''Warrior Nun'' is an American

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

streaming television Streaming television is the digital distribution of television content, such as TV shows, as streaming media delivered over the Internet. Streaming television stands in contrast to dedicated terrestrial television delivered by over-the-air a ...

series created by Simon Barry based on the comic book character Warrior Nun Areala by Ben Dunn. Developed as a feature film adaptation, the idea was re-imagined as a television series for

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 ...

when the service had given the production a series order for a first season. Filming takes place in multiple locations in

Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a "historical nationality". The ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

, such as

Antequera Antequera () is a city and municipality in the Comarca de Antequera, province of Málaga, part of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia. It is known as "the heart of Andalusia" (''el corazón de Andalucía'') because of its central loca ...

, where the headquarters of the fictional Order of the Cruciform Sword was filmed. The series is narrated and led by Portuguese actress

Alba Baptista Alba Baptista (born 10 July 1997) is a Portuguese actress. She began her career in her native Portugal with the series ''Jardins Proibidos'' (2014–2015). She then starred in multiple Portuguese series and films such as '' A Impostora'', ''Fil ...

in the role of Ava Silva, a

quadriplegic Tetraplegia, also known as quadriplegia, is defined as the dysfunction or loss of motor and/or sensory function in the cervical area of the spinal cord. A loss of motor function can present as either weakness or paralysis leading to partial or ...

orphan who discovers she now has supernatural powers which force her to join an ancient order of warrior nuns. The series marks Baptista's English-language debut. The cast also features Toya Turner,

Thekla Reuten Thekla Simona Gelsomina Reuten (born 16 September 1975) is a Dutch actress. Life and career Reuten was born in Bussum, Netherlands, the daughter of a Dutch father, Joost Reuten, and an Italian mother, who was born in Benabbio near Bagni di Lucc ...

, Lorena Andrea, Kristina Tonteri-Young, Sylvia De Fanti and

Tristán Ulloa Tristán Ulloa (born 6 May 1970) is a Spanish actor, writer, and director. Career He was born in Orléans and lived with his Spanish grandparents exiled in France. He spent his teenage years in Vigo, Galicia. His mother, Esther San Román, lives ...

. The series debuted on July 2, 2020, to generally positive reviews. In August 2020, the series was renewed for a second season, which was released on November 10, 2022. The series was canceled after two seasons.

Premise

''Warrior Nun'' revolves around the story of a 19-year-old woman who wakes up in a morgue with a new lease on life and a divine artifact embedded in her back. She discovers she is now part of the ancient Order of the Cruciform Sword that has been tasked with fighting demons on Earth, and powerful forces representing both heaven and hell want to find and control her.

Cast and characters

Main

as Ava Silva ** Isabella Tabares portrays a young Ava (guest season 1) * Toya Turner as Sister Mary / Shotgun Mary * Lorena Andrea as Sister Lilith * Kristina Tonteri-Young as Sister Beatrice *

as Father Vincent *

as Jillian Salvius * Sylvia De Fanti as Mother Superion (season 2; recurring season 1) ** Isabel M. Hernanz portrays a young Mother Superion (guest season 2) * William Miller as Adriel (season 2; recurring season 1)

Recurring

* Olivia Delcán as Sister Camila * Emilio Sakraya as JC (season 1) *

May Simón Lifschitz May Simón Lifschitz is an actress and transgender model of Danish and Argentinian descent. She is known from Netflix's '' Warrior Nun'', where she plays Chanel, and Danish productions ''Wild Witch'', '' Yes No Maybe'', and ''Christian IV''. Car ...

as Chanel (season 1) *

Charlotte Vega Charlotte Elizabeth Vega (born 10 February 1994 in Madrid) is a Spanish-British actress and model, known for her role in the 2014 Spanish film '' The Misfits Club'', the lead role in the 2017 Irish film '' The Lodgers'', and main roles in two t ...

as Zori (season 1) * Dimitri Abold as Randall (season 1) * Peter de Jersey as Kristian Schaefer *

Joaquim de Almeida Joaquim António Portugal Baptista de Almeida (born 15 March 1957) is a Portuguese actor. Almeida began his acting career in theatre during the 1980s, he started his film career appearing on the 1982 action film '' The Soldier'', and later ach ...

as Cardinal / Pope Francisco Duretti * Lope Haydn Evans as young Michael Salvius (season 1) ** Jack Mullarkey as adult Michael Salvius / Miguel (season 2) * Meena Rayann as Yasmine Amunet (season 2) * Richard Clothier as Cardinal William Foster (season 2) * Sadiqua Binum as Sister Dora (season 2)

Guest

Melina Matthews Melina Matthews is a Spanish actress and presenter, known as a presenter for the Sitges Film Festival (Festival Internacional de Cinema Fantàstic de Catalunya), and for her acting roles as Ana in the 2018 film ''Silencio,'' as Juana in season ...

as Sister Shannon Masters * Fred Pritchard as Diego (season 1) * Frances Tomelty as Sister Frances (season 1) * Guiomar Alonso as Areala de Cordoue * Alberto Ruano as Mateo (season 1) * Sinead MacInnes as Sister Crimson (season 1) *

Oscar Foronda Oscar Foronda Pallarés (born 13 September 1970 in Barcelona, Spain) is a Spanish actor who has appeared in over 50 films and television series. In his career he has acted in German, English, Swedish, US, Korean and Spanish productions. Career ...

as Crusader Knight (season 1) * Christian Stamm as Cardinal Gunter (season 2) * Miquel Ripeu as Cardinal Rossi (season 2) * Andrea Tivadar as Reya (season 2)

Episodes

Series overview

Season 1 (2020)

Season 2 (2022)

Production

Development

On September 28, 2018, it was announced that

had given the production a series order for a first season consisting of ten episodes. Simon Barry was set to serve as showrunner for the series. Barry is also credited as an executive producer alongside Stephen Hegyes with Terri Hughes Burton serving as a co-executive producer for the series. Production companies involved with the series are Barry's Reality Distortion Field and Fresco Film Services. The series premiered on July 2, 2020. On August 19, 2020, Netflix renewed the series for a second season. On December 13, 2022, it has been announced that the series has been canceled after two seasons.

Casting

Sometime after the series order announcement, it was confirmed that Alba Baptista, Toya Turner, Tristan Ulloa, Thekla Reuten, Kristina Tonteri-Young, Lorena Andrea, and Emilio Sakraya would star in the series. On April 1, 2019, it was announced that Sylvia De Fanti had joined the cast as a series regular. On October 18, 2021, Meena Rayann, Jack Mullarkey and Richard Clothier joined the cast as recurring roles for the second season.

Filming

Filming for the first season took place on location of

(

), in the town of

(where the headquarters of the Order of the Cruciform Sword is located)

Marbella Marbella ( , , ) is a city and municipality in southern Spain, belonging to the province of Málaga in the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is part of the Costa del Sol and is the headquarters of the Association of Municipalities of the reg ...

Ronda Ronda () is a town in the Spanish province of Málaga. It is located about west of the city of Málaga, within the autonomous community of Andalusia. Its population is about 35,000. Ronda is known for its cliff-side location and a deep chasm ...

Málaga Málaga (, ) is a municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 578,460 in 2020, it is the second-most populous city in Andalusia after Seville and the sixth most po ...

, and

Sevilla Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...

, from March 11, 2019 to July 5, 2019. The El Tajo Gorge was featured in one of the scenes. Pre-production for the second season began in late May 2021 and filming began in late July 2021 in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

. Production for the second season wrapped up on November 4 in

Release

On June 17, 2020, Netflix released the official trailer for the series, and the first season was released on July 2, 2020. The second season was released on November 10, 2022.

Reception

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 season 1 has an approval rating of 68% based on 34 critic reviews, with an average rating of 6.5/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Though ''Warrior Nun'' heavy handed set-up weighs it down, committed performances and excellent fight choreography may be enough for those looking for more pulp with their pulpit." On Rotten Tomatoes, season 2 has an approval rating of 100% based on reviews from 10 critics. 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 has a weighted average score of 62 out of 100, based on reviews from 7 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Roxana Hadadi of The A.V. Club wrote: "The script can sometimes lean too much on mythological and religious exposition... but the actors have such good chemistry that their various pairings work, and the smartly choreographed fight scenes are well-placed." Hadadi said that "Warrior Nun is undoubtedly familiar" influenced by the likes of ''

Veronica Mars ''Veronica Mars'' is an American teen noir mystery drama television series created by screenwriter Rob Thomas. The series is set in the fictional town of Neptune, California, and stars Kristen Bell as the eponymous character. The series pr ...

'', ''

Buffy the Vampire Slayer ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' is an American supernatural drama television series created by writer and director Joss Whedon. It is based on the 1992 film of the same name, also written by Whedon, although the events of the film are not consid ...

'', and Alex Garland's '' Devs'', but that when the show really clicks it becomes "its own distinct experience rather than simply a derivative facsimile of those inspirations." She praised the performances, particularly Toya Turner as Shotgun Mary, and gives the show a grade B−. Nicole Drum of ComicBook.com gave the review 3 out of 5, and wrote: "Warrior Nun is a truly wild journey that manages to ask some tough questions while equally embracing its silliness, its action, and the absolute absurdity of it all. The show may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it is one hell of a fun ride." While the majority of critics praised the choreography of the series, some took issue with the pacing of the plot and the extensive exposition of the plot. Robyn Bahr, of ''

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 ...

'' notes, "Thematically, Warrior Nun is nothing you haven't seen before, and aesthetically, nothing you ever want to see again... Bleak, dour and trudging, the series contains none of the kitschy, blasphemous fun of its title." Critic Steve Murray notes that ''Warrior Nun'' has "both potential and problems in equal measure"; supposing that the series is trying to recreate the feel of ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' but with less witty dialogue and creativity. Reviewing season 2, Paul Tassi of

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

wrote: "The series has brutal, surprisingly great action, a meaningful central romance and unexpectedly biting commentary on religion."

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Warrior Nun 2020s American drama television series 2020s American supernatural television series 2020 American television series debuts 2022 American television series endings American fantasy drama television series American action television series Dark fantasy television series Martial arts television series Angels in television Demons in television Television series about nuns English-language Netflix original programming Television shows based on comics Television series about orphans Television about magic Television shows filmed in Spain Television shows set in Spain Television shows set in Andalusia Television shows set in Vatican City Television shows about Catholicism Málaga in fiction