‘The Serpent Queen’ Canceled; Starz In Talks For Queen Elizabeth I Spinoff Starring Minnie Driver

EXCLUSIVE: Starz is not proceeding with a third season of The Serpent Queen, starring Samantha Morton as Catherine de Medici. But it’s not all bad news for the cast of the historic drama series: I hear their options had been picked up so the actors will be paid for the unproduced Season 3 episodes.

There is also good news for the loyal fans of The Serpent Queen — a spinoff centering on Queen Elizabeth The First is in the works from the same creative team of writer/executive producer Justin Haythe and executive producer Erwin Stoff, sources said. No talent is currently attached, but Minnie Driver guest starred as the British Queen in Season 2 of Serpent Queen and is expected to reprise her role, I hear.

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The cancellation decision comes a little over a month after Season 2 of The Serpent Queen ended its run on Starz. Both seasons have been well received, scoring 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and landing on multiple Top 10 lists. But the series, possibly hurt by the long, almost two-year gap between seasons, returned to lower viewership as some of the fans who had helped it land a Season 2 renewal ahead of the Season 1 finale in October 2022 did not come back.

With the options on the cast coming up in March, Starz and The Serpent Queen studio Lionsgate TV exercised them, sources said. Likely bullish on the series’ chances, they also had commissioned scripts for a second season, along with a script for a potential Queen Elizabeth I spinoff, I hear.

Both The Serpent Queen and the proposed spinoff fit into Starz’s programming focus on female agency and complex characters targeting adult female audiences.

The Serpent Queen, based on the book Catherine de Medici: Renaissance Queen of France by Leonie Frieda, is a contemporary spin on the life of Catherine, who against all odds became one of the most powerful and longest-serving rulers in French history.

Season 2 ended with the events of the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre, which I hear Starz brass ultimately felt provided a satisfactory conclusion of Catherine’s story for fans.

The cast also included Amrita Acharia, Barry Atsma, Enzo Cilenti, Sennia Nanua and Kiruna Stamell.

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