Historical Dramas - Ancient Times
by SiddoVicio | created - 24 Jul 2015 | updated - 29 Apr 2023 | PublicA list of historical drama films and television series, from prehistorical times to the 1st century BC.
The list follows a chronological order based on the historical setting. For the most part, these are films and television series that I've seen and evaluated.
In those cases where the setting remains uncertain, I tried to approximate it as much as possible based on the clues provided by the plot and also on my personal historical knowledge.
Some of the dates provided may be subject to future corrections, especially for those films that I've yet to see or for those I haven't watched in a long time.
This list is also based on personal assessments. For this reason, I've not included those films and television series that do not reflect my valuation standards.
To experience this list as I do, you've to select the "Detailed view" option and sort it using "List order".
A full comparative list is available at the page "List of historical dramas in chronological order year by year" on the Fandom wiki of "A World of Straw Bales". Enjoy.
Andres Contos aka Siddo Vicio
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1. Voyage of Time: Life's Journey (2016)
PG-13 | 90 min | Documentary, Drama
An exploration into our planetary past and a search for humanity's place in the future. With narration by Cate Blanchett.
Director: Terrence Malick | Stars: Cate Blanchett, Jamal Cavil, Maisha Diatta, Yagazie Emezi
Votes: 5,465
0000-9999
Setting: Planck Epoch, Recombination Era, Cosmic Dark Age, Galaxy Epoch (Cosmological Epochs); Precambrian, Phanerozoic (GTS); Far Future (Geological & Cosmological)
2. Quest for Fire (1981)
R | 100 min | Adventure, Drama
This story takes place in prehistoric time when three tribesmen search for a new fire source.
Director: Jean-Jacques Annaud | Stars: Everett McGill, Ron Perlman, Nicholas Kadi, Rae Dawn Chong
Votes: 24,137 | Gross: $20.96M
80.000 BC (aka "Quest for Fire")
Setting: Middle Paleolithic Eurasia
3. The Clan of the Cave Bear (1986)
R | 98 min | Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
A young Cro-Magnon woman is raised by Neanderthals.
Director: Michael Chapman | Stars: Daryl Hannah, Pamela Reed, James Remar, Thomas G. Waites
Votes: 6,968 | Gross: $1.95M
26.000 BC
Setting: Upper Paleolithic Europe
4. Alpha (II) (2018)
PG-13 | 96 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
In the prehistoric past, a young man struggles to return home after being separated from his tribe during a buffalo hunt. He finds a similarly lost wolf companion and starts a friendship that would change humanity.
Director: Albert Hughes | Stars: Kodi Smit-McPhee, Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson, Marcin Kowalczyk, Jens Hultén
Votes: 66,585 | Gross: $35.85M
20.000 BC
Setting: Upper Paleolithic Eurasia
5. Iceman (2017)
Not Rated | 96 min | Adventure, Drama, Thriller
The Ötztal Alps, more than 5300 years ago. A Neolithic clan has settled near a creek. It is their leader Kelab's responsibility to be the keeper of the group's holy shrine Tineka. While Kelab is hunting, the settlement is attacked.
Director: Felix Randau | Stars: Jürgen Vogel, André Hennicke, Susanne Wuest, Sabin Tambrea
Votes: 2,941 | Gross: $0.00M
3300 BC (aka "Iceman")
Setting: Chalcolithic Europe
6. The Scorpion King (2002)
PG-13 | 92 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
A desert warrior rises up against the evil army that is destroying his homeland. He captures the enemy's key sorcerer, takes her deep into the desert and prepares for a final showdown.
Director: Chuck Russell | Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Steven Brand, Michael Clarke Duncan, Kelly Hu
Votes: 145,498 | Gross: $91.05M
3000 BC
Setting: Protodynastic Period of Egypt
7. Land of the Pharaohs (1955)
Approved | 106 min | Adventure, Drama, History
A captured architect designs an ingenious plan to ensure the impregnability of the tomb of a self-absorbed Pharaoh, obsessed with the security of his next life.
Director: Howard Hawks | Stars: Jack Hawkins, Joan Collins, Dewey Martin, Alexis Minotis
Votes: 4,774 | Gross: $1.50M
2570 BC
Setting: Old Kingdom of Egypt; Fourth Dynasty; reign of Pharaoh Khufu
8. Abraham (1993)
175 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
Abram a tribal leader denies all the local deities and finds the true God. Through many trials and tribulations he strengthens his faith.
Stars: Richard Harris, Barbara Hershey, Maximilian Schell, Andrea Prodan
Votes: 1,833
2200 BC
Setting: Middle Bronze Age; Isin-Larsa period of Mesopotamia (possibly); Patriarchal Age (Bible mythology)
9. Joseph (1995)
93 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
The Biblical story of Joseph, who was sold to slavery by his brothers who were jealous of his prophetic abilities to analyze dreams and of his being their father's favorite.
Stars: Ben Kingsley, Paul Mercurio, Martin Landau, Lesley Ann Warren
Votes: 3,402
2029-2002 BC
Setting: Middle Kingdom of Egypt; Eleventh Dynasty; Patriarchal Age (Bible mythology)
10. Atlantis: End of a World, Birth of a Legend (2011 TV Movie)
88 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Tells the story of the greatest natural disaster of the ancient world, an event that experts believe inspired the legend of Atlantis.
Director: Tony Mitchell | Stars: Stephanie Leonidas, Reece Ritchie, Langley Kirkwood, Isadora Verwey
Votes: 1,109
1628 BC
Setting: Aegean Bronze Age; Minoan civilization; Neopalatial Period; Thera Eruption Event
11. Minotaur (2006)
R | 93 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
When the villagers offer their brethren as a sacrifice to the Minotaur, Theo (Tom Hardy) sets off on a harrowing quest to the labyrinth to kill the evil bull-god.
Director: Jonathan English | Stars: Tom Hardy, Michelle Van Der Water, Tony Todd, Lex Shrapnel
Votes: 5,112
1500 BC
Setting: Aegean Bronze Age; Minoan civilization; Postpalatial Period; Heroic Age (Greek mythology)
12. The Egyptian (1954)
Approved | 139 min | Drama
In ancient Egypt, a poor orphan becomes a genial physician and is eventually appointed at the Pharaoh's court where he witnesses palace intrigues and learns dangerous royal secrets.
Director: Michael Curtiz | Stars: Jean Simmons, Victor Mature, Gene Tierney, Michael Wilding
Votes: 4,463
1353-1332 BC
Setting: New Kingdom of Egypt; Eighteeenth Dynasty; Amarna Period
13. Tut (2015)
Not Rated | 127 min | Biography, Drama, History
A largely fictional mini-series based on a legendary teenage Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt.
Stars: Ben Kingsley, Avan Jogia, Sibylla Deen, Alexander Siddig
Votes: 8,855
1332-1322 BC
Setting: New Kingdom of Egypt; Eighteeenth Dynasty; Amarna Period
14. Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014)
PG-13 | 150 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
The defiant leader Moses rises up against Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses II, setting six hundred thousand slaves on a monumental journey of escape from Egypt and its terrifying cycle of deadly plagues.
Director: Ridley Scott | Stars: Christian Bale, Joel Edgerton, Ben Kingsley, Sigourney Weaver
Votes: 179,304 | Gross: $65.01M
1279-1270 BC
Setting: New Kingdom of Egypt; Nineteenth Dynasty; Exodus, Israelites founding myth (Bible mythology)
15. Troy (2004)
R | 163 min | Adventure, Drama
An adaptation of Homer's great epic, the film follows the assault on Troy by the united Greek forces and chronicles the fates of the men involved.
Director: Wolfgang Petersen | Stars: Brad Pitt, Eric Bana, Orlando Bloom, Julian Glover
Votes: 570,841 | Gross: $133.38M
1184 BC
Setting: Late Bronze Age; Mycenaean Greece; Collapse of Bronze Age cultures; Trojan Epic Cycle (Greek mythology)
16. Romulus (2020– )
Drama, Fantasy, History
The story of Romulus and his twin brother Remus, in eighth century B.C. as seen through the eyes of three people marked by death, loneliness and violence.
Stars: Andrea Arcangeli, Francesco Di Napoli, Marianna Fontana, Sergio Romano
Votes: 2,904
754-753 BC
Setting: Iron Age; Classical Era; Old Latium; Founding of Rome; Roman Kingdom; Kidnapping of the Sabine Women (Roman mythology)
Season 1
Episodes 1-10: 754 BC
Season 2
Episodes 1-8: 753 BC
17. The First King (2019)
TV-MA | 123 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Romulus and Remus, two shepherds and loyal brothers, end up taking part to a journey that will lead one of them to be the founder of the greatest nation ever seen. However, the fate of the chosen one will pass from killing his own brother.
Director: Matteo Rovere | Stars: Alessandro Borghi, Alessio Lapice, Fabrizio Rongione, Massimiliano Rossi
Votes: 5,937
753 BC
Setting: Iron Age; Classical Era; Old Latium; Founding of Rome (Roman mythology)
18. The Legend of Tomiris (2019)
TV-14 | 156 min | Action, Drama, Fantasy
This is the story of the life of the great queen of of the steppe - legendary Tomiris. She is destined to become a skillful warrior, survive the loss of close people and unite the Scythian/Saka tribes under her authority.
Director: Akan Satayev | Stars: Ghassan Massoud, Almira Tursyn, Zarina Yeva, Aizhan Lighg
Votes: 43,149
550-530 BC
Setting: Iron Age Scythia; Achaemenid Empire; Reign of Cyrus II of Persia
19. Confucius (2010)
TV-MA | 125 min | Biography, Drama, History
The life story of the highly-influential Chinese philosopher, Confucius.
Director: Mei Hu | Stars: Chow Yun-Fat, Xun Zhou, Jianbin Chen, Quan Ren
Votes: 3,989
500-479 BC (aka "Confucius")
Setting: Eastern Zhou Era; Spring and Autumn Period
20. The 300 Spartans (1962)
Approved | 114 min | Adventure, Drama, History
A small Army of Greeks spearheaded by three hundred Spartans do battle with the whole invading Persian Army.
Director: Rudolph Maté | Stars: Richard Egan, Ralph Richardson, Diane Baker, Barry Coe
Votes: 7,674
480 BC
Setting: Iron Age; Archaic Greece; Second Persian Invasion
21. 300: Rise of an Empire (2014)
R | 102 min | Action, Drama
Greek general Themistocles of Athens leads the naval charge against invading Persian forces led by mortal-turned-god Xerxes and Artemisia, vengeful commander of the Persian navy.
Director: Noam Murro | Stars: Sullivan Stapleton, Eva Green, Lena Headey, Hans Matheson
Votes: 316,055 | Gross: $106.58M
480 BC
Setting: Iron Age; Archaic Greece; Second Persian Invasion
22. 300 (2006)
R | 117 min | Action, Drama
In the ancient battle of Thermopylae, King Leonidas and 300 Spartans fight against Xerxes and his massive Persian army. They face insurmountable odds when they are betrayed by a Spartan reject.
Director: Zack Snyder | Stars: Gerard Butler, Lena Headey, David Wenham, Dominic West
Votes: 864,808 | Gross: $210.61M
480-479 BC
Setting: Iron Age; Archaic Greece; Second Persian Invasion
23. Le banquet (1989 TV Movie)
78 min | Drama
At house of Agathon get together many intellectuals and philosophers, including Socrates, to discuss the theme of love and sex: each of them intervenes to support its argument dialogical rules, within the context symposial.
Director: Marco Ferreri | Stars: Lucas Belvaux, Jean Benguigui, Marc Berman, Christian Berthelot
Votes: 99
404 BC
24. Socrates (1970 TV Movie)
120 min | Biography, History
A false accusation leads the philosopher Socrates to trial and condemnation in 4th century BC Athens.
Director: Roberto Rossellini | Stars: Jean Sylvère, Anne Caprile, Giuseppe Mannajuolo, Ricardo Palacios
Votes: 959
404-399 BC
Setting: Iron Age; Classical Greece; Peloponnesian War; Spartan Hegemony
25. Battle of the Warriors (2006)
R | 133 min | Action, Drama, War
Story centers on a battle during China's Warring States Period, a series of civil wars, which spanned from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C. Based on a popular Japanese manga, which was in turn based a Japanese novel inspired by Warring States history in China.
Director: Chi Leung 'Jacob' Cheung | Stars: Andy Lau, Ahn Sung-ki, Zhiwen Wang, Bingbing Fan
Votes: 4,404
370 BC (aka "A Battle of Wits")
Setting: Warring States Period
26. Alexander (2004)
R | 175 min | Action, Biography, Drama
Alexander, the King of Macedonia and one of the greatest army leaders in the history of warfare, conquers much of the known world.
Director: Oliver Stone | Stars: Colin Farrell, Anthony Hopkins, Rosario Dawson, Angelina Jolie
Votes: 176,721 | Gross: $34.30M
351-285 BC
Setting: Iron Age; Classical Greece; Rise of Macedon; Hellenistic Period
27. Hero (2002)
PG-13 | 120 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
A defense officer, Nameless, was summoned by the King of Qin regarding his success of terminating three warriors.
Director: Yimou Zhang | Stars: Jet Li, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Maggie Cheung, Ziyi Zhang
Votes: 187,698 | Gross: $53.71M
227 BC (aka "Hero")
Setting: Warring States Period
28. Little Big Soldier (2010)
PG-13 | 96 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
An old soldier kidnaps a young General of an enemy state and takes him on a long journey to collect the reward.
Director: Sheng Ding | Stars: Jackie Chan, Leehom Wang, Yoo Seung-jun, Peng Lin
Votes: 16,021
227 BC (aka "Little Big Soldier")
Setting: Warring States Period
29. Hannibal (2006 TV Movie)
TV-PG | 89 min | Action, Biography, Drama
It is 200 years before the birth of Christ and Rome is the new superpower of the ancient world. She believes she is invincible - but one man is destined to change that. He is a man bound by... See full summary »
Director: Edward Bazalgette | Stars: Alexander Siddig, Emilio Doorgasingh, Bashar Rahal, Mido Hamada
Votes: 1,793
219-202 BC
Setting: Classical Era; Roman Republic; Rise of Rome; Second Punic War
30. White Vengeance (2011)
Not Rated | 135 min | Action, Drama, History
White Vengeance tells the story of two brothers contending for supremacy during the fall of the Qin Dynasty, which ruled Imperial China from 221 to 206 BC. As rebels rose, the nation fell ... See full summary »
Director: Daniel Lee | Stars: Shaofeng Feng, Leon Lai, Hanyu Zhang, Anthony Chau-Sang Wong
Votes: 2,008
210-183 BC (aka "White Vengeance")
Setting: Imperial China; Qin Dynasty; Chu-Han Contention; Han Dynasty
31. The Last Supper (2012)
Not Rated | 120 min | Action, History
The story of two warring generals (Liu Bang and Xiang Yu) fighting for control of China at the end of the Qin Dynasty.
Director: Chuan Lu | Stars: Ye Liu, Daniel Wu, Chang Chen, Lan Qin
Votes: 922
209-195 BC (aka "The Last Supper")
Setting: Imperial China; Qin Dynasty; Chu-Han Contention; Han Dynasty
32.
Ancient Rome: The Rise and Fall of an Empire (2006)
Episode:
Revolution
(2006)
Not Rated | 59 min | Documentary, Drama, History
132 BC tells the story of how a Roman politician nearly brought down the foundations of the Roman republic.
Director: Christopher Spencer | Stars: James D'Arcy, Greg Hicks, David Hinton, Geraldine James
Votes: 152
154-133 BC
Setting: Classical Era; Roman Republic; Third Punic War; Gracchus Reforms
33. Spartacus: Gods of the Arena (2011)
TV-MA | 55 min | Action, Adventure, Biography
In the time before the arrival of Spartacus, the House of Batiatus faces many challenges from competitors, and within its own household.
Stars: John Hannah, Manu Bennett, Peter Mensah, Dustin Clare
Votes: 145,496
79 BC
Setting: Classical Era; Roman Republic
34. Spartacus (2010–2013)
TV-MA | 60 min | Action, Adventure, Biography
The life of Spartacus, the gladiator who lead a rebellion against the Romans. From his time as an ally of the Romans, to his betrayal and becoming a gladiator, to the rebellion he leads and its ultimate outcome.
Stars: Andy Whitfield, Lucy Lawless, Manu Bennett, Daniel Feuerriegel
Votes: 257,172
75-71 BC
Setting: Classical Era; Roman Republic; Crisis of the Roman Republic; Third Servile War; First Triumvirate
Season 1
Episode 1: 75-74 BC
Episodes 2-7: 74 B C
Episode 8: 74-73 BC
Episodes 9-13: 73 BC
Season 2
Episodes 1-10: 73 BC
Season 3
Episodes 1-7: 72 BC
Episode 8: 72-71 BC
Episodes 9-10: 71 BC
35. Rome (2005–2007)
TV-MA | 60 min | Action, Drama, Romance
A down-to-earth account of the lives of both illustrious and ordinary Romans set in the last days of the Roman Republic.
Stars: Kevin McKidd, Ray Stevenson, Polly Walker, Kerry Condon
Votes: 185,518
52-29 BC
Setting: Classical Era; Roman Republic; Gallic Wars; Crisis of the Roman Republic; Caesar's Civil War; Second Triumvirate; Final War of the Roman Republic
Season 1
Episode 1: 52 BC
Episode 2: 50-49 BC
Episodes 3-5: 49 BC
Episodes 6-7: 48 BC
Episode 8: 48-47 BC
Episode 9: 46 BC
Episode 10: 45 BC
Episode 11: 45-44 BC
Episode 12: 44 BC
Season 2
Episode 1: 44 BC
Episodes 2-5: 43 BC
Episode 6: 42 BC
Episode 7: 41 BC
Episode 8: 39 BC
Episode 9: 32 BC
Episode 10: 31-29 BC
36. Domina (2021–2023)
TV-MA | 60 min | Drama, History
The life and rise of Livia Drusilla, the powerful wife of the Roman emperor Augustus Caesar.
Stars: Alex Lanipekun, Ewan Horrocks, Matthew McNulty, Kasia Smutniak
Votes: 6,416
Setting: Classical Era; Roman Republic; Crisis of the Roman Republic; Second Triumvirate; Final War of the Roman Republic
Season 1
Episode 1: 43-40 BC
Episode 2: 39-38 BC
Episode 3: 28-27 BC
Episode 4: 26-25 BC
Episodes 5-6: 23 BC
Episodes 7-8: 22 BC
37. I, Claudius (1976)
Not Rated | 50 min | Biography, Drama, History
The personal and governmental affairs of the Julio-Claudian dynasty at the beginning of the Roman Empire, as recalled by one of its rulers.
Stars: Derek Jacobi, John Hurt, Siân Phillips, Brian Blessed
Votes: 19,387
24 BC-AD 54
Setting: Classical Era; Roman Empire; Principate; Pax Romana; Julio-Claudian Dynasty
Episode 1: 24-8 BC
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