How do you take a 1400-word (plus!) page book and turn it into a brilliantly absorbing TV drama? You add James Norton (pictured above in King & Conqueror) to the cast list, of course. While fans will know him best for his standout roles in Happy Valley and Playing Nice, James has another genius role in War and Peace and, if you ask us, it's his best performances to date (sorry, Happy Valley).
The period drama is set against the backdrop of Russia’s wars with Napoleon and sees the 41-year-old actor step into the shoes of the cynical Prince Andrei. We follow his fate and that of his friend Pierre Bezukhov (Paul Dano) and their (yes, their!) love interest Natasha Rostova (Lily James) through eight years of Russian history that will change them – and everyone around them – forever.
With the full series available to stream on the BBC, here’s everything you need to know about War & Peace before you watch it, including the plot, cast and release date.
What is War & Peace about?
The six-part series, which first aired on the BBC in 2016, is an adaptation of Leo Tolstoy's 1869 novel and introduces us to Pierre Bezukhov (Paul Dano), a hot-headed newcomer in Russian society. Pierre is ambitious and brimming with ideas, but hopelessly lost as he seeks meaning in his life.
Alongside him is his handsome friend, Andrei Bolkonsky (James Norton), a cynical prince who’s sick of his stifling marriage and longs for glory on the field of battle. Then there’s the captivating and kind-hearted Natasha Rostova (Lily James), who’s only a teenager when the series begins, but is desperate to grow up, fall in love and experience the world.
Over eight years of war and peace, beginning with Napoleon’s military campaign against Russia and Austria in 1805 and concluding in 1812 after Napoleon’s invasion of Russia has failed, we meet a vast cast of unforgettable characters, from peasants to society hostesses - and even Napoleon himself. But through all the marriages and affairs, battlefields births and deaths, we keep returning to Pierre, Andrei and Natasha as they face life’s great questions of love and destiny.
Talking about the relatability of each of the characters, despite the period setting, James Norton told the BBC: “It’s about three families. The parents and their relationships with their children, and the children and their relationships with their lovers and their brothers and their sisters. They are totally recognisable, sympathetic and people that everyone can relate to. Most of them are Russian aristocrats of a very specific period, of a very specific class but they’re all shagging and fighting and flirting. It’s a big old soap opera which just happens to be set in the 1800s.”
Who’s in the cast of War & Peace?
The main cast of War & Peace includes:
- Paul Dano (Little Miss Sunshine) as Pierre Bezukhov
- James Norton (Grantchester) as Andrei Bolkonsky
- Lily James (Baby Driver) as Natasha Rostova
- Tuppence Middleton (The Forsytes) as Hélène Kuragina
- Callum Turner (The Capture) as Anatole Kuragin
- Jessie Buckley (Wicked Little Letters) as Marya Bolkonskaya
- Stephen Rea (Michael Collins) as Prince Vasily Kuragin
- Jim Broadbent (The Duke) as Prince Nikolai Bolkonsky
- Jack Lowden (Slow Horses) as Nikolai Rostov
- Adrian Edmondson (Bottom) as Count Ilya Rostov
- Aisling Loftus (Mr Selfridge) as Sonya Rostova
- Greta Scacchi (Darby and Joan) as Countess Natalya Rostova
- Kenneth Cranham (Under Suspicion) as Uncle Mikhail
- Tom Burke (Strike) as Fyodor Dolokhov
- Brian Cox (Succession) as General Mikhail Kutuzov
- Rebecca Front (Marionette) as Anna Mikhaylovna Drubetskaya
- Aneurin Barnard (Citadel) as Boris Drubetskoy
- Mathieu Kassovitz as Napoleon Bonaparte
- Ken Stott as Osip Alexeevich Bazdeev, the Freemason
- Gillian Anderson as Anna Pavlovna Scherer
Is War & Peace any good?
Yes – it turns a book that’s not exactly an easy read into something genuinely bingeable, relatable and incredibly enjoyable. The cast is, of course, exceptional, with standout performances from James Norton, Callum Turner Lily James and Paul Dano, who really make the series what it is.
How can I watch War & Peace?
All six episodes of War & Peace are available to watch now on BBC iPlayer.
What other James Norton dramas can I watch now?
For one of James’s most emotional performances, we’d recommend Nowhere Special. James plays a terminally ill single father with one last duty to take care of: finding a new family to adopt his four-year-old son. You can watch Nowhere Special on ITVX. If you’re a period drama fan, we’d suggest Life in Squares. The series sees James step into the shoes of a member of the renowned Bloomsbury group who were who were united by a desire for freedom in the early 20th century. Life in Squares is available to watch on Prime Video.
