# The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin
**The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin** is an American historical fantasy television series created for the streaming service DailyWire+, adapted from [Stephen R. Lawhead](https://www.edgepedia.org/stephen-r-lawhead)'s *Pendragon Cycle* novels and centered on the early life of Merlin long before the birth of [King Arthur](https://www.edgepedia.org/king-arthur)[1](https://www.wordandfilm.com/adaptation/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin/). Created and directed by Daily Wire co-founder [Jeremy Boreing](https://www.edgepedia.org/jeremy-boreing) and executive-produced by Ben Shapiro, it premiered on January 22, 2026 and later reached a wider audience on Prime Video[2](https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a70624362/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin-daily-wire-review/) • [3](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/prime-video/prime-video-top-10-shows-heres-the-3-worth-binge-watching-this-week-september-30-october-6). The story is set in post-Roman Britain, where the seeds of Christianity take root amid Saxon invasion and pagan tradition, and it carries an explicitly Christian subtext[4](https://boreingmedia.com/press/pendragon) • [5](https://www.pluggedin.com/tv-reviews/pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin/).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Format | American historical fantasy series produced for DailyWire+, later streamed on Prime Video[1](https://www.wordandfilm.com/adaptation/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin/) • [3](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/prime-video/prime-video-top-10-shows-heres-the-3-worth-binge-watching-this-week-september-30-october-6) |
| Source material | Stephen R. Lawhead's *Pendragon Cycle*; season 1 adapts the first two novels, *Taliesin* (1987) and *Merlin* (1988)[6](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/prime-video/prime-video-top-10-shows-here-are-the-3-worth-binge-watching-this-week-sept-9-16) |
| Premiere | January 22, 2026, with the first two episodes; weekly releases through February 26, 2026[7](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9xDnt7BPY8) |
| Episodes | Seven in the first season[6](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/prime-video/prime-video-top-10-shows-here-are-the-3-worth-binge-watching-this-week-sept-9-16) |
| Lead cast | Tom Sharp as Merlin, James Arden as Taliesin, Rose Reid as Charis, with Brett Cooper as Ganieda and Colin Cunningham as Vortigern[6](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/prime-video/prime-video-top-10-shows-here-are-the-3-worth-binge-watching-this-week-sept-9-16) |
| Setting | Post-Roman Britain, opening in the fourth century A.D.[8](https://www4.wng.org/WORLD_Feb2026.pdf) |
| Reception | Tomatometer 82% from 2 critic reviews; audience score based on 500+ ratings[9](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_pendragon_cycle_rise_of_the_merlin/s01) |
## Premise and source material
The series draws on Lawhead's *Pendragon Cycle*, a fantasy series that weaves Arthurian legend together with the legend of Atlantis and sets the story in the late Roman and sub-Roman period rather than the high Middle Ages[6](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/prime-video/prime-video-top-10-shows-here-are-the-3-worth-binge-watching-this-week-sept-9-16). Season 1 covers the first two books, *Taliesin* (1987) and *Merlin* (1988)[6](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/prime-video/prime-video-top-10-shows-here-are-the-3-worth-binge-watching-this-week-sept-9-16) • [2](https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a70624362/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin-daily-wire-review/).
The narrative opens in fourth-century [Roman Britain](https://www.edgepedia.org/roman-britain), where a tribal prince, Elphin (Duran Fulton Brown), revives a baby found floating in a river; the druids name the child Taliesin[10](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin). Taliesin grows into a druid bard with innate magical abilities but converts to the Christian faith spreading across the island[10](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin). In a parallel storyline, the destruction of Atlantis leaves Princess Charis, her father King Avallach, her sister Morgian, and 2,000 other survivors as refugees in Britain; Charis loses faith in her deities and, after meeting Taliesin, embraces Christianity[10](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin). Their son Merlin is prophesied to unite Britain by protecting the future King Arthur, and the season ends on the image of a sword driven into a stone[10](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin) • [4](https://boreingmedia.com/press/pendragon). The story is told as a flashback narrated by the adult Merlin (Tom Sharp), making the series a prequel to the traditional Merlin and Arthur story[10](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin).
## Production and release
[The Daily Wire](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-daily-wire) acquired the television rights to Lawhead's novels as the company's move into high-budget genre television[11](https://katherinejoyce.substack.com/p/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin). Jeremy Boreing, who co-founded The Daily Wire in 2015 with [Ben Shapiro](https://www.edgepedia.org/ben-shapiro) and served as co-CEO until the year before release, directs the series and is one of its writers; Stephen R. Lawhead is credited as screenwriter and Jerilyn Esquibel as producer[8](https://www4.wng.org/WORLD_Feb2026.pdf) • [7](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9xDnt7BPY8). Ben Shapiro is an executive producer[2](https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a70624362/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin-daily-wire-review/).
Season 1 premiered on DailyWire+ on January 22, 2026 with two episodes, followed by weekly releases through the seventh episode on February 26, 2026[7](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9xDnt7BPY8). The official YouTube trailer passed 5 million views in its first week[12](https://www.baen.com/pr-pendragon). The series later arrived on Prime Video, where it appeared in the platform's United States top 10 in the autumn of 2026[3](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/prime-video/prime-video-top-10-shows-heres-the-3-worth-binge-watching-this-week-september-30-october-6). Boreing described the project to *The Hollywood Reporter* as "probably the most Christian piece of mainstream entertainment since Braveheart," while adding that it is not Christian entertainment in the traditional sense[2](https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a70624362/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin-daily-wire-review/).
## Cast and characters
Tom Sharp plays Merlin, the son of the bard Taliesin (James Arden) and the Atlantean princess Charis (Rose Reid)[6](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/prime-video/prime-video-top-10-shows-here-are-the-3-worth-binge-watching-this-week-sept-9-16). Among those in supporting roles are Emree Franklin playing Morgian, Finney Cassidy playing Aurelius, Myles Clohessy playing Uther, Brett Cooper playing Ganieda, Alex Laurence-Phillips playing Pelleas, and Colin Cunningham playing [Vortigern](https://www.edgepedia.org/vortigern).[6](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/prime-video/prime-video-top-10-shows-here-are-the-3-worth-binge-watching-this-week-sept-9-16) The composer is Kyle McCuiston, with a score built on Celtic undertones that several reviewers singled out[7](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9xDnt7BPY8) • [13](https://cedars.cedarville.edu/2026/02/the-pendragon-cycle-the-rise-of-the-merlin-is-less-than-magical/).
## Reception
Critical response divided along familiar lines. On Rotten Tomatoes, season 1 held a Tomatometer of 82% from 2 critic reviews and an audience score based on more than 500 ratings[9](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_pendragon_cycle_rise_of_the_merlin/s01). Common Sense Media gave the series 3 out of 5 stars, describing an unsubtle faith-driven worldview within a story set in Roman-occupied Britain and noting that live-action footage combined with AI-assisted visual effects gives some scenes a distracting, digitally stylized quality[10](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin). The *Cedars* student review praised the scenery and Celtic-inflected score but found the plotlines confusing and the camera work awkward[13](https://cedars.cedarville.edu/2026/02/the-pendragon-cycle-the-rise-of-the-merlin-is-less-than-magical/).
The most favorable review in the source material came from Television Heaven, whose critic wrote that the comparison with Amazon's far more expensive fantasy productions *The Rings of Power* and *The Wheel of Time* favors *Rise of the Merlin*, while acknowledging that viewers unfamiliar with the novels may find it hard to follow[14](https://televisionheaven.co.uk/reviews/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin). The most negative was Josh Rosenberg's review in *Esquire*, which called it a "discount Game of Thrones" and criticized its dense, genealogy-heavy opening episodes[2](https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a70624362/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin-daily-wire-review/). The Daily Wire has not revealed how many viewers tuned in for the first season[2](https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a70624362/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin-daily-wire-review/). Television Heaven also reported that Brett Cooper left the Daily Wire soon after completing filming on the project but before its release[14](https://televisionheaven.co.uk/reviews/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin).
## Significance
Commentators across the political spectrum treated the series as a test of whether a relatively small independent producer could match mainstream fantasy television. The Catholic World Report called it the first Daily Wire production that could compete with Netflix, HBO, or CBS in quality[15](https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2026/02/15/god-and-the-gods-a-review-of-the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin/), and Television Heaven argued that it shows small and mid-level producers can now make shows at the quality of major studios while still struggling for access to the main marketplace[14](https://televisionheaven.co.uk/reviews/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin).
## References
1. [The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin — Which Book Is It Based On?, Word & Film](https://www.wordandfilm.com/adaptation/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin/)
2. [There's a Right-Wing Game of Thrones and It's as Terrible as You'd Think, Esquire](https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a70624362/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin-daily-wire-review/)
3. [Prime Video top 10 shows, September 30–October 6, Tom's Guide](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/prime-video/prime-video-top-10-shows-heres-the-3-worth-binge-watching-this-week-september-30-october-6)
4. [The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin — Press Kit, Boreing Media](https://boreingmedia.com/press/pendragon)
5. [The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin, Plugged In](https://www.pluggedin.com/tv-reviews/pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin/)
6. [Prime Video top 10 shows, September 9–16, Tom's Guide](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/prime-video/prime-video-top-10-shows-here-are-the-3-worth-binge-watching-this-week-sept-9-16)
7. [The Pendragon Cycle: Merlin's Ascension (2026 series) Official Trailer details, YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9xDnt7BPY8)
8. [WORLD magazine, February 2026 issue](https://www4.wng.org/WORLD_Feb2026.pdf)
9. [The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin — Season 1, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_pendragon_cycle_rise_of_the_merlin/s01)
10. [The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin — Parents' Guide, Common Sense Media](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin)
11. [The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin is exactly what fantasy needs right now, Katherine Joyce (Substack)](https://katherinejoyce.substack.com/p/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin)
12. [Press Release: 5 Million Views In One Week — Pendragon Cycle Trailer Goes Viral, Baen Books](https://www.baen.com/pr-pendragon)
13. [The Pendragon Cycle: The Rise of the Merlin is less than magical, Cedars (Cedarville University)](https://cedars.cedarville.edu/2026/02/the-pendragon-cycle-the-rise-of-the-merlin-is-less-than-magical/)
14. [The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin, Television Heaven](https://televisionheaven.co.uk/reviews/the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin)
15. [God and the gods: A review of The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin, Catholic World Report](https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2026/02/15/god-and-the-gods-a-review-of-the-pendragon-cycle-rise-of-the-merlin/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Adapted and franchise screen series › Literary and classic serial adaptations › Historical and epic drama adaptations*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license