After “Dark”, creators Jantje Friese and Baran bo Odar return with a new anomaly, “1899”. A mysterious series that gradually reveals its secrets.
WHAT IS IT ABOUT ?
The series follows the mysterious circumstances of the voyage of a boat of immigrants from Europe sailing to New York. The passengers are all from different backgrounds but share the same dreams and hopes for the new centenary and their future abroad.
When they discover another ship adrift in the open sea, missing for months, their journey takes an unexpected turn. What they find on board will turn their journey to a better world into a nightmarish enigma, revealing connections between each of the passengers, intertwined in a web of secrets.
IT’S FROM WHO ?
Behind 1899, we find the two creators of the German series Dark, Jantje Friese and Baran bo Odar. If this new fiction of eight episodes still retains all its mystery, many clues – starting with its poster – seem to indicate that it will relate to the legend of the Bermuda Triangle.
If Dark impressed with its narrative ambition, 1899 seems to be the two creators’ biggest project. The entire series was filmed at the famous Babelsberg studios outside of Berlin. For the visual effects, the duo of showrunners used the same technique as The Mandalorian: The Volume, a technology which consists of creating a huge decor using giant LED screens.
AND WITH WHO ?
The cast of the series is international. We find in particular Emily Beecham (Into the Badlands), Aneurin Barnard (The Goldfinch), Andreas Pietschmann (Dark), Miguel Bernardeau (Elite), Maciej Musial (The Witcher), Anton Lesser (Game Of Thrones), Lucas Lynggaard Tønnesen (The Rain) or Maria Erwolter (The Ritual).
Above all, two French performers join this choral series: Mathilde Ollivier, seen in Overlord, produced by JJ Abrams, and Yann Gael, who appeared in Duel au soleil and Le Rêve Français. In May 2021, when filming had just started, AlloCiné was able to speak with the two actors to talk about their characters.
1899 on Netflix: the new series from the creators of Dark presented by two of its French actors
Mathilde Ollivier plays Clemence: “She is trapped in an arranged marriage with someone she does not love at all, she describes. And the goal for her on this boat, to discover the New World, is to be able to free herself and choose her life. Not having to bow, smile like the perfect girl everyone expects her to be.“
As for Yann Gael, he explains: “Me, I embody Jérôme who embarked on the Kerberos to face his past. He is on a bit of a revenge trail. He’s looking for someone who betrayed him and maybe on the boat.”
BUT WHEN IS IT COMING OUT?
1899 will hit the platform this fall. If no official date has yet been announced, it should arrive in November. Rare fact for a Netflix series: 1899 premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.
1899, soon on Netflix.