Bridgerton fans, listen up! Netflix has just dropped a swoony new period drama you won't want to miss.
Based on Italian author Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa's 1958 classic, The Leopard follows Don Fabrizio Corbera, Prince of Salina (Kim Rossi Stuart), a Sicilian nobleman whose family is struggling to survive the changing tides of Italian life during the Risorgimento (a social and political movement for Italian unification which took place in the 1800s).
In order to preserve his family's legacy, Don Corbera must make an impossible choice. By arranging a marriage between his nephew Tancredi and the wealthy and beautiful Angelica, Don Corbera could secure his family's future but will break his daughter Concetta's heart.
Intrigued? Keep reading for all you need to know about the six-part series.
The Leopard's gripping plot
Set against the backdrop of revolution in 1860s Sicily, the story centres around Don Fabrizio Corbera, the Prince of Salina, who "leads a life surrounded by beauty and privilege," according to the synopsis.
"But as Italy moves towards unification and the old aristocratic order is threatened, he realises that his family's future is in jeopardy. New allegiances must be made, each one a threat to his principles.
© LUCIA IUORIO/NETFLIX"Eventually Don Fabrizio is faced with an impossible choice. He has the power to engineer a marriage, between the rich and beautiful Angelica and his nephew Tancredi, that could secure his family's legacy, but doing so he would break his favorite daughter, Concetta's heart."
The series is based on Lampedusa's classic novel Il Gattopardo (The Leopard), which is both a political tale and a story about a family in the midst of nationwide turmoil.
© LUCIA IUORIO/NETFLIXTom Shankland, who directed several episodes and read the book in his 20s, said: "I always got that feeling that I wasn't being sold a message in the book but I was definitely being given a really kind of profound and touching experience of family life and the way it has to navigate huge, turbulent historical changes."
Who stars in The Leopard?
Kim Rossi Stuart (Senza Pelle) leads the cast as Don Fabrizio Corbera, alongside Benedetta Porcaroli (Immaculate) as Concetta Corbera of Salina, Deva Cassel (The Beautiful Summer) as Angelica Sedara, Saul Nanni (Brado) as Tancredi Falconer and Paolo Calabresi (Boris) as Padre Pirrone.
© LUCIA IUORIO/NETFLIXRounding out the main cast are Francesco Colella (The Good Mothers) as Don Calogero Sedara, Astrid Meloni (The Swarm) as Maria Stella Corbera of Salina, Francesco Di Leva (The Children’s Train) as Russo.
The Leopard is available to watch on Netflix.
