caestecker) and Merlin (Nathaniel Martello-White) whereas the books put the spotlight on Derfel (Stuart Campbell), who kind of feels like he’s playing second banana in his own show. That said, I thought the second episode did a better job of sticking to the text, so hopefully things only improve from here.
“Iain, cast as Arthur, brings a quiet confidence to the role. I think he has a morality and stillness that is compelling,” Gardner said of her lead actor. “Nathaniel, I’d worked with before. I love how grounded and centered he is in his work. We wanted to get away from traditional ideas of Merlin or the wizard—usually he’s the white, bearded old man. In future seasons, I hope we can explore Merlin’s physical side, see him as the pagan-warrior.”
Another book-reader nerd rant coming: show-Merlin seems a little off to me too. In the books, he’s something of an eccentric old kook, an unpredictable guy as like to cause trouble as prevent it. That was a cool take on the character I hadn’t seen before. In the show so far, he’s kinda just…blandly competent. I hope he gets more personality as the series goes on.
The Winter King won’t try to compete with Game of Thrones
The Winter King is a historical fantasy show with a medieval milieu. That means it’s going to get compared to Game of Thrones, the biggest medieval fantasy show of the 21st century.
“Game of Thrones casts a long and great shadow,” Gardner said. “It’s a series I adored. It’s impossible to compete with the scale of that production. We’re a much more intimate offering. I’d hope that we can sit alongside it, find our own path and tone, offer an audience an escape into a new world far from the stresses of daily life in 2023.”
It’s more or less inevitable that any show with a sword or a knight in it these days gets compared to Game of Thrones, but The Warlord Chronicles are strong enough to stand on their own. I hope Gardner and company let them. “Bernard is meticulous in his research and detail. But alongside that, he is a great storyteller,” she said. “The Winter King has it all—betrayal, friendship, love, sacrifice.”
New episodes of The Winter King drop Sundays on MGM+.
Next. The Winter King improves in Episode 2 as it hews closer to Bernard Cornwell’s book. dark
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