--- title: "Wolf Hall" year: 2015 kind: "series" canonical: "https://film.one/tv/wolf-hall" fi1m_score: 86 critics_score: 89 critics_reviews: 7 published: "2026-09-17T03:17:34.702316+00:00" updated: "2026-09-17T03:17:52.943204+00:00" region: "US" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Wolf Hall (2015) Created by Peter Straughan, Peter Kosminsky, Hilary Mantel · Drama **Fi1m score: 86** · Critics 89 from 7 reviews *In a sentence:* A Tudor drama in which the loudest sound is Mark Rylance thinking > Peter Kosminsky’s six-part adaptation of Hilary Mantel’s Cromwell novels is dark, patient and acted with unusual care, and Mark Rylance’s Cromwell is the best thing in it. It asks for your full attention and mostly earns it, though the middle episodes stall. ## Synopsis England, 1529. Cardinal Wolsey (Jonathan Pryce) has failed to get Henry VIII (Damian Lewis) out of his marriage to Katherine of Aragon, and the King’s men arrive at York Place to take his house and his seal. Thomas Cromwell (Mark Rylance), a blacksmith’s son who became the Cardinal’s lawyer, stays loyal while everyone else finds somewhere better to be. Anne Boleyn (Claire Foy) is waiting to be queen and wants to know whose side he is on. The Duke of Norfolk (Bernard Hill) wants him gone. At home Cromwell runs a house full of clerks and wards, among them Rafe Sadler (Thomas Brodie-Sangster) and Richard Cromwell (Joss Porter), and begins the slow work of making himself useful to a king he has never met. ## Review Hilary Mantel’s novels about Thomas Cromwell are long, and Peter Straughan has cut two of them, *Wolf Hall* and *Bring Up the Bodies*, down to six hours. Peter Kosminsky has directed all six as if nobody were in a hurry. The series follows Cromwell from the ruin of his master, Cardinal Wolsey, to the moment he becomes the man Henry VIII cannot do without, and it takes the view that the interesting person in any room is the one in the corner saying nothing. Our verdict: this is excellent television, patient to the point of stubbornness, and Mark Rylance’s Cromwell is a performance we would send a stranger to see. It is not without slack. Rylance plays Cromwell almost entirely in reaction. He stands at the edge of rooms with his hands folded, and when he speaks it is quietly, in short sentences, usually to ask a question rather than answer one. The editors, Josh Cunliffe, David Blackmore and Philip Scaife, keep cutting back to his face while other people talk, and the face gives away nothing, which after a while is itself alarming. It makes everyone around him look as though they are acting too hard, even when they are not. We had not expected to be upset about a cardinal. Jonathan Pryce plays Wolsey as a big, vain, funny man who goes on making jokes while his furniture is carried out of the house, and his fall in the first episode is what Cromwell spends the next five remembering. Damian Lewis is in it less than his billing suggests. His Henry is affable, athletic and easily bored, and you watch the people around him trying to work out how long the good mood will last. Claire Foy’s Anne is quick, rude and clever, and Foy lets her be disliked. Bernard Hill’s Norfolk swears at everyone and is the only person at court who appears to be enjoying himself. It is funnier than its reputation. Straughan’s script gives Cromwell a dry remark for most occasions, and Rylance delivers them without changing his expression, so that half the jokes land a second late. Thomas Brodie-Sangster’s Rafe Sadler and Joss Porter’s Richard Cromwell, the young men of the household, get the warmest scenes, and the series is at its most human at Cromwell’s own table rather than the King’s. Gavin Finney lights the interiors by candle and by whatever comes through the windows, so faces float in the dark and the corners of rooms disappear. It is handsome, and there will be evenings when you want the brightness up. Pat Campbell’s production design puts the court in stone rooms with little furniture, so people move through them like guests who are not sure they are welcome. Joanna Eatwell dresses Cromwell in black wool and fur, gives Henry the gold and lets Anne have most of the colour. Debbie Wiseman’s score is mostly strings and a few plucked instruments, and it arrives seldom enough that you notice when it does. The pace is a choice, and for stretches of the middle episodes it is the wrong one. Henry’s efforts to be rid of his first wife proceed at the speed of actual diplomacy, with letters sent and answered and men waiting in corridors, and we found the fourth hour slack in a way the first was not. Kosminsky’s camera hangs back and observes, which suits Rylance but leaves some scenes stiff, as if the actors had been told not to move until the shot was over. A viewer who does not already know how the Boleyns, Seymours and Howards stand to one another will be lost for an hour, and the series does little to help. Set beside the usual run of Tudor television, this is austere to the point of severity. There is almost no sex, the 15 certificate is earned by a few hard moments rather than a habit, and the violence that matters happens off the edge of the frame or in a look. Mantel’s Cromwell, the villain of *A Man for All Seasons* recast as the one reasonable man in England, has been argued with by historians. The series does not argue back. It assumes he is right, which is its one lazy habit. The six episodes stand on their own. Watch one a night, in the dark, with the subtitles on for the muttering, and give the opening episode your full attention. Everything after it assumes you did. *Fi1m score 86, published 17 September 2026.* ## What the critics say The critics are of one mind: seven reviews, all of them positive, and a score of 89. The praise clusters almost entirely on Mark Rylance’s Thomas Cromwell, described again and again as quiet, placid and the anchor of the whole series, with Claire Foy’s Anne Boleyn and the wider ensemble close behind. Most also admire Peter Kosminsky’s restraint: natural light, an unhurried pace, and a refusal of the usual Tudor titillation. Several find it unexpectedly funny. The spread is narrow, and what reservations there are concern tempo. The Times, otherwise among the warmest, thinks the royal melodrama is slowed nearly to a standstill. Vulture, the most measured of the seven, finds some stiffness in the direction and is cooler on one of the lead performances than anyone else. Nobody thinks it fails; the only argument is whether the stillness is a virtue or an indulgence. ### Reviews we read (7) - **The Times**, Andrew Billen (5/5): The series provides a rarefied viewing experience like having a bath in champagne. It slows the royal melodrama to listlessness but delivers tremendous performances, especially from Claire Foy and Mark Rylance. [Read](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/tv-radio/article/tv-review-wolf-hall-k3qcfvg8m2v) - **The Guardian** (90/100, inferred): The series is a six-week splendour with no weak links in the cast or flaws in direction and writing. The final episode's handling of Anne Boleyn's execution stands out as exceptional. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2015/feb/26/wolf-hall-review-an-ending-so-great-we-forgot-we-knew-it-was-coming) - **Variety**, Brian Lowry (85/100, inferred): The critic praises the series as a quiet, unromanticized Masterpiece anchored by Mark Rylance’s towering performance as Thomas Cromwell. It singles out the strong ensemble cast and the methodical pace that reveals the underlying treachery and politicking. [Read](https://variety.com/2015/tv/reviews/tv-review-wolf-hall-1201458473/) - **The Hollywood Reporter**, Keith Uhlich (80/100, inferred): The critic calls the miniseries a terrific yarn about the British royals, highlighting the gripping behind-the-scenes political machinations and backstabbing. It singles out Mark Rylance’s placid yet compelling portrayal of Cromwell and the excellent supporting performances. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-reviews/wolf-hall-tv-review-786455/) - **Vulture** (80/100, inferred): The critic calls Wolf Hall largely excellent prestige television with an unexpected sense of humor and admirable restraint that avoids excess. They single out the strong performances and psychology for praise while noting some stiffness in direction and one lead performance as minor complaints. [Read](https://www.vulture.com/2015/04/wolf-hall-tv-review.html) - **Collider**, Allison Keene (★★★★★): The critic calls it a masterful series full of wit and intrigue, a showcase for Mark Rylance as Thomas Cromwell. They single out the understated, naturalistic filmmaking and direction by Peter Kosminsky that creates a pristine atmosphere through natural light and focus on the supporting players in the Tudor court. [Read](https://collider.com/wolf-hall-review/) - **Den of Geek**, Louisa Mellor (90/100, inferred): The critic finds Wolf Hall a splendid, well-cast and surprisingly modern political drama that stands out from other historical series for its rich texture and lack of cheap titillation. Praise goes to the nimble script, strong performances especially Mark Rylance's Cromwell, and the robust, sumptuous production design and direction. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/wolf-hall-episode-1-review-three-card-trick/) ## Details - **Created by:** Peter Straughan, Peter Kosminsky, Hilary Mantel - **Creator:** Peter Straughan, Peter Kosminsky, Hilary Mantel - **Director:** Peter Kosminsky - **Writer:** Peter Straughan - **Novel:** Hilary Mantel - **Cinematography:** Gavin Finney - **Editor:** David Blackmore, Josh Cunliffe, Philip Scaife - **Music:** Debbie Wiseman - **Production design:** Pat Campbell - **Costume design:** Joanna Eatwell - **Producer:** Mark Pybus, Lisa Osborne - **Cast:** Mark Rylance as Thomas Cromwell; Damian Lewis as Henry VIII; Claire Foy as Anne Boleyn; Thomas Brodie-Sangster as Rafe Sadler; Joss Porter as Richard Cromwell; Jonathan Pryce as Cardinal Wolsey; Bernard Hill as Duke of Norfolk; Charlie Rowe as Gregory Cromwell - **Release (the US):** 21 January 2015 - **Genres:** Drama - **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kT2lMkhldc ## Where to watch in the US - Amazon Prime Video: add-on - Amazon Prime Video: buy, sd - Apple TV: buy, sd *Checked 2026-09-17.* Also available in: AU, CA, DE, FR, GB, NL, NZ, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## Awards - BAFTA Television Awards 2016: Best Drama Series (won) - Golden Globes 2016: Best Limited or Anthology Series or Television Film (won) ## If you liked this - *A Man for All Seasons* (1966): The same story from the other side, with Cromwell as the villain. - *I, Claudius* (1976), Fi1m 90: Another quiet man surviving a murderous court by being underestimated. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/tv/i-claudius.md) - *Barry Lyndon* (1975), Fi1m 85: Candlelit rooms, careful faces and a climber who does not know when to stop. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/barry-lyndon.md) - *The Death of Stalin* (2017): Court politics as farce, with the same dread under the jokes. - *The Favourite* (2018), Fi1m 87: A monarch’s moods and the two women managing them, played much louder. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-favourite.md) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/tv/wolf-hall