Britannia Season 3 Release Date, Cast, And Plot - What We Know So Far

Back in 2018, Amazon premiered Sky Studios' first season of "Britannia," a visually stunning historical fantasy series that takes place during Rome's invasion of ancient Britain in the 1st century. Blending historical events with mysterious Druidic rituals and beliefs, sprawling, fantastical landscapes, action, humor, psychological horror, and a fabulously anachronistic soundtrack ironically characterized by tracks from the 1960's "British Invasion," the series had a little something for everyone. It's no surprise, then, that when Amazon opted to drop the series, various streaming services jumped on it. 

As Deadline reported at the start of 2020, "the show has traveled around the world. Distributed by NBCUniversal Global Distribution, ['Britannia'] has aired on HBO in a number of European territories, Starz in the Middle East and SVOD service iFlix across Africa." By July of that year, MGM's streaming service Epix had jumped on board "as a co-production partner for season three." For fans of the series, where to watch Season 3 doesn't matter nearly as much as when (they'll finally be able) to watch it. 

Thankfully, Epix has at long last teased some key information about when, who, and what to expect from the series' highly-anticipated third installment. 

In early October 2021, Epix shared some tantalizing information about "Britannia" Season 3 that further flushes out the glimpse of Season 3 fans received from Sky and HD Trailers this past summer. The cabler also released a compelling teaser trailer now available to view on YouTube. According to Epix's press page, fans can tune in to Season 3 of "Britannia" — in all its Pagan vs. Christian, Rome vs. Britain, prophecy vs. free will glory — on January 16, 2022. 

This release date will mimic the series' original premiere date on Amazon, which also occurred in mid-January. With the litany of long-awaited new seasons for other shows dropping in late fall and early winter 2021 — including "Yellowstone," "The Witcher," and "The Great," to name a few — this could mean the series will onboard a number of new fans looking for something fresh to binge following the holidays. And what better way to follow up the birth of Jesus than with some good old-fashioned pagan sacrifice?

"Britannia" fans will be relieved to know that the vast majority of their favorite characters will be returning for Season 3 except, of course, for the incomparable Kelly Reilly's Cantii Queen Kerra, who died in Season 1 and is still, sadly, very much dead. Fan-favorite Nikolaj Lie Kaas will bring more of his endearing screw-loosery to the cast-out character of Divis, who'll continue to provide at least three-quarters of the series' charmingly anachronistic comic relief. "The Walking Dead" alum David Morrissey will return as the formidable, conniving, and ulterior motive-driven Aulus Plautius, the real-life commander who was the second to attempt an invasion of the island following Caesar's rejection of the effort roughly a century earlier. 

Both of the released trailers reveal Zoë Wanamaker's ("Shadow and Bone") return as the alternately malevolent, hilarious, and dignified Queen Antedia, as well as Annabel Scholey's reemergence as the scheming and under-appreciated Amena. Naturally, Eleanor Worthington-Cox will return as Cait, the young heart and soul of the narrative, while a heavily made-up Mackenzie Crook will once again tackle the ambiguous and complex role of lead Druid Veran (and possibly his twin brother Harka, though that remains to be seen). Hugo Speer ("The Full Monty") will reprise his role as the ever-conflicted Roman prefect Lucius, while Julian Rhind-Tutt returns as the Cantii tribe's prodigal prince, Phelan. Finally, the Oscar-nominated Sophie Okonedo ("Hotel Rwanda") will briefly join the series as Hemple, Aulus' wife, according to Epix's October 2021 press release on the Season 3 premiere date.

Although "Britannia" has never explicitly confirmed its positing of the young protagonist Cait (aka "The Chosen One") as the girl who would become the once-forgotten and later celebrated Queen Boudica — the real-life Iceni tribe leader who led the largest, bloodiest, and most nearly successful military revolt against the Romans in approximately 60 AD (via Britannica) — the timing certainly suggests that's the intent. While neither trailer necessarily confirms this development, we do hear the Druid Veran explain that "it's not what she's done, it's what she's going to do," in an eerie and enticing voice over, while Cait throws a dagger at Christian cross carved into a tree. 

For Epix's part, the streaming service has confirmed that viewers will see "a radical transformation...(in) the Chosen One," as well as "a decision that will tie her to the future of her war-torn people and their ravaged land." With regard to the rest of the series' cacophony of competing forces and characters, Epix states that Season 3 will see Amena trapped "in a lethal ménage à trois" with her lover Aulus and his wife Hemple, while Cait's fumbling mentor and protector Divis "gets a new job which he despises," and the enigmatic Veran "goes to the underworld and sees the future." 

For now, unless fans are also able to travel to the underworld, they'll have to wait until January 16 to see if hope will truly come in the form of "the daughter of a blind father," as the Druidic prophecy suggests. In the meantime, they can always throw on some Donovan, light some candles, and purchase a book about the historical clash of cultures from Amazon — you know, the folks who unceremoniously and, in retrospect, unwisely, passed on renewing the beloved series.