Carnival Row
Carnival Row is an American neo-noir fantasy web television series created by René Echevarria and Travis Beacham that premiered on Amazon Prime Video on August 30, 2019. The series stars Orlando Bloom, Cara Delevingne, Simon McBurney, Tamzin Merchant, David Gyasi, Andrew Gower, Karla Crome, Arty Froushan, Indira Varma, and Jared Harris. In July 2019, it was announced that Amazon had renewed Carnival Row for a second season.
Premise
Carnival Row follows "mythical creatures who have fled their war-torn homeland and gathered in the city as tensions are simmering between citizens and the growing immigrant population." At the center of the drama is the investigation into a string of unsolved murders, madness of power, unresolved love, and social adjustments eating away at whatever uneasy peace exists.Cast and characters
Main
- Orlando Bloom as Rycroft Philostrate, an Inspector of the Burgue Constabulary, investigating a dark conspiracy at the heart of the city. A veteran of the war, he sympathizes with the fae to the disgust of many of his colleagues.
- Cara Delevingne as Vignette Stonemoss, a fae and Philo's former lover who believed him to be dead following a war. She falls in with a group of fae ruffians known as the Black Raven while dealing with her complicated feelings for Philo.
- Simon McBurney as Runyon Millworthy, a human street performer and master of a troupe of kobolds.
- Tamzin Merchant as Imogen Spurnrose, an heiress who becomes involved with Agreus to support her lifestyle.
- David Gyasi as Agreus Astrayon, a wealthy faun shunned by Burgue high society for his appearance and origin.
- Andrew Gower as Ezra Spurnrose, Imogen's brother whom she blames for mishandling the family finances and driving them into debt.
- Karla Crome as Tourmaline Larou, Vignette's friend and former lover, Poet Laureate of Tirnanoc, and a courtesan at the Tetterby Hotel in Carnival Row.
- Arty Froushan as Jonah Breakspear, Absalom's son who rebels against his controlling father.
- Indira Varma as Piety Breakspear, Absalom's manipulative wife who seeks to enshrine her family's legacy.
- Jared Harris as Absalom Breakspear, the Chancellor of the Republic of the Burgue.
Recurring
- Caroline Ford as Sophie Longerbane, the power-seeking daughter of Ritter Longerbane.
- Alice Krige as Aoife Tsigani, a Haruspex in the service of Piety Breakspear.
- Ariyon Bakare as Darius Sykes, Philo's old friend and a former soldier of the Burgue now held in captive luxury due to having been cursed as a Marrok during the war.
- Maeve Dermody as Portia Fyfe, Philo's landlady whose romantic advances he frequently rebuffs.
- Jamie Harris as Sergeant Dombey, a constable under the rank of sergeant known to harbor racist beliefs against the Fae and despises Philo for sympathizing with them.
- Waj Ali as Constable Berwick, Philo's timid partner who nevertheless remains loyal to him.
- James Beaumont as Constable Cuppins, a constable who finds Philo's interest in the Fae unnatural.
- Tracey Wilkinson as Afissa, the "Puck" housemaid and cook to the Spurnroses.
- Anna Rust as Fleury, a Pix courtesan at Moira's brothel.
- Mark Lewis Jones as Magistrate Flute, the head constable in the Burgue who urges solidarity amongst his officers and frequently butts heads with Philo over his concern for the Fae's welfare.
- Leanne Best as Madame Moira, the proprietor of The Tetterby Hotel, which she uses as a brothel.
- Theo Barklem-Biggs as Cabal, a "Puck" malcontent seeking to bring his brethren together.
- Ronan Vibert as Ritter Longerbane, Sophie's father, Absalom Breakspear's primary political opponent, and longtime advocate of Fae subjugation.
- Chloe Pirrie as Dahlia, the ruthless Fae leader of the Black Raven.
- Scott Reid as Quilliam, a "Puck" footman, unjustly dismissed by the Chancellor, who turns to radicalism.
- Sinead Phelps as Jenila, Sophie Longerbane's "Puck" lady's maid.
- Jim High as Fergus, a human servant in Mr. Agreus' household.
- Erika Starkova as Aisling Querelle, Philo's mother and a once-famous Pix singer turned to the life of a scavenger.
Episodes
Production
Development
On January 9, 2015, it was announced that Amazon had signed a development deal for the series which, at the time had Guillermo del Toro on board as a co-writer, executive producer, and director. The series, set to be co-written by del Toro, Travis Beacham, and Rene Echeverria, is based on a feature film spec script written by Beacham, entitled A Killing on Carnival Row. The company ordered three scripts with the expectation that if the series went into production del Toro would direct the first episode. On June 6, 2016, it was reported that the production had been given a pilot order with the previously announced creative team still set to be involved.On May 10, 2017, it was announced that the production had been given a series order with Beacham and Echeverria still executive producing, and with Echeverria expected to act as showrunner. It was also announced that filmmaker Paul McGuigan would be directing the series. By this point, del Toro had stepped away from the project, as his feature film schedule did not permit him to stay on as an executive producer as the project moved forward. On November 10, 2017, it was announced that filmmaker Jon Amiel had replaced McGuigan as director.
On June 3, 2019, it was announced that the series would premiere on August 30, 2019.
In July 2019, it was announced that Amazon had renewed the series for a second season.
Casting
In August 2017, it was announced that Orlando Bloom and Cara Delevingne had been cast in the series' two lead roles. On September 22, 2017, it was reported that David Gyasi, Karla Crome, Indira Varma, and Tamzin Merchant had joined the main cast. In October 2017, it was announced that Simon McBurney, Alice Krige, and Jared Harris had been cast in recurring roles. On November 3, 2017, it was reported Ariyon Bakare was joining the series in a recurring capacity. On December 15, 2017, it was announced that Andrew Gower and Jamie Harris had been cast in recurring roles. On January 30, 2018, it was reported that Scott Reid had joined the cast as a series regular. On October 8, 2018, it was reported that Anna Rust had joined the cast in a recurring capacity.Filming
The series spent almost five months in pre-production before filming began. The series was shot entirely in the Czech Republic throughout 108 shooting days. Principal photography began in October 2017. In February 2018, it was reported that the series was filming in Prague. Much of the work was done at the Barrandov Studios in Prague, while locations included the city of Liberec, the chateaux in Frýdlant and Krnsko, and at the Prachov Rocks area. Filming for the first season concluded on March 14, 2018.Production on the second season commenced in November 2019, but stopped in March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. As of the first week of May, preparations for resumption of production were underway.
Reception
Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, Carnival Row holds a 55% approval rating based on 60 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Beautiful, but bloated, Carnival Row boasts meticulously crafted mythology and luscious world building—unfortunately its story of haves and have nots simply has too much going on to create anything cohesive." On Metacritic, the series has a weighted average score of 58 out of 100, based on 19 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".Sam Brooks of the New Zealand-based The Spinoff noted that the premise of the show is "a mish-mash of influences and inspirations, from Neil Gaiman to Mortal Engines ".