Reign (The CW 2013-2017, Adelaide Kane, Megan Follows)

In Reign, hidden between the lines of the history books is the story of Mary Stuart, the young woman the world would come to know as Mary, Queen of Scots. Queen of Scotland since she was six days old, the teenage Mary is already a headstrong monarch – beautiful, passionate, and poised at the very beginning of her tumultuous rise to power.

Arriving in France with four close friends as her ladies-in-waiting, Mary has been sent to secure Scotland’s strategic alliance by formalizing her arranged engagement to the French king’s dashing son, Prince Francis. But the match isn’t signed and sealed, it depends more on politics, religion and secret agendas than affairs of the heart. Prince Francis is intrigued by the fiery Scot, but like most young men, he resists the idea of settling down into marriage, especially when he has a history with a lady of the court and his own point of view on the wisdom of an alliance with Scotland. Still, an attraction between Mary and Francis is ignited.

Further complicating things is Bash, Francis’ roguish half-brother, who has a history of his own – despite his illegitimate birth, Bash is his father’s favorite. And now that Bash has caught Mary’s eye, a royal triangle may be forming. While at French Court, fierce foes and dark forces conspire to sabotage Mary’s marriage to Francis and even threaten her life, until a mysterious shrouded guide becomes her ally. With danger and sexual intrigue around every dark castle corner, Mary rallies her ladies-in-waiting and steels herself, ready to rule the new land and balance the demands of her country and her heart.

From The CW’s press release, May 2016… Life changed for Mary Queen of Scots in the third season of REIGN. Her beloved husband, Francis, died, destabilizing France. Francis’ brother, a boy-king, took the throne, leaving Mary with little solace and a great need for power. As her cousin, Queen Elizabeth, fought for legitimacy against an unyielding patriarchy in England, Catherine and Mary came to a painful realization: they have their battles to fight as well, and it is better if they do so alone.

Season four of REIGN finds Mary rising to the challenge, taking back her country and establishing her rule in Scotland, the land of her birth but a wild nation foreign to her, and now, once again, her home. Even as our canvas expands to welcome a new court in Scotland with new players, including Mary’s half-brother James, and the men who vie for her hand, the French Court grows as well. Catherine gave France many heirs – too many, as it turns out. We will meet more of her brood, who are amusingly and dangerously at each other’s throats. Our queens will make wise choices and knowingly brutal sacrifices; their fates, especially Mary’s and Elizabeth’s, are not only intertwined but increasingly inescapable. It is a season of impossibly high stakes, unexpected betrayals, sexual exploits, a royal wedding, a royal birth and a rising body count as three queens in three nations fight for their people, their loves, and their lives.

cast
Adelaide Kane as Mary, Queen of Scots
Anna Popplewell as Lola
Ben Geurens as Gideon Blackburn
Celina Sinden as Greer of Kinross
Charlie Carrick as Robert Dudley
Craig Parker as Stéphane Narcisse
Jonathan Keltz as Leith Bayard
Megan Follows as Catherine de’ Medici
Rachel Skarsten as Elizabeth I of England
Rose Williams as Claude of France
Sean Teale as Louis, Prince of Condé
Torrance Coombs as Sebastian “Bash”

other cast info
Alan Van Sprang as Henry II of France
Caitlin Stasey as Kenna
Jenessa Grant as Aylee
Toby Regbo as Francis II of France

key behind the scenes crew
Brad Silberling as Executive Producer/Director of Pilot
Frank Siracusa as Executive Producer
Laurie McCarthy as Creator/Executive Producer
Stephanie Sengupta as Creator/Executive Producer

show type
historical drama

broadcast from
10/17/2013 – 16 June 2017

network and production companies
The CW – CBS Television Studios – Take 5 Productions – Warner Bros. Television – Whizbang Films