Various groups of descendants abroad claim to be true successors to
the throne. Among the better known descendants are the UK’s Prince
Philip, King Constantine II of Greece and Russian Grand Duchess Maria
Vladimirovna. Are they likely to “star” in “Romanoffs”?
Weiner is
playing his cards close to his chest for now, but hinted that the
series might feature Grand Duchess Anastasia, who many insist escaped
the firing squad, despite forensic evidence indicating otherwise.
Weiner said that Anastasia’s whereabouts had “long served as a mystery,
with lore suggesting she’d survived the tragedy and taken on a new
identity.”
The showrunner says that the series will be
contemporary, featuring “a different cast, a different story and a
different location.” The current game plan calls for four episodes to be
shot in the U.S. and the other four in soon-to-be-determined European
countries.
Unlike “Mad Men,” “Romanoffs” will go directly to
streaming, which represents a revolutionary marketing approach for a
big-budget show – and a huge gamble. The project also represents the
first time this team of writers, including Weiner, will be writing for
streaming.
For now, the specifics of the casting process remain
vague, but “Mad Men” veterans Jon Hamm, Elisabeth Moss and John Slattery
are expected to be involved in separate episodes, adding box office
power to the project.
Hollywood has always had a fascination with
the Russian royals, with efforts by various would-be Romanovs over the
years to draw attention to themselves adding color to the myth.
Perhaps the best known bogus “Romanoff” (yes, he spelled it this way)
was a restaurateur whose establishment, the now-defunct Romanoff’s, was
Hollywood’s most famous dining spot during the movie colony’s heyday.
The restaurant catered to the likes of Frank Sinatra and Ronald Reagan,
before he was elected president. Eventually, however, this “Romanoff”
was exposed as a Lithuanian-born commoner.
A concrete date for the
streaming of “Romanoffs” is yet to be announced, but the show is
expected to be released in late 2017 or early 2018.