# Franklin (2024)

> In 1776, a celebrated inventor Benjamin Franklin must use his charm and cunning on a secret mission to France to secure American independence.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/123472

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 8
- Episode runtime: 60 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: drama, history
- Network: Apple TV
- Cast: Michael Douglas, Noah Jupe, Daniel Mays, Ludivine Sagnier, Thibault de Montalembert, Assaad Bouab, Théodore Pellerin, Olivier Claverie
- TMDB rating: 6.9/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt18351584/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: mild
- Complexity: accessible
- Violence: mild
- Tone: wry, measured, sincere, melancholic, tense

## What critics say

Audiences rated the miniseries mixed, with its historical drama and Michael Douglas's lead performance drawing a middling response.

## Synopsis

Franklin (2024) is an American historical drama miniseries created as an eight-episode limited series for Apple TV, adapted from a novel. Michael Douglas plays Benjamin Franklin, the world-famous inventor and printer whose reputation for electrical experiments opens doors in Paris, while Noah Jupe plays his grandson Temple Franklin, who travels with him as a witness and confidant. Daniel Mays appears as Edward Bancroft, and Ludivine Sagnier as Madame Anne-Louise Brillon, both tied into the French court's shifting loyalties. The engine of the story is a secret diplomatic mission, set in December 1776, in which Franklin must win French support while the fate of American independence hangs in the balance. Each episode is built from salon conversations, back-channel negotiations, and quiet betrayals, where charm is a weapon and every alliance carries a price. Set in revolutionary-era France and the colonies, the series moves at a measured pace with a wry, sincere tone and a melancholic undercurrent about a nation not yet secure. Its atmosphere of candlelit rooms and whispered deals invites comparison with John Adams and The Crown, and viewers drawn to prestige period drama and political intrigue will find it a strong fit.

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