Can history be too controversial for a modern audience? British director Joe Wright believes it can.
Wright has directed several acclaimed period dramas. His credits include Pride and Prejudice (2005), Atonement (2007) and The Darkest Hour (2017).
His latest project takes a different approach to history.
‘M – Son of the Century’ is an eight-part TV series about Italian dictator and fascist leader Benito Mussolini.
However, US audiences still cannot watch the series.
No American streaming service has agreed to distribute the show.
Too controversial for streaming
Wright revealed that one streaming service rejected the project because of its subject matter.
Speaking to CNN, he expressed concern about the decision.
“[This] means that fascism, or antifascism, is now a controversial topic, and that the entertainment industry is becoming more and more apolitical, more and more centrist, and that is of great concern to me and many others.”
Wright also questioned why antifascism has become controversial.
“When did antifascism become controversial? That really shocked me, because our grandfathers and our great-grandfathers fought, defending us against fascism.”
“Is their sacrifice also controversial?” Wright told the Financial Times in a separate interview.
Mussolini’s rise to power
‘M – Son of the Century’ first premiered at the Venice Film Festival last year.
Sky then released the series in Europe in January.
The show draws from the first of five novels by Italian journalist Antonio Scurati.
The story follows Mussolini’s rise to power between 1919 and 1925.
Both the novel and the TV series attracted strong attention.
The novel sold more than 600,000 copies worldwide. It also won Italy’s prestigious Premio Strega award.
Scurati explained why he began writing about Mussolini.
“The reason why I started writing on Mussolini all those years ago was because I felt an urgent need to break what I call the victim paradigm,” Scurati told the Guardian.
“I am fully convinced that Italy and Europe will never fully come to terms with fascism if we neglect to address a fundamental fact: we were fascists. All of us were seduced.”
“We have to feel accountable for that chapter in our history,” he explained.
Divided opinions in Italy
Italian actor Luca Marinelli plays Mussolini in the series.
He also shared his thoughts on the show’s historical message.
Speaking to the Hollywood Reporter, Marinelli said:
“[The message the series wants to convey is] that it’s essential to know your history. By this, I mean each of us has to make an effort to learn our history, what we learn in school, and what we can learn on our own.”
“Our country was ravaged for 20 years by fascists. It’s important to know these things; it’s important to know and recognise history not just as what has already been but also in the ways it can happen again in the present.”
His comments sparked debate in Italy.
The country currently has a far-right government led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Critics have often compared some aspects of her politics with Mussolini’s era.
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