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Season 1 – The Luminaries

Play trailer 2:05 Poster for Season 1 – The Luminaries Jun 2020 Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
65% Tomatometer 31 Reviews 43% Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
An intricately woven, suspenseful tale of love, murder, magic and revenge set in New Zealand at the height of the 1860s gold rush, based on the Man Booker prize-winning novel.
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The Luminaries — Season 1

The Luminaries — Season 1

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Lucious, but lacking, The Luminaries has style and character to spare, but those looking for a little more depth may be left wanting.

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Critics Reviews

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Ann Donahue IndieWire 02/18/2021
C-
In this scattershot adaptation, all you can see is an eclipse of something that's probably quite beautiful when it is full. Go to Full Review Allison Keene Paste Magazine 02/18/2021
6.2/10
The twists and turns of The Luminaries are mild, and despite a textbook-level satisfactory conclusion to these many narrative threads, the emotions never quite come through. Go to Full Review Melanie McFarland Salon.com 02/17/2021
The plot's lack of confidence notwithstanding, for some people Green's presence may provide enough reason to drift along from one beautiful sight to the next, unconcerned as to where it's all leading. Go to Full Review Mel Campbell ScreenHub 11/09/2021
4/5
The pleasures of this show lie in watching its clockwork tick as the plot unfurls ... it's a sparkling, cleverly crafted adventure. Go to Full Review Sarah Ksiazek The MacGuffin 03/08/2021
B
The Luminaries is worth your time on a lazy Sunday, but maybe not for an exciting Friday night binge. Go to Full Review Marina Gordon Common Sense Media 03/03/2021
3/5
Supernatural drama has murder, sex work, opium, alcohol. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Frank E. @Franksmovies Feb 21 Confusing. Pointless. See more Kirsten N @InTheUSA Dec 7 Wonderful book but this tv adoptation is hard to follow. The back and forth in the timeline is hard to follow. See more Sharang L @Scribe187 Oct 1 An engaging period piece that could have done with a longer narrative than just 6 episodes. See more 05/14/2022 Rarely have my expectations been so utterly disappointed. This show is simply boring, painfully lacks creative cinematography, charismatic acting and an interesting and believable story. It is not enough to rely on a beautiful landscape and a big budget. After having watched this cinematic accident I deeply regretted to have wasted hours of my life on this. See more 04/19/2021 Confusing and exasperating. Convoluted and hard to follow. Scenery is great and the leads are good but the series doesn't captivate or ever fly See more 03/18/2021 The way they jump around in time leads to a disjointed handling of the story. They attempt to make it more of a mystery but end of leaving it feel disjointed. See more Read all reviews
The Luminaries — Season 1

My Rating

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Cast & Crew

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Eve Hewson

Anna Wetherell

Eva Green

Lydia Wells

Himesh Patel

Emery Staines

Marton Csokas

Francis Carver

Ewen Leslie

Crosbie Wells

Erik Thomson

Dick Mannering

Episodes

Episode 1 Aired Jun 21, 2020 Fingerprint Anna and Emery meet on a voyage to New Zealand, but their plans to reunite are frustrated. Details Episode 2 Aired Jun 22, 2020 The Place You Return Lydia and Carver hatch a plan to free Carver from his convict past. Details Episode 3 Aired Jun 28, 2020 Leverage Anna's suspicions are aroused as Lydia prepares to host a party. Details Episode 4 Aired Jun 21, 2020 The Other Half Emery and Anna have a disastrous reunion. Details Episode 5 Aired Jun 21, 2020 Paradox A stranger arrives in town and the events of the night Crosbie Wells died are pieced together. Details Episode 6 Aired Jun 21, 2020 The Old Moon in the Young Moon's Arms Anna is tried for murder; new evidence reveals a connection between Lauderback and Crosbie Wells. Details

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The Luminaries — Season 1

The Luminaries: Limited Series Trailer The Luminaries: Limited Series Trailer 2:05 View more videos
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The Luminaries — Season 1

The Luminaries View more photos

Season Info

Director
Claire McCarthy
Executive Producer
Andrew Woodhead, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Timothy White, Eleanor Catton, Claire McCarthy, Claudia Bluemhuber, Christian Vesper
Screenwriter
Eleanor Catton
Network
BBC
Genre
Drama
Original Language
British English
Release Date
Jun 21, 2020