The German Netflix series “The Empress” is in the top 10 of the streaming provider in 88 countries worldwide. It is currently by far the most successful non-English language production on the trend charts. The historical drama about the famous ruler and her love story has been available since September 29th. Each of the six episodes is around 60 minutes long.
The series is about Elisabeth “Sisi” (Devrim Lingnau, 24) and her love for Emperor Franz of Austria (Philip Froissant, 28), which shook the power structure of the Habsburgs at the time. At the latest when she becomes his wife, she sees herself completely woven into a web of intrigues at the Viennese court.
As early as 1955, the Austrian historical epic “Sissi” with Romy Schneider (1938-1982) in the leading role delighted an international audience. It is still one of the most successful German-language film productions ever. After the sequels “Sissi – the young empress” (1956) and “Sissi – fateful years of an empress” (1957), Schneider no longer wanted to play the role and only made three films. Even today, the strips – especially on public holidays or other occasions – run up and down on German television.
This does not seem to have escaped the makers of “The Empress”. Sisi actress Sevrim Lingnau praises the reinterpretation above all for the fusion between historical and current topics: “I feel addressed by it as a spectator,” she said in an interview.
Netflix is not the only streaming service that has dedicated a series to the legendary Empress Elisabeth of Austria. The first season of the RTL series “Sisi” took viewers’ hearts by storm in December 2021 and made the most successful fictional restart of all time on the streaming service. The broadcast of the second season is planned for the end of 2022 on RTL.
