# The Trial (2019 TV series)
**The Trial** (Italian: *Il processo*) is an Italian legal-thriller television series created by Alessandro Fabbri, with Laura Colella and Enrico Audenino, directed by Stefano Lodovichi, and produced by Lucky Red with RTI for the Mediaset network Canale 5[1](https://www.lagazzettadellospettacolo.it/televisione/61571-il-processo-al-via-le-riprese/). It was broadcast in eight episodes of about 50 minutes from 29 November to 13 December 2019 and was described by Italian critics as the first legal thriller, or legal drama, produced for Italian television[2](https://www.commissionefilmcei.it/dentro-la-tv-nel-segno-del-legal-thriller-su-canale-5-la-serie-il-processo-prodotto-da-rti-e-la-cinematografica-lucky-red-con-vittoria-puccini-e-francesco-scianna/) • [3](https://movieplayer.it/articoli/il-processo-recensione_21970/). The series streams internationally on Netflix under the English title [The Trial](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-trial)[4](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/il-processo).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original title / format | *Il processo*, Italian-language legal thriller, 8 episodes of roughly 50 minutes over 3 prime-time Friday nights[1](https://www.lagazzettadellospettacolo.it/televisione/61571-il-processo-al-via-le-riprese/) • [2](https://www.commissionefilmcei.it/dentro-la-tv-nel-segno-del-legal-thriller-su-canale-5-la-serie-il-processo-prodotto-da-rti-e-la-cinematografica-lucky-red-con-vittoria-puccini-e-francesco-scianna/) |
| First broadcast | Canale 5, 29 November 2019; final episode 13 December 2019[5](https://cpop.it/notizie/il-processo-la-fiction-debutta-male-e-subira-una-chiusura-anticipata) |
| Lead cast | Vittoria Puccini as prosecutor Elena Guerra, Francesco Scianna as defense lawyer Ruggero Barone, Camilla Filippi as defendant Linda Monaco[6](https://www.mantovafilmcommission.it/2019/11/25/su-canale-5-il-processo-legal-thriller/) |
| Premise | The murder of 17-year-old Angelica Petroni, whose body is found on the banks of the Mincio river in Mantua, brings prosecutor, lawyer, and accused into a trial that reshapes each of their lives[6](https://www.mantovafilmcommission.it/2019/11/25/su-canale-5-il-processo-legal-thriller/) |
| Setting | Filmed in Mantua and the surrounding area, with the Sala dei Giganti of Palazzo Te among the courtroom locations[6](https://www.mantovafilmcommission.it/2019/11/25/su-canale-5-il-processo-legal-thriller/) |
| Premiere audience | 2.138 million viewers and a 10.22% share; the schedule was cut from four to three nights after the debut[5](https://cpop.it/notizie/il-processo-la-fiction-debutta-male-e-subira-una-chiusura-anticipata) |
| Reception | IMDb 7.2/10 from about 4.6 thousand votes; Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer 85% from 2 reviews[7](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10549212/) • [8](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/il_processo/s01) |
## Spoilers
### Premise and characters
The story begins when the body of Angelica Petroni, a 17-year-old girl, is found on the gravel bed of the Mincio river at Mantua[6](https://www.mantovafilmcommission.it/2019/11/25/su-canale-5-il-processo-legal-thriller/). The investigation is assigned to Elena Guerra (Vittoria Puccini), a public prosecutor, or *pm* (*pubblico ministero*), who had planned a sabbatical year to save her marriage to Giovanni, and who discovers she is linked to the victim in a way she cannot break[9](https://mediasetinfinity.mediaset.it/news/il-processo-streaming-mediaset-infinity-dove-guardare-serie_SE000000000975_t4BbhQebblZ5YzIGmzAJO63).
The first suspect is Claudio Cavalleri ([Michele Morrone](https://www.edgepedia.org/michele-morrone)), one of the most powerful men in the city and a central figure of Mantuan high society, suspected of having had a relationship with the victim[9](https://mediasetinfinity.mediaset.it/news/il-processo-streaming-mediaset-infinity-dove-guardare-serie_SE000000000975_t4BbhQebblZ5YzIGmzAJO63). The wealthy Linda Monaco (Camilla Filippi) is the only defendant, and she insists on her innocence[6](https://www.mantovafilmcommission.it/2019/11/25/su-canale-5-il-processo-legal-thriller/). She retains Ruggero Barone (Francesco Scianna), an ambitious and apparently unscrupulous criminal lawyer for whom the trial is the opportunity of a lifetime[9](https://mediasetinfinity.mediaset.it/news/il-processo-streaming-mediaset-infinity-dove-guardare-serie_SE000000000975_t4BbhQebblZ5YzIGmzAJO63).
Between Guerra and Barone opens what the promotional material calls a ruthless war fought with witnesses, evidence, missteps, and continuous investigations; each time one appears to prevail, the situation reverses[9](https://mediasetinfinity.mediaset.it/news/il-processo-streaming-mediaset-infinity-dove-guardare-serie_SE000000000975_t4BbhQebblZ5YzIGmzAJO63). The show's tagline, spoken by Barone in the trailer, sets the tone: "La verità non esiste. È quella cosa finta che viene costruita in aula" ("The truth does not exist. It is that fake thing built in the courtroom")[10](https://mediasetinfinity.mediaset.it/news/il-processo-la-nuova-fiction-di-canale-5_SE000000000975_tn7298). The trial reconstructs, hearing by hearing, the truth behind the murder of the young woman[9](https://mediasetinfinity.mediaset.it/news/il-processo-streaming-mediaset-infinity-dove-guardare-serie_SE000000000975_t4BbhQebblZ5YzIGmzAJO63).
The supporting cast includes Simone Colombari as Giacomo Andreoli, Maurizio Lastrico as Giovanni Malaguti, Alessandro Averone as Stefano Lanzoni, Euridice Axén as Mara Raimondi, Marco Baliani as Ottavio Arrigoni, Pia Lanciotti as Fabrizia Furlan, Tommaso Ragno as Gabriele Monaco, Roberto Herlitzka as Giancarlo Guerra, Giordano De Plano as Vittorio De Grandis, and Margherita Caviezel as Angelica Petroni[6](https://www.mantovafilmcommission.it/2019/11/25/su-canale-5-il-processo-legal-thriller/) • [11](https://www.moviemeter.com/tv/crime/il-processo/season/1/cast).
## Production
Lucky Red, the film company founded by Andrea Occhipinti, expanded into audiovisual production from 2016, and *Il processo* was its fiction production for Mediaset[12](https://www.luckyred.it/produzione/). The production had the support of the Comune di Mantova and involved the Mantova Film Commission; the mayor announced that filming would begin in March 2019, between Mantua and Rome, with locations including Palazzo Te and the city's squares[13](https://primadituttomantova.it/cronaca/fiction-mediaset-con-vittoria-puccini-ambientata-a-mantova-fra-poco-iniziano-le-riprese/). Castings for small parts and extras took place in Mantua in February 2019[14](https://www.castingnews.eu/news/news.asp?id_cat=1&id_news=7229).
Fabbri had previously written the Sky series *1992*, *1993*, and *1994* and the Italian adaptation of *In Treatment*, and Lodovichi had directed *Il cacciatore*[2](https://www.commissionefilmcei.it/dentro-la-tv-nel-segno-del-legal-thriller-su-canale-5-la-serie-il-processo-prodotto-da-rti-e-la-cinematografica-lucky-red-con-vittoria-puccini-e-francesco-scianna/) • [1](https://www.lagazzettadellospettacolo.it/televisione/61571-il-processo-al-via-le-riprese/). Lodovichi described the intent as telling a news-style crime case and the discovery of the relational and family dynamics of the upper-middle-class north, through a trial that rebuilds the truth of the murder like a puzzle[9](https://mediasetinfinity.mediaset.it/news/il-processo-streaming-mediaset-infinity-dove-guardare-serie_SE000000000975_t4BbhQebblZ5YzIGmzAJO63).
In an interview about the series' sale to Latin America, Occhipinti said the project was brought to Lucky Red by creator Alessandro Fabbri and found by editorial manager Serena Sostegni. He also recounted a conversation with Netflix about a different project: Netflix advised against producing in English, saying that English-language series were abundant while other languages had become a value, an exoticism that interests audiences[15](https://www.linkideeperlatv.it/il-processo-in-america-latina-intervista-ad-andrea-occhipinti/).
## Broadcast and performance
The series premiered on Canale 5 on Friday 29 November 2019 in prime time[2](https://www.commissionefilmcei.it/dentro-la-tv-nel-segno-del-legal-thriller-su-canale-5-la-serie-il-processo-prodotto-da-rti-e-la-cinematografica-lucky-red-con-vittoria-puccini-e-francesco-scianna/). The opening episode drew 2.138 million viewers, a 10.22% share, against Rai 1's *20 anni che siamo italiani* with Gigi D'Alessio and Vanessa Incontrada, which won the evening with 3.866 million viewers and a 19.3% share[5](https://cpop.it/notizie/il-processo-la-fiction-debutta-male-e-subira-una-chiusura-anticipata). Reporting on the ratings described the result as disappointing for the network, and Canale 5 responded by compressing the schedule from four prime-time nights to three, adding second-run evening airings, and closing the series on Friday 13 December 2019[5](https://cpop.it/notizie/il-processo-la-fiction-debutta-male-e-subira-una-chiusura-anticipata) • [16](https://www.tvblog.it/post/il-processo-ascolti-puntate-finale-anticipato).
Netflix added the series internationally under the title The Trial; the Brazilian catalog records it as added on 18 December 2019[17](https://br.flixboss.com/serie/il-processo-81221302). As of 2026 the series streams in the United States on Netflix and Netflix Standard with Ads[4](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/il-processo).
## Reception
On IMDb the series holds a 7.2/10 rating from about 4.6 thousand votes[7](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10549212/). On Rotten Tomatoes, the Tomatometer of 85% rests on only 2 reviews, both from April 2020: Marcelo Stiletano of *La Nación* (Argentina) wrote that the series takes full advantage of the natural beauty of Mantua, and Joel Keller of Decider called it a good-looking, well-acted show that starts out shaky[8](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/il_processo/s01). [The Italian](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-italian) review in Movieplayer judged that the series borrows the language of famous American legal dramas such as *American Crime Story* and *Law & Order* and adapts it, without forcing, to the rhythms of Italian courtroom reality[3](https://movieplayer.it/articoli/il-processo-recensione_21970/). A Spanish-language review in *La Nación* (Argentina) credited the show as an effective Italian legal drama while noting teleteatro-style plot twists among its conventions[18](https://www.lanacion.com.ar/espectaculos/series-de-tv/netflix-el-juicio-es-eficaz-drama-legal-nid2354577/).
## Significance in Italian television
Italian commentary treats *Il processo* as the first legal drama made for Italian television, a step away from the soap-opera dynamics and polished family sagas that had dominated domestic fiction[3](https://movieplayer.it/articoli/il-processo-recensione_21970/). An academic study published in 2024 in the journal *Cinergie* analyzed the figure of the female detective in *Il processo* alongside *Circeo* (2022) and *La legge di Lidia Poët* (2023–), reading Elena Guerra as a character developed to subvert the traditional female victim status within a male sphere of power[19](https://cinergie.unibo.it/article/view/19002). The series remains a single season of eight episodes and is recorded as ended[20](https://movieplayer.it/serietv/il-processo_6129/).
## References
1. [Il Processo, al via le riprese, La Gazzetta dello Spettacolo (24 March 2019)](https://www.lagazzettadellospettacolo.it/televisione/61571-il-processo-al-via-le-riprese/)
2. [Dentro la Tv: Nel segno del legal thriller, Commissione Nazionale Valutazione Film (9 December 2019)](https://www.commissionefilmcei.it/dentro-la-tv-nel-segno-del-legal-thriller-su-canale-5-la-serie-il-processo-prodotto-da-rti-e-la-cinematografica-lucky-red-con-vittoria-puccini-e-francesco-scianna/)
3. [Il processo, la recensione, Movieplayer.it (29 November 2019)](https://movieplayer.it/articoli/il-processo-recensione_21970/)
4. [Il processo (2019), JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/il-processo)
5. [Il processo, la fiction debutta male e subirà una chiusura anticipata, CronacaPop (4 December 2019)](https://cpop.it/notizie/il-processo-la-fiction-debutta-male-e-subira-una-chiusura-anticipata)
6. [Su Canale 5 "Il processo", legal thriller girato a Mantova, Mantova Film Commission (25 November 2019)](https://www.mantovafilmcommission.it/2019/11/25/su-canale-5-il-processo-legal-thriller/)
7. [The Trial (TV Series 2019), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10549212/)
8. [Il processo: Season 1, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/il_processo/s01)
9. [Il Processo, streaming su Mediaset Infinity, Mediaset Infinity](https://mediasetinfinity.mediaset.it/news/il-processo-streaming-mediaset-infinity-dove-guardare-serie_SE000000000975_t4BbhQebblZ5YzIGmzAJO63)
10. [Il processo, la nuova fiction di Canale 5, Mediaset Infinity (21 November 2019)](https://mediasetinfinity.mediaset.it/news/il-processo-la-nuova-fiction-di-canale-5_SE000000000975_tn7298)
11. [Full cast of Il Processo – Season 1 (2019), MovieMeter](https://www.moviemeter.com/tv/crime/il-processo/season/1/cast)
12. [Produzione, Lucky Red](https://www.luckyred.it/produzione/)
13. [Fiction Mediaset con Vittoria Puccini ambientata a Mantova, Prima Mantova (6 February 2019)](https://primadituttomantova.it/cronaca/fiction-mediaset-con-vittoria-puccini-ambientata-a-mantova-fra-poco-iniziano-le-riprese/)
14. [Nuovi casting per "Il Processo", Casting News (13 February 2019)](https://www.castingnews.eu/news/news.asp?id_cat=1&id_news=7229)
15. [Il processo in America Latina. Intervista ad Andrea Occhipinti, Link (Link idee per la TV)](https://www.linkideeperlatv.it/il-processo-in-america-latina-intervista-ad-andrea-occhipinti/)
16. [Il Processo, la fiction finirà con una settimana di anticipo, TvBlog](https://www.tvblog.it/post/il-processo-ascolti-puntate-finale-anticipato)
17. [Il processo (2019) no Netflix Brasil, Flixboss](https://br.flixboss.com/serie/il-processo-81221302)
18. [Netflix: El juicio es un eficaz drama legal a la italiana, La Nación (Argentina)](https://www.lanacion.com.ar/espectaculos/series-de-tv/netflix-el-juicio-es-eficaz-drama-legal-nid2354577/)
19. [Sofia Torre (2024). Her Own Personal Law: A Detective Analysis Between Il processo (2019), Circeo (2022) and La legge di Lidia Poët (2023–). Cinergie – Il Cinema E Le Altre Arti, 13(25), 37–48.](https://cinergie.unibo.it/article/view/19002)
20. [Il processo (Serie TV 2019–2019), Movieplayer.it](https://movieplayer.it/serietv/il-processo_6129/)
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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 › Genre and subject-scripted series › Legal drama series*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 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