Franklin is a 2024 biographical drama television miniseries about the United States Founding Father Benjamin Franklin, based on Stacy Schiff's 2005 book A Great Improvisation: Franklin, France, and the Birth of America. It was released on Apple TV+ on April 12, 2024. The series depicts the eight years Benjamin Franklin spent in France to convince King Louis XVI to support the burgeoning United States in the American Revolutionary War.
Contents
Cast
Main
Michael Douglas as Benjamin Franklin
Noah Jupe as William Temple Franklin
Daniel Mays as Edward Bancroft
Ludivine Sagnier as Anne Louise Brillon de Jouy
Thibault de Montalembert as Charles Gravier, comte de Vergennes
Assaad Bouab as Pierre Beaumarchais
Théodore Pellerin as Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette
Tom Hughes as Paul Wentworth
Jeanne Balibar as Anne-Catherine de Ligniville, Madame Helvétius
Eddie Marsan as John Adams
Recurring
Olivier Claverie as Jacques-Donatien Le Ray de Chaumont
Aïtor de Calvairac as Jacques "James" Le Ray de Chaumont
Lily Dupont as Cunégonde Brillon
Marc Duret as Monsieur Brillon
Ed Stoppard as John Jay
Jack Archer as Thomas Grenville
Gary Lewis as Richard Oswald
Tom Pezier as Louis XVI, King of France
Patrick Kennedy as Strachey
Guest
Florence Darel as Therese Chaumont
Olivier Rabourdin as Jean-Charles-Pierre Lenoir
Yves Heck as Royal Chamberlain
Maria Dragus as Marie Antoinette
John Hollingworth as David Murray, Lord Stormont
Romain Brau as Chevalier d'Éon
Production
It was announced in February 2022 that Michael Douglas would star in the series as Benjamin Franklin for Apple TV+, with Kirk Ellis writing the series and Tim Van Patten directing. In June 2022, it was announced that Howard Korder had joined the production as a writer and executive producer.
Filming began in June 2022 in Versailles, with Noah Jupe, Ludivine Sagnier, Daniel Mays, Assaad Bouab and Eddie Marsan amongst additional casting announced.
Reception
Critical response
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, 71% of 35 critics gave the series a positive review, with an average rating of 6.5/10. The critical consensus reads, "Franklin's unhurried retelling of revolutionary history can be dry as parchment, but Michael Douglas' sly performance as the founding father gives it a compelling jolt." On Metacritic, the series holds a weighted average score of 57 out of 100 based on 22 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".