Mussolini: Son of the Century – Release date news, cast details, streaming details and more about the upcoming MUBI drama 

Mussolini: Son of the Century is a series that takes the risk to explore one of the darkest periods in European history with audacity and uncompromising brilliance. The project isn’t a glorification but a reconstruction of the man who reforged 20th-century Italy with a combination of charisma, manipulation and brutality.

Based on the prize-winning novel by Antonio Scurati, Mussolini: Son of the Century is a drama that examines the rise of Benito Mussolini through an uncompromising lens that helped turn him from a marginal agitator into the public face of the Fascist Party. Once again, the feature director Joe Wright (Atonement, Darkest Hour) brings big-screen sweep to television, in a portrait that is both firmly grounded in history and scarily contemporary.

Mussolini: Son of the Century – Release date, streaming details and cast details

Mussolini: Son of the Century is an eight-part series and will be released on MUBI on September 10, 2025. The first two episodes will drop on September 10 and will be followed by weekly installments through the conclusion on October 22. The show will be available in North America, Latin America, Belgium, Luxembourg, Turkey, India and New Zealand exclusively on the platform.

The cast features Luca Marinelli as Benito Mussolini, Francesco Russo as Cesare Rossi, Barbara Chichiarelli as Margherita Sarfatti, Benedetta Cimatti as Rachele Mussolini, Gaetano Bruno as Giacomo Matteotti and Massimo De Lorenzo as Alfredo Rocco. Other stars who shine are Lorenzo Zurzolo as Balbo, Maurizio Lombardi as De Bono, Vincenzo Nemolato as Vittorio Emanuele III, Paolo Pierobon as D’Annunzio and Gianluca Gobbi as Cesare Maria de Vecchi. The cast and the story will explore the turbulent rise and ideologies of Mussolini adding depth to the plot.

Mussolini: Son of the Century – What the creators and producers said about the upcoming drama series

With Luca Marinelli in the role of the dictator, Mussolini: Son of the Century offers a story that is as haunting as it is necessary. Director Joe Wright described the historical drama in a press release saying:

"This series was a chance to explore how charisma and chaos can coexist in a single man — and how that dangerous combination can reshape a nation. Luca Marinelli brings Mussolini’s volatility and magnetism to terrifying life. It was a privilege to work with such an extraordinary team on a story that feels both historical and disturbingly timeless. MUBI is the perfect home for the series — a platform that embraces daring, intelligent storytelling and treats its audience as collaborators in the experience.”

MUBI founder and CEO Efe Cakarel praised Wright’s vision in an interview with Variety adding:

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“Fearless storytelling has always been at the heart of Mubi and no one embodies it more vividly than Joe Wright. With Mussolini: Son of the Century he transforms history into pulse-quickening drama—elevated by Luca Marinelli’s searing performance—and proves how the screen can both unsettle and enlighten. We’re honored to bring this extraordinary series to audiences around the world.”

Antonio Scurati’s book M: Son of the Century caused a sensation when it was published, and won 2019’s Premio Strega in Italy. This careful blend of fiction and real history in the book offered an extraordinary view of Mussolini’s rise and fall, which helped make it a perfect candidate for a screen adaptation of Mussolini: Son of the Century. Fremantle created the series with The Apartment Pictures and Pathé, and tapped Wright to bring the project a sweeping, cinematic experience.

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