''Marco Polo'' is an American drama streaming television series inspired by

Marco Polo Marco Polo (, , ; 8 January 1324) was a Venetian merchant, explorer and writer who travelled through Asia along the Silk Road between 1271 and 1295. His travels are recorded in '' The Travels of Marco Polo'' (also known as ''Book of the Marv ...

's early years in the court of

Kublai Khan Kublai ; Mongolian script: ; (23 September 1215 – 18 February 1294), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Shizu of Yuan and his regnal name Setsen Khan, was the founder of the Yuan dynasty of China and the fifth khagan-emperor of ...

, the

Khagan Khagan or Qaghan (Mongolian:; or ''Khagan''; otk, 𐰴𐰍𐰣 ), or , tr, Kağan or ; ug, قاغان, Qaghan, Mongolian Script: ; or ; fa, خاقان ''Khāqān'', alternatively spelled Kağan, Kagan, Khaghan, Kaghan, Khakan, Khakhan ...

of the

Mongol Empire The Mongol Empire of the 13th and 14th centuries was the largest contiguous land empire in history. Originating in present-day Mongolia in East Asia, the Mongol Empire at its height stretched from the Sea of Japan to parts of Eastern Europe, ...

and the founder of the

Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fif ...

(1271–1368). The show premiered on

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...

on December 12, 2014. The series was created by John Fusco and stars Lorenzo Richelmy in the title role, with

Benedict Wong Benedict Wong (born 3 July 1971) is an English actor. He is known for his roles as Kublai Khan in Netflix's ''Marco Polo'' (2014–2016), Bruce Ng in '' The Martian'' (2015), and Wong in the Marvel Cinematic Universe since ''Doctor Strange'' (2 ...

as Kublai Khan. It was produced by

The Weinstein Company The Weinstein Company (usually credited or abbreviated as TWC) was an American independent film studio, founded in New York City by Bob and Harvey Weinstein in March 2005. TWC was one of the largest mini-major film studios in North America pri ...

. On January 7, 2015, ''Marco Polo'' was renewed by Netflix for a 10-episode second season, which premiered on July 1, 2016. On December 12, 2016, Netflix announced that they had canceled ''Marco Polo'' after two seasons. Sources told ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly large ...

'' that the two seasons resulted in a $200 million loss for Netflix, and the decision to cancel was jointly taken by Netflix and The Weinstein Company.

Cast and characters

Main

* Lorenzo Richelmy as

, the son of a Venetian merchant who travels to China and is ultimately left there as a guest of Kublai Khan, rising to official position in the court. *

, the fifth Great Khan of the Mongol Empire. Wong also stars in the Christmas special "One Hundred Eyes". * Joan Chen as Empress Chabi, the Khan's favorite and most important wife who is a valued unofficial adviser. *

Rick Yune Rick Yune (born August 22, 1971) is an American actor, screenwriter, producer and martial artist of Korean descent. His most notable roles have been in the movies '' Snow Falling on Cedars'', the first ''Fast and Furious'' film ''The Fast an ...

Kaidu Kaidu (Middle Mongol: , Modern Mongol: / , ; ; c. 1230 – 1301) was a grandson of the Mongol khagan Ögedei (1185–1241) and thus leader of the House of Ögedei and the ''de facto'' khan of the Chagatai Khanate, a division of the Mongol Em ...

, the Khan's cousin and rival, leader of the House of Ögedei * Amr Waked as Yusuf (season 1), the Khan's Vice Regent *

Remy Hii Remy Hii (born 24 July 1986) is a Malaysian-Australian actor. Hii attended the National Institute of Dramatic Art for three years, and appeared in various theatre productions, before being cast in his first television role. Hii starred as Van T ...

as Prince Jingim, the Khan's lawful son and heir. *

Zhu Zhu Zhu Zhu (; born 19 July 1984) is a Chinese actress and singer. She rose to fame as a VJ on MTV China. Early life Zhu was born in a military family in Beijing on July 19, 1984, with her ancestral home in Linhai, Zhejiang, the daughter of Zhu H ...

as Nergui Princess Kokachin, a servant of Princess Kokachin, the Blue Princess of the Bayaut tribe, who disguises herself as the Princess. * Tom Wu as Hundred Eyes, a blind Taoist monk willfully enslaved to the Khan and

sifu Shifu () in Mandarin, or sifu in Cantonese, or sai hu in Hokkien, is a title for, and the role of, a skillful person or a master. The character 師/师 means "skilled person" or "teacher," while 傅 means "tutor" and 父 means "father." Thoug ...

to Jingim and Marco Polo. Wu also stars in the Christmas special "One Hundred Eyes". * Mahesh Jadu as Ahmad, a Persian Muslim from

Bukhara Bukhara ( Uzbek: /, ; tg, Бухоро, ) is the seventh-largest city in Uzbekistan, with a population of 280,187 , and the capital of Bukhara Region. People have inhabited the region around Bukhara for at least five millennia, and the city ...

who is the Khan's Minister of Finance and adopted son. * Olivia Cheng as Jia Mei Lin, concubine of the late

Emperor Lizong of Song Emperor Lizong of Song (26 January 1205 – 16 November 1264), personal name Zhao Yun, was the 14th emperor of the Song dynasty of China and the fifth emperor of the Southern Song dynasty. He reigned from 1224 to 1264. His original name was ...

and sister to chancellor Jia Sidao *

Uli Latukefu Talia'uli Latukefu is an Australian actor and singer, best known for his roles as Dwayne Johnson in the NBC comedy ''Young Rock'' and Byamba in the American Netflix series ''Marco Polo''. He also played Darren Ngata in the popular Australian d ...

as Byamba, the Khan's bastard son, a general of both the imperial army and the Mongol horde * Chin Han as Jia Sidao, the chancellor to the Song Emperors Huaizong and Duanzong, and Mei Lin's brother *

Pierfrancesco Favino Pierfrancesco Favino (; August 24, 1969) is an Italian actor, voice actor and producer. He has appeared in more than fifty European and American movies and television series since the early 1990s, including '' The Prince of Homburg'' (1997), '' T ...

as Niccolò Polo, a Venetian merchant and Marco's father *

Ron Yuan Ronald Winston Yuan is an American actor, martial artist, director, and stunt choreographer. He is best known for his roles on '' Sons of Anarchy'', '' Prison Break'', '' Golden Boy'', and ''CSI: NY''. He has acted in numerous films, including an ...

as Prince Nayan (season 2), Kublai's uncle and a Nestorian Christian * Claudia Kim as Khutulun (season 2; recurring, season 1),

's daughter and favored child, niece of the Khan, and a superb warrior * Jacqueline Chan as Shabkana (season 2),

's mother *

Leonard Wu Leonard Wu is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Orus in the Netflix television drama series ''Marco Polo'' (2016), Shiwei Chen in the drama television series '' Bosch'' (2018), Kinuba in the action film '' Alita: Battle Angel'' (2019 ...

as Orus (season 2), Kaidu's son * Thomas Chaanhing as Gerel (season 2), a khan loyal to Kaidu * Chris Pang as Arban (season 2), a khan loyal to Kaidu *

Gabriel Byrne Gabriel James Byrne (born 12 May 1950) is an Irish actor, film director, film producer, screenwriter, audiobook narrator, and author. His acting career began in the Focus Theatre before he joined London's Royal Court Theatre in 1979. Byrne's s ...

as Pope Gregory X (season 2) *

Michelle Yeoh Michelle Yeoh Choo Kheng, ( ; born 6 August 1962) is a Malaysian actress. Credited as Michelle Khan in her early Hong Kong films, she rose to fame in the 1990s after starring in a series of Hong Kong action films where she performed her own ...

as Lotus (season 2), a Taoist nun and the designated protector of the Song Dynasty's boy emperor. Yeoh also stars in the Christmas special "One Hundred Eyes".

Recurring

* Corrado Invernizzi as

Maffeo Polo Maffeo is a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name *Maffeo Barberini (1568–1644), reigned as Pope Urban VIII from 1623 to his death in 1644 *Maffeo Barberini (1631–1685), Italian nobleman of the Barberini, P ...

(season 1), Marco's uncle *

Tan Kheng Hua Tan Kheng Hua (; born 17 January 1963) is a Singaporean actress. She is best known for her supporting role in the 2018 film ''Crazy Rich Asians'' and for the martial arts television series ''Kung Fu'' in 2021. Career Tan acquired an interest ...

as Xie Daoqing (season 1),

empress dowager Empress dowager (also dowager empress or empress mother) () is the English language translation of the title given to the mother or widow of a Chinese, Japanese, Korean, or Vietnamese emperor in the Chinese cultural sphere. The title was a ...

of the Song Dynasty *

Lawrence Makoare Lawrence Makoare (born 20 March 1968) is a New Zealand Māori actor. He is most known for his roles in ''The Lord of the Rings'' film series as several prominent antagonists, including Lurtz the Uruk-Hai and the Witch King of Angmar. Career M ...

as Za Bing (season 1), Princess Kokachin's eunuch protector * Vanessa Vanderstraaten as Princess Sorga (season 1), one of Jingim's wives *

Patrick Teoh Patrick Teoh (born 16 October, 1947) is an actor and radio personality in Malaysia. A career in radio, on TV, stage and in movies spanning more than five decades earned Teoh the nickname of "Voice of Malaysia", bestowed by his fans and the Mala ...

as General Red Brow (season 1) *

Shu An Oon Shu may refer to: China * Sichuan, China, officially abbreviated as Shu (蜀) * Shu (state) (conquered by Qin in 316 BC), an ancient state in modern Sichuan * Shu Han (221–263) during the Three Kingdoms Period * Western Shu (405–413), also ...

as Jing Fei (season 1), Mei Lin's friend, also an imperial concubine * Chloe Luthi (season 1) and Jaime Chew (season 2) as Ling Ling, the daughter of Mei Lin and the former Emperor of the Song Dynasty * Nicholas Bloodworth as Tulga (season 1), Kokachin's guardian * Max Kellady as Emperor Duzong, the son of the empress dowager and the former Emperor of the Song Dynasty *

Soffi Jikan Mohammad Shoffi bin Jikan (born 13 November 1970) is a Malaysian actor, singer, and director. Personal life On 13 May 2019, Sofi was ordered to defend himself by Mahkamah Petaling Jaya on charges of using marijuana. Filmography Film Tele ...

as Milo Boy (season 1) * Mano Maniam as The Old Man / Hassan-i Sabbah (season 1) * Daniel Tuiara as Sukh (season 2), Ahmad's sworn Burmese warrior *

Tosh Zhang Tosh Zhang (born 23 May 1989) is a Singaporean actor and musician. Zhang is most well-known for his catchy songs which garnered millions of views on YouTube and for playing the role of 'Sergeant Ong' in the record-breaking '' Ah Boys to Men'' m ...

as Bai (season 2) * Byambadorj Altanhuyag as General Qaban (season 2) * Esther Low as Kokachin (season 2; guest, season 1), the real Blue Princess of the Mongol Bayaut tribe *

Jason Chong Jason Chong (born 29 October 1969) is an Australian actor. Chong was born in Sydney, Australia. He graduated from the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA), Australia. He is frequently seen on television; his credits include: '' Wildside'' ...

as General Kasar (season 2)

Notable guest stars

* Baljinnyamyn Amarsaikhan as Ariq Böke (season 1), the Khan's brother, overseer of

Karakorum Karakorum ( Khalkha Mongolian: Хархорум, ''Kharkhorum''; Mongolian Script:, ''Qaraqorum''; ) was the capital of the Mongol Empire between 1235 and 1260 and of the Northern Yuan dynasty in the 14–15th centuries. Its ruins lie in t ...

* Togo Igawa as Chuluun (season 2)

Production

The series was originally developed at

Starz Starz (stylized as STARZ since 2016; pronounced "stars") is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by Lions Gate Entertainment, and is the flagship property of parent subsidiary Starz Inc. Programming on Starz cons ...

, which had picked up the series in January 2012. After attempts to film in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

failed, the project was released back to The Weinstein Company.

then picked up the series for a 10-episode season, for approximately $90 million, making it one of the most expensive TV shows in the world, second to ''

Game of Thrones ''Game of Thrones'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss for HBO. It is an adaptation of '' A Song of Ice and Fire'', a series of fantasy novels by George R. R. Martin, the fir ...

''. The project was officially announced at Netflix in January 2014. Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg serve as executive producers and directed the pilot and second episodes, "The Wayfarer" and "The Wolf and the Deer", respectively. The series was filmed in

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, and at

Pinewood Studios Pinewood Studios is a British film and television studio located in the village of Iver Heath, England. It is approximately west of central London. The studio has been the base for many productions over the years from large-scale films to t ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...

, as well as at outdoor locations in Malaysia, particularly tropical wilderness, as well as

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the ...

and

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Cr ...

. Kazakhstan doubled as the steppes of Mongolia, Malaysia was the base of operations as well as serving as a location, Hungary provided a setting for Renaissance Rome, and Slovakia provided some mountain settings for Season 2. Stuntman Ju Kun was working on the show alongside fight choreographer Brett Chan, but went missing with the disappearance of

Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 (MH370/MAS370) was an international passenger flight operated by Malaysia Airlines that disappeared on 8 March 2014 while flying from Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia to its planned destination ...

during pre-production. To prepare for her role as Chabi, Joan Chen read the book ''

The Secret History of the Mongol Queens ''The Secret History of the Mongol Queens: How the Daughters of Genghis Khan Rescued His Empire'' is a 2010 book by Jack Weatherford, about the impact and legacy of Genghis Khan's daughters and Mongol queens such as Mandukhai the Wise and Khutul ...

'' by Jack Weatherford, as she wanted her performance to reflect the culture of the time period. During his extensive research, show creator John Fusco traveled the

Silk Road The Silk Road () was a network of Eurasian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles), it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and rel ...

by horseback and also crossed the Ming Sha Dunes of Western China on camel. In Venice he sought out and studied the last will and testament of Marco Polo. While some Mongolian viewers and experts view it as "riddled with historical errors", many have praised the series. Orgil Makhaan, who played

Genghis Khan Genghis Khan (born Temüjin; ; xng, Temüjin, script=Latn; ., name=Temujin – August 25, 1227) was the founder and first Great Khan (Emperor) of the Mongol Empire, which became the List of largest empires, largest contiguous empire in history a ...

in a BBC documentary, said it was more accurate than any previous foreign portrayal of

Mongolian culture The culture of Mongolia has been shaped by the country's nomadic tradition and its position at the crossroads of various empires and civilizations. Mongolian culture is influenced by the cultures of the Mongolic, Turkic, and East Asian peoples ...

. "As a Mongol and an artist, ''Marco Polo'' makes me feel like our dreams are coming true," he told AFP. "I watched all 10 episodes in just one day."

Music

The series featured music by Mongolian bands Altan Urag and Batzorig Vaanchig of '' Asia's Got Talent'', who cameoed as a singer.

Daniele Luppi Daniele Luppi is an Italian composer and music producer who has been active since around 1999. He is an Emmy nominated film and television composer and has worked with the likes of The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Gnarls Barkley, and John Legend. ...

composed the main theme, whilst Peter Nashel and Eric V. Hachikian are the composers of the original score.

Episodes

Season 1 (2014)

Christmas special (2015)

Season 2 (2016)

Reception

The first season of ''Marco Polo'' was met with negative reviews from critics. On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

, the first season has a rating of 33%, based on 45 reviews, with an average rating of 4.79/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "An all-around disappointment, ''Marco Polo'' is less entertaining than a round of the game that shares its name." On

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

, the show's first season has a score of 48 out of 100 based on reviews from 22 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". In his review for ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular ...

'', Jeff Jensen gave the first season a "B−" rating, calling the premise "stale", but added "Somewhere in the middle of episode 2, though, ''Marco Polo'' becomes surprisingly watchable. The filmmaking becomes bolder." Writing for ''

People A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of prope ...

'', Tom Gliatto praised the series, calling it "... a fun, body-flinging, old-fashioned epic". ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

'' reviewer Robert Bianco gave the series 1 stars out of 4, saying, "Clearly what Netflix hopes you'll see a icbig-bucks, prestige entertainment along the lines of that HBO fantasy epic, but in truth, ''Marco'' is far closer to one of those cheesy international syndicated adventures." The second season was met with more positive reviews. On Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a rating of 100%, based on 6 reviews, with a rating average of 7.2/10. In 2015, the

President of Mongolia The president of Mongolia ( mn, Монгол Улсын Ерөнхийлөгч, ''Mongol Ulsyn Yerönkhiilögch'') is the executive head of state of Mongolia.Montsame News Agency. ''Mongolia''. 2006, , p. 42 The current president is Ukhnaagiin ...

, Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj, presented John Fusco and the ''Marco Polo'' creative team with an award, honoring their positive portrayal and global presentation of Mongolian subject matter. Fusco himself has described the series as historical fiction based on the accounts of the Italian traveler Marco Polo.

Accolades

Notes

References

External links

Polo''
on

* {{Authority control English-language Netflix original programming Cultural depictions of Marco Polo Cultural depictions of Kublai Khan Television series set in the Yuan dynasty 2010s American drama television series 2014 American television series debuts 2016 American television series endings Television series set in the Mongol Empire Television series set in the 13th century Television series by The Weinstein Company