Filming Begins on the Second Series of the Global Hit Series About a Woman Who Was Unique in Her Time: 'The Empress'

Showrunner: Katharina Eyssen

Executive Producers: Jochen Laube, Fabian Maubach, Robert Eyssen, 

Katharina Eyssen, and Scarlett Lacey

Scriptwriters: Katharina Eyssen (head writer), Elena von Saucken,

Francis Pfitzner, Matthias Börner

Directors: Barbara Ott, Maximilian Erlenwein

Cinematographers: Kolja Brandt, Rik Zang

Wardrobe: Gabriela Reumer

Makeup: Jens Bartram

Production Design: Myrna Wolff

Producer: Lars Gmehling

Associate Producer: Michal Pokorny 

Production: Sommerhaus Serien GmbH

Service Production: MIA Film

Cast: Devrim Lingnau, Philip Froissant, Melika Foroutan, Johannes Nussbaum,Josephine Thiesen, Almila Bagriacik, Runa Greiner, Jördis Triebel, Alexander Finkenwirth,Matthias Matschke, and more.

A rebellious woman caught between courtly conventions and a family riven by divisions on one side and the call of her heart on the other: filming has begun on the long-awaited second season of The Empress on location in Bavaria, the Czech Republic, and Italy.

Over the last year, the series has won over both German-speaking and international audiences. The Empress spent five weeks at the top of the Netflix charts, reaching the top spot in 88 countries.

The young couple has just survived their first crisis and want nothing more than to enjoy their marital bliss as storm clouds gather over Schönbrunn Palace. Franz (Philip Froissant) finds himself unexpectedly facing a powerful European adversary, while Elisabeth (Devrim Lingnau) comes under intense pressure to secure the future of the Empire as quickly as possible with an heir to the throne.

As fate buffets the couple with all its force, their love seems as though it will fall apart for good. Elisabeth's struggle is not only for her family, but also for the integrity of her soul...

The acclaimed starring actors are joined by returning cast members Melika Foroutan (Archduchess Sophie), Johannes Nussbaum (Archduke Maximilian), and Almila Bagriacik (Countess Leontine). And there are exciting new arrivals, like Josephine Thiesen as Princess Marie and Christoph Favre as Napoleon III.

Katharina Eyssen returns as showrunner and  Sommerhaus Serien GmbH is once again responsible for  production. The Executive Producers are Jochen Laube, Fabian Maubach, Robert Eyssen, Katharina Eyssen, and Scarlett Lacey, while the season's directors are Barbara Ott and Maximilian Erlenwein.

About Sommerhaus Filmproduktion

Jochen Laube and Fabian Maubach have jointly run Sommerhaus Filmproduktion since 2015, along with Sommerhaus Serien GmbH, founded in 2020.

The projects the company has carried out to date include feature films like In the Aisles by Thomas Stuber (2018 Berlinale Competition) and What Doesn't Kill Us by Sandra Nettelbeck (premiere in Locarno 2018), as well as television productions such as Tatort: The Red Shadow by Dominik Graf and Katharina Eyssen's Netflix series Holiday Secrets. Caroline Link's movie adaptation of the novel When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit was awarded the Bavarian Film Award and the German Film Award. Burhan Qurbani's adaptation of the novel Berlin Alexanderplatz (Berlinale Competition 2020) received five Lolas at the German Film Awards. Sommerhaus Serien GmbH launched its first Instagram-format production in 2021 with Ich bin Sophie Scholl by Tom Lass. 2022 saw the release of the first season of The Empress along with two Barcelona crime dramas from Carolina Hellsgård and The Net – Promised Land by Rick Ostermann on ARD. More recently, Thomas Stuber's Dark Satellites had its theatrical release in December 2022.

Sommerhaus Filmproduktion has offices in Berlin, Ludwigsburg, and Munich.

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