The Widow (TV series)
{{short description|British television series}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Use British English|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox television
| image =
| image_alt =
| caption =
| genre = {{plainlist|
}}
| creator = {{plainlist|
}}
| writer = {{plainlist|
- Harry Williams
- Jack Williams
}}
| director = {{plainlist|
- Sam Donovan
- Olly Blackburn
}}
| starring = {{plainlist|
- Kate Beckinsale
- Charles Dance
- Matthew Le Nevez
- Alex Kingston
- Babs Olusanmokun
- Jacky Ido
- Shalom Nyandiko
- Bart Fouche
- Louise Brealey
- Ólafur Darri Ólafsson
- Réginal Kudiwu
}}
| composer = Dominik Scherrer
| country = United Kingdom
| language = English
| num_seasons = 1
| num_episodes = 8
| list_episodes =
| executive_producer = {{plainlist|
- Harry Williams
- Jack Williams
- Christopher Aird
- Kate Beckinsale
- Sam Donovan
}}
| producer = Eliza Mellor
| cinematography = {{plainlist|
- Stuart Howell
- John Lee
}}
| editor = {{plainlist|
- Daniel Greenway
- Peggy Koretzky
- David Thrasher
}}
| runtime = 60 minutes
| company = {{plainlist|
- Two Brothers Pictures
- Film Afrika (South Africa production services)
}}
| network2 = ITV
| network = Amazon Prime Video
| released = {{Start date|2019|03|01|df=y}}
| first_aired2 = {{Start date|2019|04|08|df=y}}
| last_aired2 = {{End date|2019|04|30|df=y}}
}}
The Widow is a British television drama series created and written by Harry and Jack Williams, airing on both British ITV and American streaming service Amazon Prime Video, with Prime also carrying the series internationally. It stars Kate Beckinsale as a woman who believes that her husband was killed in a plane crash three years earlier, but then discovers that he is still alive in the Congo.{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2018/tv/news/kate-beckinsale-the-widow-amazon-1202650989/|title=Amazon and ITV Greenlight 'The Widow,' Starring Kate Beckinsale|first1=Danielle|last1=Turchiano|date=3 January 2018}}{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/kate-beckinsale-star-amazon-tv-thriller-widow-1071050|title=Kate Beckinsale to Star in Amazon TV Thriller 'The Widow'|website=The Hollywood Reporter|date=3 January 2018 }}{{cite web|url=http://www.bbcamerica.com/anglophenia/2018/01/kate-beckinsale-set-to-star-in-the-widow-tv-series-on-amazon-and-itv|title=Kate Beckinsale Set to Star in 'The Widow' TV Series on Amazon and ITV|first=Brigid|last=Brown|website=BBC America}} The show was released on Amazon Prime Video on 1 March 2019 before being broadcast on ITV from 8 April 2019.{{cite web |last1=Debnath |first1=Neela |title=The Widow on ITV air date, cast, trailer, plot: When does The Widow start? |url=https://www.express.co.uk/showbiz/tv-radio/1072643/The-Widow-ITV-air-date-cast-trailer-plot-series-Amazon-Prime-Kate-Beckinsale-Charles-Dance |website=Express |publisher=Northern and Shell Media |access-date=January 28, 2019 |date=January 15, 2019}}
Premise
The series follows Georgia Wells (Kate Beckinsale) whose husband Will died in a plane crash on a trip to the Congo in Africa.{{Cite web|url=https://www.bustle.com/p/is-the-widow-based-on-a-true-story-the-amazon-series-unravels-a-spellbinding-mystery-16440284|title=You Won't Be Able To Stop Watching This Gripping New Amazon Thriller|last=Patton|first=Rebecca|website=Bustle|date=March 2019 |language=en|access-date=2019-03-25}} Three years later, she sees a man resembling him on a news story reporting civil unrest in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and she travels to Kinshasa to uncover the truth.{{Cite web|url=https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/tv-and-radio/lean-and-taut-the-new-amazon-drama-the-widow-hits-the-ground-running-20190227-h1brr4.html|title=Lean and taut, the new Amazon drama The Widow hits the ground running|last=Idato|first=Michael|date=2019-03-01|website=The Sydney Morning Herald|language=en|access-date=2019-03-25}} She starts to look for answers, particularly why her husband evidently faked his own death. The eight-episode series features multiple story lines and explores themes such as violence and corruption.{{Cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/la-et-st-the-widow-white-dragon-review-amazon-20190228-story.html|title=Review: Amazon's thrillers 'The Widow' and 'White Dragon' are potato-chip bingeable|last=Lloyd|first=Robert|website=Los Angeles Times|date=28 February 2019 |access-date=2019-03-25}}
Production
The Widow is a co-production of British ITV and Amazon Video.{{Cite web|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2019/03/widow-review-amazon/583903/|title=The Clumsy Predictability of 'The Widow'|last=Gilbert|first=Sophie|date=2019-03-03|website=The Atlantic|language=en-US|access-date=2019-03-25}} It was filmed in South Africa, Wales, and Rotterdam. The heat in some of the locations became difficult for Beckinsale, who was hospitalised after passing out while shooting a scene.{{cite web |last1=Thomas |first1=Gareth |title=What time is The Widow on TV? What is it about, and who is in the cast? |url=https://www.radiotimes.com/news/tv/2019-01-25/the-widow-itv-kate-beckinsale-air-date-cast-plot/ |website=Radio Times |access-date=January 28, 2019 |date=January 25, 2019}}{{cite news |url=https://meaww.com/the-widow-review-kate-beckinsale-amazon-prime-originals-charles-dance-alex-kingston-shalom-nyandiko |title='The Widow': Kate Beckinsale isn't the only star to watch out for in Amazon's upcoming suspense thriller |first=Regina |last=Gurung |work=Media Entertainment Arts WorldWide |date=2019-02-26 |access-date=2019-04-29}}
Cast
- Kate Beckinsale as Georgia Wells
- Charles Dance as Martin Benson
- Alex Kingston as Judith Gray
- Babs Olusanmokun as General Azikiwe
- Shalom Nyandiko as Adidja
- Luiana Bonfim as Gaëlle Kazadi
- Louise Brealey as Beatrix
- Bart Fouche as Pieter Bello/Hennie Botha
- Ólafur Darri Ólafsson as Ariel
- Howard Charles as Tom
- Réginal Kudiwu as Djamba
- Jacky Ido as Emmanuel
- Matthew Le Nevez as Will Mason
- Matthew Gravelle as Joshua
Episodes
{{Episode table |background=#CCCC07 |total_width=100% |overall= |title= |director= |writer= |airdate= |airdateR={{cite web |title=The Widow Listings |url=http://www.thefutoncritic.com/showatch/widow/listings/ |website=The Futon Critic |access-date=February 6, 2019}} |altdate= |altdateT=Original UK air date |viewers=12|country=UK |viewersR={{cite web|url=https://www.barb.co.uk/viewing-data/four-screen-dashboard/|title=Four-screen dashboard (Four screen viewing, based on 28-day data) - BARB|website=www.barb.co.uk|access-date=29 May 2019}}|episodes=
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 1
|Title = Mr. Tequila
|DirectedBy = Sam Donovan
|WrittenBy = Harry Williams & Jack Williams
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2019|3|1}}
|AltDate = April 8, 2019
| Viewers = 8.08
|ShortSummary = Georgia Wells lives alone in a cottage in the Welsh countryside. While watching a news story about civil unrest in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, she sees a man that she believes is her husband, who presumably died in a plane crash three years earlier. Still haunted by the past, Georgia travels to the Congo to find out the truth.
|LineColor =#CCCC07
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 2
|Title = Green Lion
|DirectedBy = Sam Donovan
|WrittenBy = Harry Williams & Jack Williams
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2019|3|1}}
|AltDate = April 9, 2019
| Viewers = 6.88
|ShortSummary = To find the truth about her husband, Georgia must first work with Emmanuel, together they attempt to track down the mysterious Pieter Bello. Meanwhile, Beatrix makes a shocking discovery about how Ariel lost his sight.
|LineColor =#CCCC07
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 3
|Title = The Survivors
|DirectedBy = Sam Donovan
|WrittenBy = Harry Williams & Jack Williams
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2019|3|1}}
|AltDate = April 15, 2019
| Viewers = 6.74
|ShortSummary = Judith arranges a lift for Georgia with a group of medical aid workers, but the volatility of the region threatens to derail their journey. Pieter forces Adidja to partake in a terrifying exercise, while Ariel must confront the horrors of his past.
|LineColor =#CCCC07
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 4
|Title = Violet
|DirectedBy = Sam Donovan
|WrittenBy = Harry Williams & Jack Williams
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2019|3|1}}
|AltDate = April 16, 2019
| Viewers = 6.42
|ShortSummary = Martin and Ariel seek to determine the identity of the army general linked to the plane crash, while Georgia puts herself in danger to get closer to the elusive Pieter.
|LineColor =#CCCC07
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 5
|Title = Poteza
|DirectedBy = Olly Blackburn
|WrittenBy = Harry Williams & Jack Williams
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2019|3|1}}
|AltDate = April 22, 2019
| Viewers = 6.27
|ShortSummary = As she finally comes face to face with Pieter, Georgia resorts to extreme measures to learn more about Will's disappearance. Judith's return to her home brings back memories from her past, but she doesn't foresee an unexpected twist of fate.
|LineColor =#CCCC07
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 6
|Title = The Spider and the Web
|DirectedBy = Olly Blackburn
|WrittenBy = Harry Williams & Jack Williams
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2019|3|1}}
|AltDate = April 23, 2019
| Viewers = 6.16
|ShortSummary = Georgia and Adidja make a journey deep into the Congolese wilderness that yields unexpected consequences. Meanwhile, in the search for answers about the plane crash, Martin puts himself and Ariel ever closer to Azikiwe's dangerous path.
|LineColor =#CCCC07
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 7
|Title = Will
|DirectedBy = Olly Blackburn
|WrittenBy = Harry Williams & Jack Williams
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2019|3|1}}
|AltDate = April 29, 2019
| Viewers = 6.77
|ShortSummary = The search for Will takes Georgia to Rwanda. On her arrival, she prepares to finally learn the answers about what really happened to her husband, but is not ready for what she finds there.
|LineColor =#CCCC07
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 8
|Title = Nigel
|DirectedBy = Olly Blackburn
|WrittenBy = Harry Williams & Jack Williams
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2019|3|1}}
|AltDate = April 30, 2019
| Viewers = 6.30
|ShortSummary = Blindsided by the revelations about Will, Georgia returns to Kinshasa. But before she can right the wrongs of the past, she must contend with those determined to stop her from exposing the truth.
|LineColor =#CCCC07
}}
}}
Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes season 1 has an approval rating of 56% based on reviews from 27 critics. The site's consensus states: Ferociously ambitious, The Widow boasts Kate Beckinsale's killer action chops but goes astray in a jungle of problematic tropes and unsatisfying twists.{{cite web |title=The Widow: Season 1 |url= https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_widow/s01 |website= Rotten Tomatoes |access-date= 2019-08-11 }}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|7459986}}
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98iBtTSG_Ls&t=91s Behind the scenes : the score] on YouTube
{{Amazon Video original series}}
{{Harry and Jack Williams}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Widow (TV series), The}}
Category:2019 British television series debuts
Category:2019 British television series endings
Category:2010s British drama television series
Category:2010s British television miniseries
Category:ITV television dramas
Category:British English-language television shows