# Borgia (2011)

> A ruthless Renaissance papal family fights to seize and hold power in the corrupt Vatican court.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/31653

## Facts

- Seasons: 3
- Episodes: 38
- Episode runtime: 52 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: drama, history
- Created by: Tom Fontana
- Network: Canal+
- Cast: John Doman, Andrea Sawatzki, Mark Ryder, Assumpta Serna, Marta Gastini, Stanley Weber, Rafael Cebrian, Diarmuid Noyes
- TMDB rating: 7.7/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1736341/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: dense
- Violence: moderate
- Tone: cold, cynical, lush, tense, brooding

## What critics say

Audiences rate the series positively overall, valuing its lavish historical intrigue and dense political scheming, though its quality drifts downward across seasons.

## Synopsis

Borgia (2011-2014) is a French-produced historical drama series created by Tom Fontana for Canal+. Set in the Vatican and the Italian states of the late fifteenth century, it follows the ambitious Rodrigo Borgia (John Doman), whose rise to the papacy depends on bargains, bribes and alliances. Around him, his ambitious son Cesare Borgia (Mark Ryder), his mistress Vannozza Catanei (Assumpta Serna) and rival power brokers such as Giulia Farnese (Marta Gastini) and Alessandro Farnese (Diarmuid Noyes) scheme for influence in the papal court. Each episode turns on a new political maneuver, a marriage pact, a poisoning rumor or a rival faction's counterattack, so the story builds into a long serialized saga across three seasons and thirty-eight episodes. The tone is cold, cynical and lushly staged, with candlelit palaces, rigid hierarchy and sudden violence behind closed doors. Fans of The Tudors, Rome and Game of Thrones will find resonance in its appetite for dynastic ambition, court intrigue and the costs of power. The setting is Renaissance Italy, a world where faith and corruption are inseparable.

## Shows like Borgia

- [Isabel (2012)](https://ember.film/tv/38640)
- [Néro the Assassin (2025)](https://ember.film/tv/164923)
- [The Serpent Queen (2022)](https://ember.film/tv/98308)
- [Maximilian and Marie De Bourgogne (2017)](https://ember.film/tv/61682)
- [The Spanish Princess (2019)](https://ember.film/tv/73417)
- [The Tudors (2007)](https://ember.film/tv/2797)
- [Becoming Elizabeth (2022)](https://ember.film/tv/123832)
- [Medici: Masters of Florence (2016)](https://ember.film/tv/58801)
- [The Young Pope (2016)](https://ember.film/tv/55720)
- [The New Pope (2020)](https://ember.film/tv/75046)

---

Site overview: https://ember.film/llms.txt