Scripted series · Netflix
Shadow and Bone
Every power has a price.
Who's in it
Cast
The principal ensemble across the run of the series.
Jessie Mei Li
Alina Starkov
16 eps
Archie Renaux
Malyen 'Mal' Oretsev
16 eps
Freddy Carter
Kaz Brekker
16 eps
Amita Suman
Inej Ghafa
16 eps
Kit Young
Jesper Fahey
16 eps
Patrick Gibson
Sturmhond / Nikolai Lantsov
8 eps
Daisy Head
Genya Safin
12 eps
Danielle Galligan
Nina Zenik
12 eps
Calahan Skogman
Matthias Helvar
12 eps
Lewis Tan
Tolya Yul-Bataar
8 eps
Jack Wolfe
Wylan Hendricks
8 eps
Anna Leong Brophy
Tamar Kir-Bataar
8 eps
Zoë Wanamaker
Baghra
12 eps
Ben Barnes
General Aleksander Kirigan / The Darkling
16 eps
Sean Gilder
Dressen
2 eps
Jim High
Sergeant Yure Kuznets
2 eps
Dean Lennox Kelly
Pekka Rollins
9 eps
Scott Alexander Young
Big Bolliger
2 eps
Tom Fyans
Male Squaller
2 eps
David Wurawa
Edyck
5 eps
Harry Baxendale
Forich
2 eps
Andy Burse
Dubrov
3 eps
Kaylan Teague
Young Alina
4 eps
Cody Molko
Young Mal
4 eps
Elizabeth Rider
Ana Kuya
3 eps
Angus Castle-Doughty
Mikhael
3 eps
Kelly Banlaki
Raisa
2 eps
Gabrielle Brooks
Nadia Zhabin
3 eps
Hugo Speer
Lieutenant Bohdan
5 eps
Kevin Eldon
The Apparat
3 eps
David Verrey
King Pyotr
3 eps
Georgia Reece
Queen Tatiana
4 eps
George Parker
Prince Vasily
2 eps
Jasmine Blackborow
Marie
3 eps
Pedro Lloyd Gardiner
Marko
2 eps
Jimmy Clark
Tofin
2 eps
Howard Charles
Arken
5 eps
Kelly Gough
Polina the Inferni
2 eps
Luke Pasqualino
David Kostyk
8 eps
Mark Springer
Zemeni Ambassador
2 eps
The Nutevio profile
TV DNA
How Shadow and Bone actually feels to watch, measured on the traits our editors track across every series.
Signature profile
Shadow and Bone reads strongest on Character Depth, World Building and Bingeability.
How fully written and psychologically layered the ensemble is.
The scale, internal logic and texture of the world.
How hard it is to stop after one episode.
How much the series is designed to affect you.
Visual ambition — scale, craft and set-piece filmmaking.
How much each hour depends on the one before it.
How often an episode ends on a hook you can't ignore.
The sustained pressure the series keeps you under.
How often the series is genuinely funny, by design.
The story
What it's about
In a world cleaved in two by a massive barrier of perpetual darkness, a young soldier uncovers a power that might finally unite her country. But as she struggles to hone her power, dangerous forces plot against her. Thugs, thieves, assassins and saints are at war now, and it will take more than magic to survive.
The run
Seasons
2 seasons · 16 episodes.
Season 1 · Complete
Season 1
20218 episodes
6.5IMDbDark forces conspire against orphan mapmaker Alina Starkov when she unleashes an extraordinary power that could change the fate of her war-torn world.
Best episode · S01E01 A Searing Burst of Light
Season 2 · Complete
Season 2
20238 episodes
5.9IMDbOn the run after the showdown with Kirigan, Alina and Mal find new allies — and face heartrending choices — in their quest for more mythical amplifiers.
Best episode · S02E01 No Shelter But Me
Where the series peaks
Best Episodes
The hours that define the show, ranked by audience response and editorial signal.
S01E01
A Searing Burst of Light
Unwilling to be separated from Mal, Alina hatches a plan to join him on a perilous expedition through the Fold. Kaz chases a lead on a lucrative job.
- Directed by Lee Toland Krieger
S01E05
Show Me Who You Are
Alina's bond with Kirigan grows as royal guests gather for her unveiling. Mal carries news about the stag. Kaz's scheme hinges on a hidden door.
- Directed by Mairzee Almas
S01E07
The Unsea
The fate of the stag leaves Alina in an impossible position with Kirigan, whose connection to the Fold — and the power behind it — falls into place.
- Directed by Jeremy Webb
S01E08
No Mourners
In the depths of the Fold, Kirigan demonstrates the scope of Alina's powers, while the Crows cross paths with a stowaway amid a do-or-die undertaking.
- Directed by Jeremy Webb
S01E06
The Heart Is An Arrow
Furious over the Sun Summoner, Kirigan hunts for information. Alina receives a helping hand when she needs it most. Nina warms to a Grisha hunter.
- Directed by Mairzee Almas
S01E02
We're All Someone's Monster
Alina's actions against the Volcra bring her to the attention of General Kirigan. Kaz runs into trouble while looking for safe passage across the Fold.
- Directed by Lee Toland Krieger
Behind the series
Created by
Showrunners, creators, executive producers and the writers who set the voice of the series.
The craft
Key Crew
Directing, writing, production, camera, music and editing.
Executive production
- Eric HeissererExecutive Producer
- Christina StrainProducer
- Lee Toland KriegerExecutive Producer
- Rand GeigerProducer
- Dan CohenExecutive Producer
- Pouya ShahbazianExecutive Producer
Direction
- Mairzee AlmasDirector
- Laura BelseyDirector
- Lee Toland KriegerDirector
- Karen GaviolaDirector
- Jeremy WebbDirector
- Dan LiuDirector
Cinematography
- Petra KornerDirector of Photography
- David HiggsDirector of Photography
- David LanzenbergDirector of Photography
Music
- Joseph TrapaneseOriginal Music Composer
Where to watch
Streaming
Availability verified against regional listings.
- NetflixStreaming
- Netflix Standard with AdsStreaming
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