‘The White Princess’ On Starz: Top 5 Reasons To Watch ‘The White Queen’ Sequel Series

The White Princess will premiere on Starz, April 16, at 8 p.m. EST, and buzz has continued to build around one of spring’s most anticipated new miniseries. As the Inquisitr previously reported, The White Princess is a sequel to the 2013 miniseries The White Queen, which aired on BBC One and Starz. The official synopsis for The White Princess, posted on Starz’s media page reads as follows.

“Adapted from Philippa Gregory’s best-selling novel of the same name and part of The Cousins’ War book series, The White Princess sees England ostensibly united by the marriage of Elizabeth of York and King Henry VII, but their personal and political rift runs deep and the divide between them threatens to tear the kingdom apart once again.

“Rumors circulate that Elizabeth’s long-lost brother Prince Richard is alive and planning to take the throne – forcing Elizabeth into an impossible choice between her new Tudor husband and the boy who could be her own blood and the rightful York King. The White Princess is a tale of power, family, love, and betrayal, which charts one of the most tumultuous times in British history uniquely from the point of view of the women waging the ongoing battle for the English throne.”

There are countless reasons to be excited about Starz’s sequel series to The White Queen. Having narrowed them down, here are the top five reasons to watch The White Princess.

No. 5: If you watched The White Queen, then you should watch its sequel series, The White Princess.

When The White Queen ended, the good guys (depending on your position) had lost. While the early episodes of The White Queen depicted Elizabeth Woodville’s rise, the second half charted her and her family’s downfall. Her husband died. Her marriage was deemed invalid, making her children with the King of England illegitimate, and worst of all, her sons were taken away from her.

When The White Queen concluded, the deranged Lady Margaret had pulled off the impossible, successfully placing her son, Henry Tudor, a distant claimant to the throne, as the King of England. If you are ready to see the House of York fight back, get ready for The White Princess. It has been four years since The White Queen aired, and it will be interesting to see if The White Princess, and her legacy, will end on a better note than her mother’s.

No. 4: The White Princess means a rematch between The White Queen‘s Elizabeth and Margaret.

To say there is unfinished business between Elizabeth Woodville (Essie Davis) and Lady Margaret (Michelle Fairley), when The White Princess begins, would be an understatement. Throughout The White Queen, Margaret worked tirelessly to put her son on the throne by undermining the “white queen,” Elizabeth Woodville’s husband, and their children. This ultimately culminated in a plan to murder Elizabeth’s two sons, and the heirs to the throne, otherwise known as the “princes in the Tower.”

The thing Margaret (Amanda Hale) did not know is that while the real Prince of Wales was murdered in her diabolical scheme, his younger brother, Prince Richard, was not. Before being taken to the tower, the real Prince Richard was exchanged with a commoner, by Elizabeth (Rebecca Ferguson). When The White Queen ends, Elizabeth knows one of her sons, and King Edward IV’s heir, is secretly alive.

Starz’s The White Princess will see that secret possibly come to light. In The White Princess, a man comes forward claiming that he is Prince Richard, therefore setting the stage for Elizabeth of York (Jodie Comer), to find herself torn between two allegiances. The one she was born to (the House of York), and the one she is bound to (the House of Tudor).

Even if the man claiming he is Prince Richard turns out to be telling the truth, Margaret is still responsible for the murder of Elizabeth’s eldest son, Edward V, and the imposter that Elizabeth had put in her younger son’s place. Will Elizabeth be able to avenge her family in The White Princess?

No. 3: The White Princess could provide Game of Thrones fans with clues, and connections.

The Guardian confirmed that author George R.R. Martin based Game of Thrones on the historical period known as the “Wars of the Roses.” Are there any clues to how Game of Thrones will end, in how The White Princess plays out? Watch carefully.

No. 2: The White Queen‘s Emma Frost has returned for The White Princess.

In a move certain to boost creative continuity, The White Queen‘s head writer, Emma Frost, has returned to helm its sequel series, The White Princess. Frost adapted three of Philippa Gregory’s novels into 10 episodes for The White Queen.

Frost managed to do so at a pace that remained consummately engaging, without ever feeling rushed. Starz’s The White Princess is based on one book, Gregory’s novel of the same name, so expect the scope of The White Princess to be narrower than its predecessor, though no less intriguing.

No. 1: If the cast of The White Queen is any indication, The White Princess cast is set to soar.

It is very possible that when you are watching The White Princess, you are watching the stars of tomorrow being born. For proof of that, you need look no further than the breakout cast of The White Princess‘ predecessor, The White Queen.

There is every reason to believe The White Queen‘s Midas touch will extend to The White Princess. According to IMDB, The White Queen‘s casting directors, Suzanne Crowley and Gilly Poole, both returned to cast The White Princess.

Where is The White Queen cast today?

Before Rebecca Ferguson starred with Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation; she got her big break starring on the BBC and Starz co-production, The White Queen. According to Entertainment Weekly, Cruise selected Ferguson for her role in Rogue Nation after seeing her performance in The White Queen. Since then, Ferguson has gone on to star opposite Emily Blunt in the 2016 hit thriller, The Girl on the Train.

While The White Queen‘s leading lady, Rebecca Ferguson, has found a heightened film profile, other members of The White Queen cast have continued to find work on television. Eleanor Tomlinson, who starred as the Kingmaker’s tragic daughter, Lady Isabel Neville, on The White Queen has gone on to star as the leading lady of BBC One and PBS Masterpiece’s hit series, Poldark.

Actress Faye Marsay, who portrayed Isabel’s younger sister, Anne, starred on Game of Thrones as Arya Stark’s arch nemesis, the Waif. The White Queen has also enhanced the profile of the actors who portrayed the York brothers.

What have the men of The White Queen been up to?

Max Irons, who played Elizabeth’s husband, King Edward IV, recently starred in the historical drama, Bitter Harvest. That movie re-teamed him with his co-star from The White Queen, Aneurin Barnard.

Since starring on The White Queen, David Oakes, who played Edward’s incorrigible brother, George, has gone on to play the brother of another royal. Oakes is currently starring on ITV and PBS Masterpiece’s Victoria, as Prince Albert’s older brother, Ernest.

Aneurin Barnard, who starred as the doomed Richard III, starred in BBC One’s 2016 adaptation of War & Peace, opposite Lily James. Barnard will also star in Christopher Nolan’s upcoming WWII epic, Dunkirk, which will be released on July 21, 2017. In an interesting side note, Barnard co-starred in the BBC miniseries, Thirteen, with future star of The White Princess, Jodie Comer.

If The White Queen is any indication, and it is a strong one, The White Princess is primed to dazzle viewers with another strong cast, and captivating storyline. Watch it all unfold when The White Princess premieres on Starz, on April 16 at 8 p.m. EST.

[Featured Image by Starz]