On Wednesday, Apple TV+ revealed the trailer for “Franklin,” a limited series starring Oscar and Emmy winner Michael Douglas as Benjamin Franklin. The historical drama premieres on April 12.
The series is set at a pivotal moment in the founding father’s life. He’s in France in 1776, trying to secure the court of Louis XVI’s support for the revolution. There are untrustworthy people all around him, so it’s a dangerous diplomatic chess game he has to play. The series, which is based on historical biographer Stacy Schiff’s book “A Great Improvisation: Franklin, France, and the Birth of America,” presents Franklin’s story as a kind of political thriller.
In addition to Douglas, who also executive produces, the cast includes Noah Jupe (“A Quiet Place”) as Temple Franklin, Benjamin’s teenage grandson who served as his secretary during the diplomatic mission; Thibault de Montalembert (“Call My Agent!”) as French foreign minister Comte de Vergennes; Daniel Mays (“Line of Duty”) as British spy Edward Bancroft; Ludivine Sagnier (“Lupin”) as Madame Brillon, a musician whose salon is Franklin’s home away from home; Eddie Marsan (“Ray Donovan”) as revolutionary leader John Adams; Assaad Bouab (“Call My Agent!”) as French revolutionary Beaumarchais; Jeanne Balibar (“Irma Vep”) as salon manager Madame Helvetius; and Theodore Pellerin (“There’s Someone Inside Your House”) as the young French military officer Marquis de Lafayette. The whole series is written by Kirk Ellis and Howard Korder, and the first episode is directed by Tim Van Patten.
At the Television Critics Association press tour in February, Douglas said that he was drawn to “Franklin” because, in his nearly 60-year career, he had never starred in a period drama. “I wanted to see how I look in tights,” he joked. “Thank God I didn’t have to wear a wig.”
“We had a great cast [and a] wonderful director in Tim Van Patten,” Douglas said. “I think it helped us in the sense that it was a real ensemble group. I think we all wanted to stay away from these sorts of historical pictures that are giving you a history lesson but don’t really get into the intrigue, the gamesmanship, and the gamble that we had sort of talked about early on.”
“Franklin” premieres with the first three episodes Friday, April 12 on Apple TV+.
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