History has announced that they have renewed the hit drama series Knightfall for a second season. They have also confirmed that Mark Hamill (Star Wars) has officially signed on to join the cast of Knightfall‘s season 2 and that Aaron Helbing (The Flash) will serve as the series’ showrunner and executive producer.
Hamill is set to play Talus, a battle-hardened Knight Templar veteran of the Crusades, who survived captivity for ten years in the Holy Land and is tasked with training the new initiates to the Order.
“In the face of ever-increasing competition, we’re proud of HISTORY’s track record of producing signature drama series that are epic in scope with complex characters,” Eli Lehrer, History’s Executive Vice President of Programming said.“Whether it’s the legendary Knights Templar, the extraordinary tale of medieval Norsemen, or the story of a formerly classified United States Air Force program investigating UFOs during the Cold War, these series reflect our commitment to bringing the defining, big canvas stories of history to life. We look forward to offering our viewers a grittier, darker ‘Knightfall’ in season two and welcoming Mark to the cast.”
In addition to Hamill, Tom Forbes (Wolf Hall) and Genevieve Gaunt (The Royals) were also cast to join season 2. Forbes will be playing the role of Prince Louis, the violent and unpredictable son of King Philip while Gaunt will play the daughter of King Philip, Isabella.
From A+E Studios in association with Jeremy Renner’s The Combine and Midnight Radio, Knightfall takes viewers inside the medieval politics and warfare of the Knights Templar, the most powerful, wealthy and mysterious military order of the Middle Ages who were entrusted with protecting Christianity’s most precious relics.
Knightfall begins after the fall of the city of Acre, the Templar’s last stronghold in the Holy Land, where the Holy Grail is lost. Years later, a clue emerges suggesting the whereabouts of the Grail and sends the Templars, led by the noble, courageous and headstrong Templar Knight Landry on a life or death mission to find the lost Cup of Christ. From their battles in the Holy Land, to their clash with the King of France, to the dark events leading to the demise of the Templar Order on Friday the 13th, 1307 —a date which became synonymous with bad luck—the story of the Knights Templar has never been fully told until now. Focusing on themes such as belief, sacrifice, politics, love, power and revenge – Knightfall goes deep into the clandestine world of this legendary brotherhood of warrior monks to find out who these knights were, how they lived, and what they died believing.
The main cast of the drama series stars Tom Cullen (Downton Abbey, Gunpowder) as Landry, Pádraic Delaney (The Wind That Shakes the Barley, The Tudors) as Gawain, Simon Merrells (Spartacus, Dominion) as Tancrede, Jim Carter (Downton Abbey) as Pope Boniface VIII, Olivia Ross (War and Peace) as Queen Joan of Navarre, Ed Stoppard (The Crown) as King Philip IV of France, Julian Ovenden (Downton Abbey) as William De Nogaret, and Sarah-Sofie Boussnina (The Bridge, The Absent One) as Adelina.
Knightfall‘s executive producers: are Josh Appelbaum, Andre Nemec, Jeff Pinkner and Scott Rosenberg for Midnight Radio; Don Handfield and Richard Rayner for The Combine; Arturo Interian for History; along with Jeremy Renner (MCEU, American Hustle), Cyrus Voris (Legends), Ethan Reiff, Rick Jacobson (Ash vs Evil Dead) and Barry Jossen.
