Ben Radcliffe, Kristine Froseth and Camila Morrone are the protagonists of The Age of Innocence – The Age of Innocence, Netflix miniseries in 8 episodes released on February 18, 2026, adaptation of Edith Wharton’s novel. At the heart of history there is a man divided between the future that society has already chosen for him and a feeling that questions everything he knows in the New York of the 1970s.
Published in 1920, The Age of Innocence is one of the most important novels of Edith Wharton and earned her the Pulitzer Prize for Storytelling in 1921, making her the first woman to obtain this recognition. The author tells a seemingly elegant and refined society, in which the conventions regulate every aspect of private life and the judgment of others can have heavier consequences of individual desires. The intention of Netflix is to ride the wave of the yearn-aissance phenomenon that has brought in vogue great classics of the past capable of exciting even the very young (already there was La valle dell’Eden, in December comes Orgoglio and Prejudice, at the cinema there was Reason and Feeling).
La trama di The Age of Innocence
Newland Archer, portrayed by Ben Radcliffe, is a young lawyer belonging to the high New York society. He was well-loved and respectful of the conventions of his own environment, and is engaged to May Welland, a girl considered perfect for the role of wife and for the future that the family has imagined for both.
The balance changes when Ellen Olenska returns to New York, cousin of May, played by Camila Morrone. The woman left her husband, a Polish count, and her intention to get divorce is already a scandal for the society of time, Ellen is independent, intelligent and little prone to accept the rules governing the life of the most influential families. Newland knew her since she was a child, but the new encounter awakens in him a feeling that fails to bring back within the limits of respectability.
The young man finds himself so divided between love for Ellen and duty towards May, as well as towards the family and the social environment to which he belongs. The choice is not only about his personal happiness, because in that New York every behavior is observed, judged and transformed into a matter of reputation.
AGE OF INNOCENCE. (L to R) Ben Radcliffe as Newland Archer, Kristine Froseth as May Welland, and Camila Morrone as Ellen Olenska in Episode 107 of Age of Innocence. Cr. Chris Baker/Netflix © 2026
Il cast e i personaggi della miniserie
Ben Radcliffe plays Newland Archer, the lawyer who wants a more intense and authentic life than his social position seems to have prepared him. Kristine Froseth is May Welland, Newland’s fiancée, a young woman raised in compliance with the rules of high society, but not deprived of her own personality and desires that emerge progressively. Camila Morrone dressed as Ellen Olenska, May’s cousin returned to New York after the failure of marriage with a Polish aristocrat. Its independence and its way of questioning the conventions attract Newland and destabilize the balance of the family.
Margo Martindale plays Mrs. Manson Mingott, the grandmother of May and Ellen, an authoritative, eccentric and unwilling woman to let herself be conditioned by the rules of others. Fiona Glascott is Augusta Welland, May’s mother, linked to traditions and attentive to the future of her daughter, while Belinda Bromilow plays Adeline Archer, Newland’s widowed mother, an independent and informed woman who prefers to keep a certain distance from world life. Emma Shipp is Janey Archer, Newland’s sister, still looking for a wedding that can guarantee her a position in society.
Hayley Mills is also featured in the role of Louisa van der Luyden, an influential member of the high New York society, Michael Cochrane in Henry van der Luyden and Jack Cutmore-Scott as Julius Beaufort, an arrogant banker who occupies a prominent position in the world. Anna Madeley plays Aunt Medora, Ellen’s lively and unconventional guardian, while Will Tudor dresses up the shoes of Sillerton Jackson, a friend of Newland with a particular inclination for gossip and the secrets of the city’s elite.
Dal romanzo di Edith Wharton alla miniserie Netflix
The miniseries is developed by Emma Frost, already behind costume productions such as The White Queen, The White Princess and The Spanish Princess. The screenwriter explained that he wanted to remain faithful to the core of the novel, but he expanded the perspective on female characters and gave more space to the experiences of May and Ellen. The story is therefore not limited to following the inner conflict of Newland, but also seeks to restore the point of view of the two women, showing how the same social rules can affect their choice in a different way.
The new production inevitably compares with the famous 1993 film adaptation directed by Martin Scorsese, with Daniel Day-Lewis, Michelle Pfeiffer and Winona Ryder. This film has become a reference for cinema in costume, thanks to the reconstruction of the 19th century New York and to the attention reserved to gestures, looks and rituals of high society.
Quando esce The Age of Innocence su Netflix
The Age of Innocence – The Age of Innocence will be available on Netflix from 18 February 2027. The miniseries consists of eight episodes, published simultaneously on the platform.
L’articolo The Age of Innocence – The Age of Innocence, Edith Wharton’s novel becomes a Netflix miniseries proviene da Dituttounpop.it.
