EXCLUSIVE: The story of Alexander the Great is being given the docudrama treatment by Netflix.
Following on from the success of shows such as The Last Czars and African Queens, the streamer has over the past year been forging a big-budget retelling of the life of one of world history’s most notorious figures, which currently has a working title of Alexander the Great.
A crew of more than 100 people have been filming on-and-off in Morocco since last summer on the hybrid docudrama, which will feature both documentary and scripted elements. British indies Tailfeather Productions and Lion TV are behind the series and Tony Mitchell (Miss America) is showrunner.
Alexander the Great was King of the ancient Greek city of Macedon. He is widely considered to be one of history’s greatest and most successful military commanders and by the age of 30 had created one of the largest empires in history, stretching from Greece to northwest India. He left a major cultural legacy and his tactics have been studied for generations.
The ruler’s story has been told in a number of shows including the BBC and PBS’ In the Footsteps of Alexander the Great and ZDF/Arte/ORF mini-series Alexander the Great.
The commission comes with hybrid docudramas having a moment, and Netflix is one of the main proponents. The streamer aired the splashy Last Czars in 2019 and, earlier this year, dropped African Queens: Njinga, which is narrated by Jada Pinkett Smith and is planned to run for three seasons. Meanwhile, Sky History’s The Royal Mob docudrama is leading distributor eOne’s Mip TV slate.