Rome (TV Series)

''Rome'' is a historical drama television series created by John Milius, William J. MacDonald, and Bruno Heller. The series is set in the 1st century BC, during Ancient Rome's transition from Republic to Empire. The series features a sprawling cast of characters, many based on real figures from historical records, but the lead protagonists are ultimately two soldiers named Lucius Vorenus and Titus Pullo, who find their lives intertwined with key historical events.

An international co-production between Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States, the series was filmed in various locations, but most notably in the Cinecittà studios in Rome, Italy. The show, consisting of two seasons for a total of 22 episodes, aired on HBO, and BBC Two from 28 August 2005 to 25 March 2007, and was later released on DVD and Blu-ray.

''Rome'' received largely positive reviews and had a high number of viewers. It received substantial media attention from the start, becoming a ratings success for HBO and the BBC (although the numbers declined considerably in the second season) and being honoured with numerous awards, including four Emmy Awards, seven Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Visual Effects Society Award. The series ran for two seasons out of the planned five due to high production cost; much of the material for the third and fourth seasons was telescoped into the second season.

Plot overview

The series primarily chronicles the lives and deeds of the rich, powerful, and historically significant, but it also focuses on the lives, fortunes, families, and acquaintances of two common men: Lucius Vorenus and Titus Pullo, fictionalized versions of a pair of Roman soldiers mentioned in Caesar's ''Commentarii de Bello Gallico''. The fictional Vorenus and Pullo manage to witness and often influence many of the historical events presented in the series, although some dramatic license is taken.

The first season depicts Julius Caesar's civil war of 49 BC against the traditionalist conservative faction in the Roman Senate (the Optimates), his rise to dictatorship over Rome, and his fall, spanning the time from the end of his Gallic Wars (52 BC or 701 ''ab urbe condita'') until his assassination on 15 March 44 BC (the infamous Ides of March). Against the backdrop of these cataclysmic events, we also see the early years of the young Octavian, who is destined to become Augustus, the first Emperor of Rome. The second season chronicles the power struggle between Octavian and Mark Antony following Caesar's assassination, spanning the period from Caesar's death in 44 BC to the suicide of Antony and Cleopatra in 30 B.C. after their defeat at the Battle of Actium.

Cast

* Kevin McKidd as Lucius Vorenus – A staunch, traditional Roman officer who struggles to balance his personal beliefs, his duty to his superiors, and the needs of his family and friends. The basis for this character is the historical Roman soldier of the same name, who is briefly mentioned in Julius Caesar's ''De Bello Gallico'' 5.44.
* Ray Stevenson as Titus Pullo – A friendly, upbeat, devil-may-care soldier with the morals of a pirate, the appetites of a hedonist, and a total lack of personal responsibility, who discovers hidden ideals and integrity within himself.
* Ciarán Hinds as Julius Caesar (season 1; guest season 2) – Caesar is ambitious but his aims and motives are often kept ambiguous to further complicate the plot and test the personal loyalties of other characters. He advertises himself as a reformer who sides with the Plebeians, though he is himself a Patrician. He is also merciful to his beaten enemies, genuinely distressed by their deaths, and relieved at their willingness to make peace where a more vindictive individual would have simply killed them.
* Kenneth Cranham as Pompey Magnus (season 1) – A legendary general, past the days of his prime, who tries to recapture the glories of his youth as well as to do what is right for the Republic. The real Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus was a Roman general and politician who was as ambitious as Caesar and just as unorthodox in his youth. He chose to ally himself with the optimates in opposing Caesar and supporting the traditional Roman Republic.
* Polly Walker as Atia of the Julii – The niece of Julius Caesar and mother of Octavian and Octavia. She is depicted as a cheerfully amoral and opportunistic manipulator. Her family connections and sexual liaisons have brought her into contact with some of the most powerful individuals in Rome, making her a highly influential figure in Roman society. Atia is very loosely based on the historical figure Atia about whom little detail is known. ''Rome'' historical consultant Jonathan Stamp identifies the historical figure Clodia as the primary basis for the character of Atia.
* James Purefoy as Mark Antony – A very popular and cunning Roman general and politician and a close supporter of Julius Caesar in Season 1. In Season 2, he is in a power struggle with the power hungry and unaccomplished Octavian.
* Tobias Menzies as Marcus Junius Brutus – Portrayed as a young man torn between what he believes is right, and his loyalty and love of a man who has been like a father to him. The real Marcus Junius Brutus was the most famous of Julius Caesar's assassins, and one of the key figures in the civil wars that followed the assassination.
* Max Pirkis (season 1; guest season 2) and Simon Woods (season 2) as Gaius Octavian (Augustus) – Son and younger child of Atia, Octavian is presented as a cold, self-entitled student of power and politics. He is eager to enter political life and follow in Caesar's footsteps – an ambition more easily achieved when Caesar posthumously adopts him. The basis for this character is the early life of Augustus, the first Roman Emperor.
* Lindsay Duncan as Servilia of the Junii – The mother of Marcus Junius Brutus, lover of the married Julius Caesar, and enemy of Atia of the Julii. Servilia is depicted as a sophisticated and regal Roman matron who follows her heart to her detriment, betrayed by love, and hungering for revenge. Slowly she becomes as cold, calculating, and cruel as those whom she would destroy. Servilia is loosely based on the historical personage of Servilia, mother of Marcus Junius Brutus, and famous lover of Julius Caesar.
* Lyndsey Marshal as Cleopatra – The hedonistic co-Pharaoh of Egypt, she plots to seduce Caesar in order to obtain his aid and protection to depose her brother. After Caesar's death, she seeks Mark Antony's protection, thus also becoming Atia's rival.
* Indira Varma as Niobe (season 1; guest season 2) – A woman, Niobe is a proud Plebeian from a large clan. After marrying Lucius Vorenus and giving birth to their two daughters, she functioned as a single parent when Lucius went off to war. After being told (incorrectly) by the army that Vorenus is dead, she embarks on a love affair with her sister's husband, giving birth to a son a few months before a very much alive Vorenus returns home. Convinced he will kill her and all the children should he learn of the affair, she tells Vorenus that the baby Lucius is his grandson by their older daughter and her lover.
* Nicholas Woodeson as Posca – A Greek slave of Julius Caesar, and also his friend, aide-de-camp, and confidant in most things personal and professional. As a slave, he will seldom receive credit, but it appears that some of the simpler and more elegant solutions to Caesar's problems come from the mind of Posca. Posca is freed and given a stipend in Caesar's will at the start of the second season. He throws his support behind Antony, but later strategically defects to Octavian.
* Kerry Condon as Octavia of the Julii – The character is based on the Roman matron Octavia Thurina Minor, sister of Roman Emperor Augustus, born to one of the most powerful families in Rome, the Julii. Octavia is the only daughter and elder child of Atia of the Julii, who is the niece of Gaius Julius Caesar. In Season 2, for political reasons she is married to Mark Antony. This is something she did in real life when Antony was newly a widower in 40 BC as part of the Pact of Brundisium, having been ordered by the Senate to set aside the mandatory ten-month term of widowhood after the death of her first husband, Claudius Marcellus.
* Rick Warden as Quintus Pompey – The son of Pompey. There is no basis for this character, but he may be meant to represent the younger of Pompey's historical sons Sextus Pompeius.
* Karl Johnson as Cato the Younger (season 1) – An extreme traditionalist, against political, social, and moral decay, and a staunch defender of the Roman Republic. The real Cato the Younger was a Roman orator, author and politician who committed suicide to avoid living under Caesar's tyranny.
* David Bamber as Marcus Tullius Cicero – A moderate politician and scholar, faced with trying to save the traditional Republic from the ambitions of the various characters on the show. He is depicted as craven and willing to take any position to save his own skin. The real Cicero was a Roman politician, writer and orator.
* Lee Boardman as Timon – A Jewish horse trader who serves as a loyal assassin and bodyguard for Atia. He accepts money as payment but prefers sex with Atia.

Episodes

Production

Development

William J. MacDonald and John Milius pitched the idea to HBO as a miniseries, but the network made it a full-fledged series. In 2002, HBO and the BBC
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