TIFF entry 'Rise of the Raven' conquers the world ahead of North American premiere
Munich/Toronto, 11 August 2025. Beta Film has sold Rise of the Raven across the globe ahead of its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. Following the prestigious festival premiere, CBC will bring the ten-part series to Canadian audiences on their streaming channel CBC GEM from September 19.
Beta recently sold Rise of the Raven to Italy’s pubcaster Rai, who will broadcast in 2026. Croatia’s HRT, Telekom Deutschland in Germany, Slovakia’s STVR, Blue TV in Switzerland, and YES in Israel have already broadcast the pan-European drama to great success this year, with Czech TV being the most recent to join this group. The European epic has previously shattered ratings records in Hungary on TV2 and was especially popular with young audiences on ORF and its streaming service ORF library.
Rise of the Raven tells the story of fearless army commander János Hunyadi (Gellért L. Kádár), who devotes his life to defending Europe against an Ottoman invasion. His strongest allies are the women in his life: Erzsébet (Vivien Rujder), the wife who fights alongside him, and Mara (Franciska Törőcsik), his first love, who breaks his heart by becoming lead concubine in Sultan Murad’s (Murathan Muslu) court. When the Ottoman Empire mobilizes an army with the objective of conquering the Vatican and Europe, Hunyadi leads his small but mighty army to the battlefield.
Rise of the Raven is produced by Robert Lantos and his Serendipity Point Films, as well as Twin Media, HG Media, MR Film, and Beta Film, co-produced by Hungary’s TV2 Network, and Austrian public broadcaster ORF, supported by the National Film Institute of Hungary.
Showrunner is Balázs Lengyel (HBO’s Golden Life), who also directs the final episode. The series is written by Lengyel, George Mihalka, Balázs Lovas, Zsófia Ruttkay, Attila Veres, and Bán Mór, on whose best-selling series of novels Rise of the Raven is based on.
Producers are Tibor Krsko, Cecilia Hazai, Kinga Hazai, Ari Lantos, Oliver Auspitz, and Andreas Kamm of MR Film, as well as Koby Gal-Raday. Directors are Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning Robert Dornhelm (Maria Theresa, War and Peace) alongside Hungarian directors Orsi Nagypal (The Deal, the CW’s The Outpost) and Attila Szasz (Tall Tales, Eternal Winter).
Hunyadi is played by the debuting Gellért L. Kádár, with Hungarian Vivien Rujder portraying Elizabeth, his influential and strong partner. The large European cast includes Franciska Törőcsik (129), Murathan Muslu (Breaking Point), Cornelius Obonya (Maria Theresa), Laurence Rupp (Barbarians), Giancarlo Giannini (Casino Royale, Hannibal), Elena Rusconi (6 Underground), Francesco Acquaroli (Fargo), Karel Roden (Bourne Supremacy), Thomas Trabacchi (Studio Battaglia), and Rade Serbedzija (Batman Begins, Mission: Impossible 2).
Beta recently sold Rise of the Raven to Italy’s pubcaster Rai, who will broadcast in 2026. Croatia’s HRT, Telekom Deutschland in Germany, Slovakia’s STVR, Blue TV in Switzerland, and YES in Israel have already broadcast the pan-European drama to great success this year, with Czech TV being the most recent to join this group. The European epic has previously shattered ratings records in Hungary on TV2 and was especially popular with young audiences on ORF and its streaming service ORF library.
Rise of the Raven tells the story of fearless army commander János Hunyadi (Gellért L. Kádár), who devotes his life to defending Europe against an Ottoman invasion. His strongest allies are the women in his life: Erzsébet (Vivien Rujder), the wife who fights alongside him, and Mara (Franciska Törőcsik), his first love, who breaks his heart by becoming lead concubine in Sultan Murad’s (Murathan Muslu) court. When the Ottoman Empire mobilizes an army with the objective of conquering the Vatican and Europe, Hunyadi leads his small but mighty army to the battlefield.
Rise of the Raven is produced by Robert Lantos and his Serendipity Point Films, as well as Twin Media, HG Media, MR Film, and Beta Film, co-produced by Hungary’s TV2 Network, and Austrian public broadcaster ORF, supported by the National Film Institute of Hungary.
Showrunner is Balázs Lengyel (HBO’s Golden Life), who also directs the final episode. The series is written by Lengyel, George Mihalka, Balázs Lovas, Zsófia Ruttkay, Attila Veres, and Bán Mór, on whose best-selling series of novels Rise of the Raven is based on.
Producers are Tibor Krsko, Cecilia Hazai, Kinga Hazai, Ari Lantos, Oliver Auspitz, and Andreas Kamm of MR Film, as well as Koby Gal-Raday. Directors are Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning Robert Dornhelm (Maria Theresa, War and Peace) alongside Hungarian directors Orsi Nagypal (The Deal, the CW’s The Outpost) and Attila Szasz (Tall Tales, Eternal Winter).
Hunyadi is played by the debuting Gellért L. Kádár, with Hungarian Vivien Rujder portraying Elizabeth, his influential and strong partner. The large European cast includes Franciska Törőcsik (129), Murathan Muslu (Breaking Point), Cornelius Obonya (Maria Theresa), Laurence Rupp (Barbarians), Giancarlo Giannini (Casino Royale, Hannibal), Elena Rusconi (6 Underground), Francesco Acquaroli (Fargo), Karel Roden (Bourne Supremacy), Thomas Trabacchi (Studio Battaglia), and Rade Serbedzija (Batman Begins, Mission: Impossible 2).
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