The Bastard Executioner is an American historical drama series created by Kurt Sutter that premiered on September 15, 2015, on cable network FX. The show was cancelled after only one season aired. [1]
Overview[]
Set in the early 14th century, a knight in King Edward I's army is broken by the horrors of war and vows to lay down his weapon. But when violence finds him again, he is forced to pick up the bloodiest sword of all: an executioner's sword.
Cast[]
Main Cast[]
- Lee Jones as Wilkin Brattle (10 episodes)
- Katey Sagal as Annora of the Alders (10 episodes)
- Flora Spencer-Longhurst as Lowry Aberffraw Ventris (10 episodes)
- Sam Spruell as Toran Prichard (10 episodes)
- Sarah Sweeney as Jessamy Maddox (10 episodes)
- Danny Sapani as Berber the Moor (8 episodes)
- Darren Evans as Ash y Goedwig (9 episodes)
- Kurt Sutter as Ludwig Von Zettel (9 episodes)
- Timothy V. Murphy as Ruskin (8 episodes)
- Sarah White as Isabel Kiffin (9 episodes)
- Elen Rhys as Petra Brattle (6 episodes)
- Ethan Griffiths as Luca Maddox (10 episodes)
- Stephen Moyer as Milus Corbett (10 episodes)
Guest Cast[]
(Must have 3 or more episode appearances)
- Alec Newman as Leon Tell (9 episodes)
- Ross O'Hennessy as Locke (9 episodes)
- Kyle Rees as Calo Caine (7 episodes)
- Eloise Lovell Anderson as Clara (7 episodes)
- James Rousseau as Denley (6 episodes)
- Sophie Lovell Anderson as Ramona (6 episodes)
- Trevor Sellers as Robinus (6 episodes)
- Francis Magee as Absolon (5 episodes)
- Matthieu Charneau as Frenchie (5 episodes)
- Tim McDonnell as Huxley (5 episodes)
- Llew Davies as Norton (5 episodes)
- Ed Sheeran as Cormac (4 episodes)
- Scroobius Pip as Aiden (4 episodes)
- Matthew Rhys as Gruffudd y Blaidd (3 episodes)
- Richard Brake as Edwin Pryce (3 episodes)
- Tom Forbes as Piers Gaveston (3 episodes)
Reception[]
The first season received mixed to negative reviews, receiving praise for the action scenes, writing and performances, but criticizing the fact that the series relies on violence rather than a storyline. It holds a rating of 49% (rotten) on the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes based on 53 critics. The website's consensus reads: "Kurt Sutter's The Bastard Executioner doesn't want for dark thrills, but it unfortunately has more enthusiasm for brutality and gore than necessary narrative focus." Out of 37 reviews in Metacritic, twelve were positive, twenty-three were mixed, and two were negative, for a rating of 55.