Starz's 'Amadeus' Will Set Mozart and Salieri at Odds This May

The rivalry between Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri is the stuff of legend in the world of Western classical music. As a narrative, it’s hard to beat — a jealous court composer who worked to sabotage the troubled young genius usurping his fame, and may even have had a hand in his death, depending on who you believe — but the truth of their relationship was likely a lot less dramatic.

Technically, there’s not much evidence of any real vindictive animosity between the two — the pair were contemporaries and worked in the same city, inevitably leading to professional competition. But that was fairly normal in 18th-century Vienna, which was a highly competitive environment for artists of all stripes. That hasn’t stopped us from imagining it, though. Now, Starz will take another crack at this infamous relationship with Amadeus, a five-part adaptation starring Will Sharpe (The White Lotus) as Mozart and Paul Bettany (A Very British Scandal) as Salieri.

Described as a “reimagining” of Peter Shaffer’s Tony Award-winning play of the same name — which Shaffer later turned into the Academy Award-winning 1984 feature film starring F. Murray Abraham and Tom Hulce — the limited series aims to expand and explore the complicated relationship between the two composers, as Mozart’s star rises, and Salieri’s envy of his genius turns to obsession.

Here’s the series synopsis.

When twenty-five-year-old Amadeus arrives in bustling 18th Century Vienna, no longer a child prodigy and craving creative freedom, his world collides with two pivotal figures: his fiercely loyal future wife, Constanze Weber, and devoutly religious court composer, Antonio Salieri. As Amadeus’ brilliance continues to flourish in spite of his personal demons, a questionable reputation and scepticism from the conservative court, Salieri becomes increasingly tormented by this apparent divine gift. Amadeus is a threat to all that he holds dear in life: his talent, his reputation, even his faith in God. Salieri vows to bring him down. What begins as professional rivalry turns into a deeply personal obsession spanning 30 years, culminating in a murder confession and a desperate attempt to entwine himself with Mozart’s legacy forever.

Alongside Sharpe and Bettany, Gabrielle Creevy (In My Skin) stars as Mozart’s fiercely loyal wife, Constanze Weber.

The sprawling cast also includes Rory Kinnear (The Diplomat) as Emperor Joseph, Lucy Cohu (COBRA) as Cecilia Weber, Jonathan Aris (The Sixth Commandment) as Leopold Mozart, Nancy Farino (Masters of the Air) as Josepha Weber, Ényì Okoronkwo (Renegade Nell) as Da Ponte, Hugh Sachs (Bridgerton) as Von Strack, Viola Prettejohn (The Crown) as Princess Elizabeth, Paul Bazely (Such Brave Girls) as Von Swieten, Rupert Vansittart (Game of Thrones) as Rosenberg, Olivia-Mai Barrett (The Man Who Fell To Earth) as Sophie Weber, Jyuddah Jaymes (Hijack) as Franz Süssmayr, Jessica Alexander (Fallen) as Katerina, and Anastasia Martin (In From the Cold) as Aloysia Weber.

Joe Barton (The Lazarus Project) adapted Shaffer’s 1979 play for the small screen, with Julian Farin (Giri/Haji) and Alice Seabright (Sex Education) directing. Barton, Sharpe, Bettany, and Farino all serve as executive producers alongside John Griffin, Megan Spanjian for Sky, and Michael Jackson and Stephen Wright for Two Cities Television.

Amadeus will premiere on Friday, May 8, 2026, on Starz. New episodes will be available to stream in the U.S. every Friday on the Starz app, as well as on all Starz streaming and on-demand platforms. On the linear Starz channel, Amadeus premieres on Friday, May 8 at 8 p.m. ET, with subsequent episodes airing Fridays at 9 p.m. ET.