The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin is an American historical fantasy television series created by Bonfire Legend Based on the book series The Pendragon Cycle by Stephen R. Lawhead, namely the first two books Taliesin (1987) and Merlin (1988), the series is a retelling of Arthurian legend set in Roman Britain and especially its original milieu, Sub-Roman Britain. It premiered January 22, 2026 on DailyWire+ and worldwide on Prime Video later in the year.

Premise The series follows Merlin, the immortal son of the bard Taliesin and Atlantean Princess Charis, chronicling his tragic upbringing, descent into madness, and shocking disappearance that led to the legend that surrounds him. Set before King Arthur's birth, Merlin, assumed dead or a myth, reemerges in Sub-Roman Britain to unite the fractured kingdoms under threat from Saxon invaders.

Cast Main cast Tom Sharp as Merlin James Arden as Taliesin Rose Reid as Charis Emree Franklin as Morgian Finney Cassidy as Aurelius Myles Clohessy as Uther Alex Laurence Phillips as Pelleas Brett Cooper as Ganieda Daniel Fathers as Avallach Steve Varnom as Custennin George Prentice as Dafyd Duran Fultan Brown as Elphin Flo Thompstone as Ygerna David Brooks as Tewdrig Alex Arco as Meurig George Osborne as Lot

Guest stars Colin Cunningham as Vortigern Nicholas Boulton as Morcant Thor Rosland as Hengist Chick Allan as Gorlas

Episodes

Production Development In November 2022, The Daily Wire announced its intention to produce an adaptation of the series. In July 2023, it was announced that The Daily Wire Co-CEO Jeremy Boreing would be taking a leave of absence from the company, to co-direct the series. It was also revealed that the series would source its filming and production in Italy and Hungary, and would premiere on DailyWire+. Boreing stated that the production's budget was least $1 million per episode, and at least $10 million overall for the whole season. In June 2026, Semafor reported that the show had cost a total of $50 million in total.

Casting In September 2023, British actor Tom Sharp was announced to have been cast in the series' lead role as Merlin, as filming began in Europe. Executive Producer Dallas Sonnier recalled Sharp independently auditioned for the title role “To discover Tom Sharp off of a casting tape that was self-submitted without an agent, direct to us, and to find a future movie star out of nowhere is such a cool thing”.

Following Tom Sharp's casting, the remaining main cast were later revealed - Rose Reid as Charis, James Arden as Taliesin, Emree Franklin as Morgian, Finney Cassidy as Aurelius, Myles Clohessy as Uther, Brett Cooper as Ganieda and Alex Laurence Phillips as Pelleas. Additionally cast in the series are Colin Cunningham as Vortigern, Nicholas Boulton as Morcant, Daniel Fathers as Avallach, Thor Rosland as Hengist and Chick Allan as Gorlas.

Filming Filming took place from September to December 2023 in Budapest, Trento, Priverno (at the Fossanova Abbey), in the Gran Sasso d'Italia mountains and at the Cinecittà film studio.

Release The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin premiered on January 22, 2026, consisting of seven episodes.

In late July 2026, The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin was released on Amazon Prime Video in Europe, reaching #3 series overall in the UK and Ireland, and #4 in Spain. After it's release in the United States, the series climbed the Prime Charts reaching #2 overall (tv shows and movies) on September 15th.

Reception The series premiered with largely positive reviews. Screen Rant, MovieWeb and CBR proclaimed the series as a "major streaming hit" after it premiered worldwide on Prime Video. Ed Power for The Telegraph called the show a "brilliant" and "cheery, cheesy series". Roger Avary praised the series comparing it with John Boorman's film Excalibur and against other fantasy shows like The Rings of Power, "it's as good as classic television" and that it was "being buried for political reasons." The series received praise from TV Fanatic and Giant Freakin Robot, with the latter positively comparing it to Game of Thrones. James Melzer for MovieWeb described the show as "a good old-fashioned fantasy" and "worthy entry in the genre that deserves recognition". Tom Sharp's performance received acclaim from entertainment news outlets, with TV Fanatic claiming Sharp in Episode 6 Ganieda "was on another level". Blaze Media praised Sharp's portrayal of Merlin as "multifaceted" and that he "carries Merlin through a formidable range...without turning him into a wizardly caricature."

A less favorable review from Josh Rosenberg for Esquire panned the series as "terrible" and "simply incomprehensible" and referred to it as a "discount Game of Thrones."

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