This 96%-Rated Period Drama Cancellation Was The Biggest Mistake Hulu Ever Made
And there’s still no clear reason why such a successful project was shut down.
We all love period dramas, right? And if you're a fan of this genre, which, let's face it, doesn't have many big-budget, high-quality projects, then you've probably at least heard of The Great, starring Elle Fanning as the future Empress Catherine of Russia.
This is the story of an independent woman in a man's world, who does not give up, but overcomes all obstacles and wins. The story of Sophia Augusta Frederica, who became the Empress Catherine the Great, is so unique that even many centuries later it can not only arouse the interest of outstanding authors, but also make an impression.
And that's exactly what happened, attracting the eminent author Tony McNamara. As he honestly says in all interviews, he was not focused on historical reality and facts, he was only interested in Catherine herself and her story. The Great first became a play and then a series released on Hulu after the success of the movie The Favorite, which McNamara wrote.
The Great Is an Almost Perfect Pseudo-Historical Drama
It is bold, unusually funny, daring and cheerful. More specifically, The Great is not only talentedly written by McNamara, but it is also an impeccably constructed and visually perfect show.
Palaces, amazing costumes and scenery, superbly filmed scenes take us straight back to the 18th century, something not every TV series today can achieve. Sometimes in The Great you won't find groundbreaking camera and artistic solutions (after all, this is not The Favorite), but in moments when the creators, for example, resort to a documentary style of filming, it can't fail to impress.
The Great Was Unexpectedly Canceled After Season 3
What do platforms do with highly rated series that we have come to love? That's right, they shut them down for no apparent reason. The third season of The Great, which became the last for the project, was released on Hulu in May, 2023 and told how Catherine and Peter work to save their marriage.
In total, McNamara expected to release six seasons of The Great. The reasons why the platform decided to cancel the project halfway are unclear, as all seasons of the show have received positive reviews from critics and viewers. In addition, the third season received the highest ratings compared to the previous two seasons.
The Great has received seven Emmy nominations since its release in 2020. The series currently has a score of 8.2 out of 10 on IMDb, and on Rotten Tomatoes, Season 3 of The Great has a 100% approval rating, with the overall series rating at an impressive 96%.
The finale of Season 3 marked the beginning of Catherine's reign without Peter, and fans hoped to see in Season 4 how Catherine would deal with the affairs of Russia in the status of Empress.
However, perhaps the reason for the cancellation of the series is that the creators decided that without the confrontation between Catherine and Peter, there was no point in continuing the project. In many ways, fans loved The Great because of the striking chemistry between Elle Fanning and Nicholas Hoult.
There’s More to See If You’re Elle Fanning Fan
So far, the cancellation of The Great looks like a big mistake for Hulu – the pseudo-historical series was one of the platform's most successful projects. But fortunately for fans of Elle Fanning, unlike The Great, she is not going anywhere.
Several potentially successful projects starring the actress have been announced. First, she will star with Timothée Chalamet in a biopic about Bob Dylan – she got the role of Sylvie Russo, an art student and part-time lover of Dylan, whom he dated in the early 1960s.
And secondly, the actress will star alongside Sarah Paulson in a movie about a woman with dissociative disorder, I Am Sybil.
Where to Stream The Great?
All three seasons of The Great are available on Hulu and Apple TV.