Most dramatizations of Elizabeth I focus on her reign: the politics, the suitors, the Armada, the golden age. Becoming Elizabeth takes a different approach, centering on the years before the crown, when the teenage Elizabeth was a princess with no clear path to power, surrounded by ambitious adults who saw her as either a tool or a threat. Set in the years following Henry VIII’s death in 1547, the show follows Elizabeth through the brief, turbulent reigns of her brother Edward VI and her cousin Lady Jane Grey, as the young princess learns to survive in a court where one wrong move could be fatal.
Alicia von Rittberg plays Elizabeth, supported by a large ensemble that includes Tom Cullen as Thomas Seymour, Jessica Raine as Catherine Parr, and Romola Garai as Mary Tudor. The show premiered on Starz in June 2022 and was cancelled after one season, a decision that frustrated fans who felt the story was just hitting its stride.
A Teenage Elizabeth in a Dangerous World
Von Rittberg’s Elizabeth is the show’s central achievement. Rather than playing a young woman who already displays the qualities of the future queen, von Rittberg gives us an Elizabeth who is intelligent but uncertain, politically aware but still capable of misjudgment. This is an Elizabeth who has not yet learned to mask her emotions with the precision she would become famous for, and von Rittberg makes that vulnerability compelling without making it weakness. Watching her navigate threats she only partially understands, while trying to maintain relationships with a brother who is king and a sister who distrusts her, gives the show a coming-of-age dimension that distinguishes it from other Tudor dramas.
The show’s treatment of the Thomas Seymour storyline is handled with commendable sensitivity. The relationship between the adult Seymour and the teenage Elizabeth has been a subject of historical debate and occasional dramatization, and Becoming Elizabeth presents it without romanticizing Seymour’s behavior or reducing Elizabeth to victimhood. Tom Cullen plays Seymour as charismatic and dangerous, a man whose ambitions encompass both political power and inappropriate attention toward his young ward. The show lets the audience feel the confusion and discomfort of the situation without exploiting it.
Jessica Raine’s Catherine Parr provides a valuable perspective, showing a woman trapped between her affection for Elizabeth and her attachment to a husband she’s increasingly realizing she cannot control. Raine plays the conflict with intelligence and restraint, making Parr’s eventual recognition of the danger feel earned rather than sudden.
The political scheming is impressively complex, and the show trusts its audience to follow the shifting alliances between the Seymour brothers, the Duke of Northumberland, and the various factions competing for influence over the young King Edward. The writing treats the politics as what they were: life-and-death contests played out through council meetings, marriages, and strategic positioning.
The Weight of the Ensemble
Becoming Elizabeth’s ambition sometimes exceeds its execution. The cast is large and the political terrain is complex, and the show doesn’t always do enough to help viewers keep track of who wants what and why. Characters are introduced with the assumption that the audience knows their historical significance, and those without a background in Tudor history may find themselves struggling to understand why certain relationships matter.
The pacing, while appropriate for a character-driven period drama, errs on the side of deliberate even within that genre. Some episodes feel like they’re setting up pieces rather than moving them, and the eight-episode season doesn’t always justify the time it takes with its individual storylines. The show has a habit of cutting away from moments of tension to check in with characters whose arcs are less urgent, and the resulting fragmentation dilutes the impact of the strongest scenes.
Some supporting characters remain underdeveloped despite their historical importance. Edward VI, Elizabeth’s brother and the reigning king, is present but never fully inhabited as a character. His scenes convey information about the political situation without making his internal life feel vivid. Lady Jane Grey, whose own story is one of the most dramatic in Tudor history, hovers at the edges of the narrative without being given the space her significance demands.
The show’s visual presentation is solid but not exceptional. The costumes and locations are convincing, but the cinematography rarely rises to the atmospheric heights that the best period dramas achieve. For a show about one of history’s most dramatic periods, it can look and feel surprisingly muted.
The Coming-of-Age That History Demanded
What makes Becoming Elizabeth worth watching despite its imperfections is its central argument: that Elizabeth became the queen she was because of the dangers she survived as a teenager. Every betrayal, every manipulation, every moment of genuine peril in these early years taught her lessons that would define her reign. The show treats these formative experiences with the gravity they deserve, refusing to rush toward the crown and coronation that audiences already know is coming.
That patience is both the show’s greatest virtue and its commercial limitation. Viewers who wanted the grandeur and power of Elizabeth’s reign were told to wait, and the cancellation means the wait will never end.
Should You Watch Becoming Elizabeth?
If you’re a Tudor history enthusiast, particularly one interested in the period between Henry VIII and Elizabeth’s coronation, this show covers ground that most dramas skip entirely. Von Rittberg’s performance is worth watching, and the show’s willingness to present a young, uncertain Elizabeth offers something different from the confident queen that most depictions favor.
Skip it if you need your historical dramas to move quickly or if you’re unfamiliar with Tudor politics and don’t want to do background reading. The show assumes a level of historical knowledge that can make it impenetrable for casual viewers, and its cancellation means committing to a story without a conclusion.
The Verdict on Becoming Elizabeth
Becoming Elizabeth is a thoughtful, imperfect exploration of one of history’s most fascinating figures at her most vulnerable. Von Rittberg’s Elizabeth carries the show with a performance that balances intelligence and uncertainty in ways that feel true to the historical record. The show’s pacing, sprawling cast, and cancellation prevent it from achieving its full potential, and it works better as a character study than as a narrative. But for viewers with the patience and interest to meet it where it is, Becoming Elizabeth offers a distinctive and rewarding perspective on a story everyone thinks they know.