When will The Spanish Princess season 2 release and what can fans expect? Starz's historical series centers on Catherine of Aragon (Charlotte Hope), who's destined to become the first wife of King Henry VIII (Ruairi O'Connor), but dramatizes the lesser-known details of how the young Spanish princess became the Queen of England.
The Spanish Princess is the sequel to The White Queen and The White Princess, which depicted the Wars of the Roses and the beginnings of the reign of King Henry VII (Elliot Cowan). Like the prior series, The Spanish Princess is historical-based fiction adapted from the novels The Constant Princess and The King's Curse by Philippa Gregory. In The Spanish Princess season 1, Catherine of Aragon is brought to England circa 1501 to marry Prince Arthur, which was arranged when both were children (and depicted in The White Princess) to create an alliance between Henry VII's England and the powerful and wealthy rulers of Spain, Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand. However, Arthur dies soon after their wedding, leaving Catherine's future in doubt.
While history tells us that Prince Harry would ascend to the throne and marry Catherine himself, The Spanish Princess tells the story from Catherine's point of view, and dives into the intrigue of whether Arthur and Catherine actually consummated their marriage. Meanwhile, Lady Margaret Beaufort (Harriet Walter), the King's mother, becomes the insidious power behind the throne and attempts to bring down Catherine, whom she sees as a threat to the Tudor dynasty - because she fears the dying vision of Queen Elizabeth of York (Alexandra Moen) that Catherine would sire no boys and leave the Tudors with no male heirs would come true. The Spanish Princess season 1 concludes with Harry becoming King Henry VIII, and promising to marry Catherine in spite of the machinations of Margaret Beaufort. However, Harry has his own doubts that Catherine is telling the truth that she's still a virgin. The story continues in The Spanish Princess season 2, and here's what we know.
The Spanish Princess Season 2 Release Date
Starz ordered The Spanish Princess season 2 on June 3, 2019, which makes it unique, since The White Queen and The White Princess limited series each only ran one season. Just like The Spanish Princess season 1, season 2 will be 8 episodes, and showrunners Emma Frost and Martin Graham promise the second season will allow them to tell Catherine of Aragon's story "in its entirety." The Spanish Princess season 1 began production in May 2018, and was released on May 5, 2019. While no release date has been announced yet, given the same year-long production process, fans can expect to see The Spanish Princess season 2 on Starz sometime in summer 2020.
The Spanish Princess Season 2 Cast
Along with stars Charlotte Hope and Ruairi O'Connor, other major cast members will return, including Laura Carmichael (Downton Abbey) as Lady Margaret Pole, Stephanie Levi-John as Catherine's trusted lady-in-waiting Lina de Cardonnes, and Aaron Cobham as Oviedo, Catherine's Moor guardsman and Lina's lover. In September 2019, four new actors joined the cast of season 2, including Ray Stevenson, Sai Bennett, Andrew Buchan, and Peter Egan. Stevenson will play King James IV of Scotland, the husband of Margaret "Meg" Tudor (a returning Georgie Henley). Bennett plays Henry and Meg's sister Mary, while Buchan plays social climber Sir Thomas More, and Egan portrays General Howard. The Spanish Princess season 1 also introduced some key figures who will take greater roles in season 2, like Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, Harry's best friend Charles Brandon, and Thomas Boleyn.
The Spanish Princess Season 2 Story
Since The Spanish Princess season 1 concluded before the wedding of Henry VIII and Catherine, The Spanish Princess is expected to begin with that fateful royal wedding. Much of the drama will likely center on Catherine's inability to produce a male heir for Henry, though she does give birth to their daughter Mary. This leads to Henry's infamous infidelities, which will ultimately spark his romance with the doomed Anne Boleyn.
Since The Spanish Princess season 2 pledges to tell Catherine's story "in its entirety", the challenge for the series will be to depict the next 27 years of Catherine's life in 8 episodes, but also doing so in a new and different way from the first couple of seasons of The Tudors. In the later years before Henry divorced her, Catherine becomes increasingly marginalized but, since The Spanish Princess season 2 will tell the story from Catherine's point of view, it will be fascinating to see how the series depicts the Queen's attempts to maintain her prominence and dignity, even though fans of history know how it all turns out for Catherine of Aragon.