Hunyadi-a general who saved Europe: The magnificent ORF series!

Hunyadi-a general who saved Europe: The magnificent ORF series!

Budapest, Ungarn - The excited international ORF event series "Hunyadi-Ascent to Power" revolves around the life of the Hungarian general János Hunyadi in the 15th century and will celebrate on ORF 1 premiere on April 21, 2025. The series tells of Hunyadi's rise from the son of a Hofritter to the mighty warlord and governor of Hungary, whereby special attention is paid to the decisive battle of 1456, in which he defeated the Ottoman army and thus prevented a possible invasion of Western Europe, like Kleine Zeitung reported.

The filming of this large-scale production took place near Budapest and extended over 174 days, from July 25, 2022 to August 2, 2023. Greens over the impressive number of 600 actors and stunt people as well as almost 100 horses and a budget of 56 million euros positioned the series at eye level with large US productions. ORF general director Roland Weißmann emphasizes the high production quality, which is also responsible for several directors, among others by Robert Dornhelm, who originally did not want to be involved, but committed to Hunyadi on the basis of personal connections.

star cast and action

In the leading role of János Hunyadi, Gellért L. Kádár will be seen. The challenges for Kádár include riding, fighting and dealing with weapons. At his side, Vivien Rujder plays the strong and emotional cold Elisabeth, while Franciska Törőcsik embodies Hunyadi's first love, which has to end her relationship for political reasons. Other prominent actors are Laurence Rupp, Cornelius Obonya and Murathan Muslu. The characters are deeply inspired by the historical novels by Mór Bán, who have been bestsellers in Hungary for over ten years and who are critical of the political games of late medieval Europe.

The first of ten episodes are broadcast together with an accompanying documentary entitled "Hunyadi - The Evidence of the Middle Ages" on April 21. This brings additional insights into the historical contexts of the action. As early as April 14, 2025, the documentary and all episodes are available in advance on the ORF ON platform. The series is supported by a variety of production companies, including Serendipity Point Films, Twin Media and the Hungarian film institution.

international recognition and meaning

The series has already caused a sensation on an international parquet. So she was shown for the first time at the content fair Mipcom in Cannes and inspires the audience with her careful historical accuracy. Over 600 actors bring their roles to life in their mother tongue, which increases the authenticity of production, emphasizes dailynewshungary.com . Lucy Smith, director of Mipcom, described the series as epic and praised the outstanding quality of production.

The well thought -out combination of historical elements and dramatic narrative styles aims not only to entertain, but also to arouse interest in history lessons. While the first nine episodes for spectators from the age of 12 are released, the final sequence applies due to their intensity from the age of 16 and is closed on ORF on during the day for youth protection reasons.