Empire | |
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Genre | Historical drama |
Written by | Sara B. Cooper Chip Johannessen |
Directed by | John Gray Kim Manners |
Starring | Santiago Cabrera Vincent Regan Emily Blunt James Frain Jonathan Cake |
Country of origin | United States Canada |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 1 |
No. of episodes | 6 |
Production | |
Production locations | Rome, Lazio, Italy |
Production companies | Storyline Entertainment Touchstone Television |
Original release | |
Network | ABC |
Release | June 28 – July 26, 2005 |
Empire is an American historical television series for ABC. It is an historical drama set in 44 BC Rome, and covers the struggle of a young Octavius (Santiago Cabrera), the nephew and heir of Julius Caesar, to become the first emperor of Rome. Octavius is helped in his quest by a fictitious gladiator called Tyrannus (Jonathan Cake).
The series, filmed entirely in Rome and South Central Italy, was directed by John Gray and Kim Manners, and was produced by Carrie Henderson and Nick Gillott (episodes 4 and 6). It was written by Sara B. Cooper, Chip Johannessen, Tom Wheeler and William Wheeler.
Camane, a Vestal Virgin, is the only one of her order to see visions of the future. Desperate to avoid the carnage she foresees, Camane sneaks out of the temple to warn Julius Caesar, his sister Atia, and nephew Octavius. Ignoring Atia and Octavius's pleas to heed the warning, Caesar returns to the Senate, and is murdered by the senators, who fear his increasing power and popularity amongst the citizens of Rome. In the process, the conspirators lose the support of Mark Antony, who is appalled at their treachery. The assassination attempt succeeds because Tyrannus, a former gladiator who serves as Caesar's bodyguard, was distracted by the kidnapping of his young son, Piso, by a group of hired assassins. Tyrannus manages to rescue Piso but returns to a fatally wounded Caesar, who lives long enough to tell him that Octavius is his chosen successor and orders Tyrannus to protect him.
Tyrannus sends his wife and son away and then leaves Rome with Octavius to protect him from assassination. Outside Rome they begin to seek allies who are willing to overthrow the senate. To Octavius, Mark Antony appears a willing and eager supporter of his cause and the two quickly become close allies. Antony verbally agrees to join Octavius and even signs a document stating that Octavius has the support of his troops should he die; Octavius makes the naïve mistake of offering Antony leadership if he himself should perish. It is after this agreement that Antony's true intentions are made known when he attempts to have Octavius killed. Antony almost succeeds but the weak and poisoned Octavius is saved by a young Marcus Agrippa. Camane, having seen the danger in her visions, arrives and saves Octavius' life by getting the poison out of him. It is then revealed that Camane has fallen in love with Octavius through her visions.
Once recovered, Octavius, Agrippa, and a few companions make for Gaul, where Octavius aims to enlist the help of his uncle's former Legio III Gallica (Third Legion). According to the story, the Third Legion was disgraced in battle and Julius Caesar had one in every ten men killed (decimation). The survivors have remained in the Italian hinterlands ever since, living as bandits and are known as the Lost Legion. At first these men want to avenge themselves by killing Octavius but Octavius manages to win their support with the help of Cicero.
Tyrannus' wife has died and Piso has been adopted by a noble family on the island to which they fled. Thinking Octavius dead and desiring to be able to afford the opportunity to raise his son, Tyrannus joins with Mark Antony as a centurion. As a centurion Tyrannus has the means to educate and raise his son as a nobleman but finds the soldiers under his command to be suspicious of him and upset at being subordinate to this low-born gladiator. After he saves one of his men from being killed, an act that nearly costs him his life, Tyrannus earns the respect of his men. Mark Antony, having allied himself with the Senate, hears of Octavius's survival and moves quickly to intercept him before he can gain too large a following. Antony's army is superior in size to that of Octavius, and it includes the men under command of Tyrannus.
In the ensuing battle, Octavius rallies his troops, despite being outnumbered. They begin to lose ground and Antony appears to have won. At that moment Tyrannus and his men change sides and turn the tide of battle. As the conflict closes Mark Antony is disarmed but Octavius shows him mercy. For her assistance, Octavius appoints Camane matriarch of the order of Vesta, and she cries as she realized that she shall never be with him. Octavius appears unmoved. The saddened Camane relates that Tyrannus vanished from the pages of history, having given up a life of renewed glory at Octavius's side to raise Piso and live a normal life.
No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
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1 | "Pilot" | Kim Manners, Greg Yaitanes | Tom Wheeler, Sara B. Cooper, Chip Johannessen | June 28, 2005 |
2 | "Will" | Greg Yaitanes | Chip Johannessen | June 28, 2005 |
3 | "Arkham" | John Gray | William Wheeler | July 5, 2005 |
4 | "The Hunt" | Kim Manners | Sara B. Cooper | July 12, 2005 |
5 | "Fortune's Fool" | John Gray | Tom Wheeler | July 19, 2005 |
6 | "The Lost Legion" | Kim Manners | Tom Wheeler | July 26, 2005 |
Great liberties are taken with the story with many cuts and much time-compression:[ citation needed ]
The series has received a mixed response, with many film critics giving negative reviews. The drama has been criticized for its lack of historical accuracy and tendency to portray the characters in a simplistic way as either "good guys" or "bad guys".
Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus, also known as Octavian, was the founder of the Roman Empire. He reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. The reign of Augustus initiated an imperial cult, as well as an era associated with imperial peace in which the Roman world was largely free of armed conflict. The Principate system of government was established during his reign and lasted until the Crisis of the Third Century.
Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa was a Roman general, statesman and architect who was a close friend, son-in-law and lieutenant to the Roman emperor Augustus. Agrippa is well known for his important military victories, notably the Battle of Actium in 31 BC against the forces of Mark Antony and Cleopatra. He was also responsible for the construction of some of the most notable buildings of his era, including the original Pantheon.
Marcus Antonius, commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic from a constitutional republic into the autocratic Roman Empire.
Year 43 BC was either a common year starting on Sunday, Monday or Tuesday or a leap year starting on Sunday or Monday of the Julian calendar and a common year starting on Monday of the Proleptic Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Pansa and Hirtius. The denomination 43 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Year 44 BC was either a common year starting on Sunday, common year starting on Monday, leap year starting on Friday, or leap year starting on Saturday. and a common year starting on Sunday of the Proleptic Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Julius Caesar V and Marc Antony. The denomination 44 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
This article concerns the period 49 BC – 40 BC.
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The War of Mutina was a civil war between the Roman Senate and Mark Antony in Northern Italy. It was the first civil war after the assassination of Julius Caesar. The main issue of the war were attempts by the Senate to resist Antony's forceful assumption of the strategically important provinces of Transalpine and Cisalpine Gaul from their governors. The Senate, led by Cicero and the consuls, attempted to woo Julius Caesar's heir to fight against Antony. Octavian, however, would pursue his own agenda.