Next month sees the release of Mussolini: Son of the Century, the new television series from the acclaimed filmmaker Joe Wright (Darkest Hour). Set in the 1920s — a nice round number given the decade in which we find ourselves now — the series follows the early political career and the life of Benito Mussolini, one of the most controversial figures in history, played by Luca Marinelli (The Old Guard). Ahead of the September 10, 2025 release on Mubi, Collider is thrilled to bring our viewers an exclusive first look at the trailer for Wright‘s latest masterpiece, which gives us a flavor of the fascinating horrors unleashed upon Italy by Mussolini.

Mussolini: Son of the Century features a powerhouse ensemble that includes Francesco Russo as Cesare Rossi, Barbara Chichiarelli as Margherita Sarfatti, Benedetta Cimatti as Rachele Mussolini, and Lorenzo Zurzolo as Italo Balbo. The series also includes Gaetano Bruno as Giacomo Matteotti, Vincenzo Nemolato as King Victor Emmanuel III, and Maurizio Lombardi as Emilio De Bono, alongside Paolo Pierobon as Gabriele D’Annunzio.

Speaking with Collider‘s Maggie Lovitt over email, Wright went over the similarities between the present day and the time in which Son of the Century was set, with those parallels become all the more important and prevalent as time goes on:

“Growing up in the U.K. in the ’70’s and ’80’s ‘Fascist’ was a prerogative term used against any figure of authority. I’d call my teachers ‘Fascists’, the police ‘Fascists’, Margaret Thatcher a ‘Fascist’! But with the rise of the populist Far Right around the world in recent years I felt it was my responsibility to educate myself on the roots of that word. To make sense of how we got where we are, and where we go from here.”

How Good is ‘Mussolini: Son of the Century’?

The series has been met with critical acclaim thus far, and boasts a 91% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the review aggregator. Collider‘s Jeff Ewing said the series “needs to be seen” in his glowing 9/10 review, hailing Marinelli‘s lead performance as the dictator, who has “enough tactical smarts and malicious charisma that you believe he could let loose the collective Ids of your angriest, most frustrated, rule-fetishizing neighbors,” adding:

Son of the Century is a powerful and terrible warning in an era where far-right and neofascist powers are on the ascent in many countries worldwide. Mussolini tells a supporter “This is the last time we’re holding elections,” almost verbatim the words of a current U.S. political candidate who rose to power fomenting similar hatred towards democracy and antipathy towards the vulnerable. It’s a harrowing series, centered around a strong central performance, that needs to be seen, starkly reminding us that it’s never too late to be bold and stamp out fascist tendencies… until one day it is.

Mussolini: Son of the Century will premiere on Mubi on September 10, 2025.

via Collider