Anne Boleyn

Matt Roush says...

The striking Jodie Turner-Smith (Queen & Slim) brings a new dynamic to the historical figure of doomed queen Anne Boleyn, that endlessly fascinating martyr to royal lust and savage whim. The second wife of the murderously capricious Henry VIII (Mark Stanley), this Anne is a fierce Black diva whose never-mentioned skin color symbolizes her outsider status in a mostly white court that despises and ultimately condemns her. It’s a provocative premise, but this flimsy three-part limited series opens with the clock already ticking on her reign, meaning that it’s all downhill for Anne, stranding a simmering performance in a curiously pallid rehash. (I much preferred the spunky Anne in the current Broadway hit musical Six, where she’s played by a diminutive Asian spitfire.)

What's Worth Watching (Dec 9)