Netflix was different back then. In 2014, the streaming giant wasn't yet the content factory we know today, churning out a new true-crime doc every Tuesday. They were hunting for a "Game of Thrones" killer. They wanted scale. They wanted sweeping vistas of the Mongolian steppe, intricate silk costumes, and enough palace intrigue to make George R.R. Martin take notes. That search birthed the Marco Polo TV series 2014, a massive, $90 million bet that eventually became a cautionary tale for the industry.
It's weird to think about now.
Before Stranger Things or The Crown existed, the Marco Polo TV series 2014 was the flagship. Created by John Fusco and starring a then-unknown Lorenzo Richelmy, the show was a sprawling historical epic that focused less on the merchant’s travel logs and more on the brutal, complicated court of Kublai Khan.
Honestly, the show was gorgeous. You could see every cent of that $90 million budget on the screen. The production design was helmed by Lilly Kilvert, and the cinematography often felt more like a feature film than a TV show. But money doesn't always buy staying power.
The Kublai Khan factor: Why Benedict Wong stole the show
If you ask anyone who actually watched the Marco Polo TV series 2014 what they remember most, it isn’t the titular character. It’s Benedict Wong.
Long before he was the Sorcerer Supreme in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Wong delivered a powerhouse performance as Kublai Khan. He was terrifying. He was vulnerable. He was deeply human. While the show struggled to make Marco himself interesting—often falling into the "white protagonist in an exotic land" trope—Wong’s Khan was the gravitational center of the entire narrative.
The relationship between the Khan and his son, Prince Jingim (played by Remy Hii), provided the emotional backbone that the actual history books often skip over. It was about legacy. It was about a grandson living in the shadow of Genghis Khan, trying to hold together an empire that was becoming too large to manage.
The critics weren't kind, though.
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Rotten Tomatoes famously gave the first season a dismal 33% rating from critics, though the audience score sat much higher. This disconnect is fascinating. Critics hated the pacing and what they called "clunky dialogue," but fans loved the world-building and the martial arts choreography, which was handled by Brett Chan. The fight scenes weren't just filler; they were stylistic nods to Wuxia cinema that felt fresh for Western television at the time.
A massive budget vs. a changing algorithm
Netflix took a massive swing here. At roughly $9 million per episode, the Marco Polo TV series 2014 was one of the most expensive shows in the world. To put that in perspective, early seasons of Game of Thrones were costing HBO around $6 million per episode.
Why did it cost so much? Logistics.
The production moved across Italy, Kazakhstan, and Malaysia. They built massive sets at Pinewood Studios in Johor Bahru. They hired hundreds of extras. They commissioned thousands of hand-made costumes. It was a logistical nightmare that required a level of coordination Netflix hadn't really mastered yet.
Then there was the Weinstein Company. Before the downfall of Harvey Weinstein, his company was a major producer on the show. The baggage of that partnership, combined with the staggering financial losses—reportedly a $200 million loss for Netflix over two seasons—made a third season impossible.
The Hundred Eyes spinoff and the "what if"
People forget there was a standalone special. Marco Polo: One Hundred Eyes focused on the blind Taoist monk played by Tom Wu. It was a brilliant bit of storytelling that showed the potential of the universe beyond Marco himself. It leaned into the mysticism and the brutal training arcs that fans of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" adored.
If the show had focused more on these peripheral characters from the start, we might still be talking about it today.
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But the Marco Polo TV series 2014 suffered from a central identity crisis. Was it a historical drama? A martial arts epic? A political thriller? By trying to be all three, it sometimes felt like it was wandering in the Gobi Desert without a map.
The historical accuracy debate
Let’s be real: historians have a lot of thoughts about this show.
The real Marco Polo's accounts, The Travels of Marco Polo, are already controversial because he left out things like the Great Wall and foot-binding. The TV series took those liberties and multiplied them by ten. The portrayal of the Hashshashin (The Assassins) in Season 1 was more "Assassins Creed" than "13th-century reality."
However, the show did get some things right. It captured the cosmopolitan nature of the Mongol court. Kublai Khan really was a ruler who surrounded himself with advisors from different religions and ethnicities—Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, and Taoists all had a seat at the table. This religious pluralism was a hallmark of the Pax Mongolica, and the show depicted that tension beautifully.
The conflict with Ariq Böke, Kublai's brother, was also grounded in real history. The Toluid Civil War was a pivotal moment that effectively split the Mongol Empire, and the show used that internal strife to create genuine stakes.
Why the show still matters for streaming history
You can't talk about the current "Golden Age" of high-budget streaming without acknowledging this show. It was a pioneer. It proved that there was a global audience for non-Western stories, even if the execution wasn't perfect.
The Marco Polo TV series 2014 paved the way for shows like Kingdom, Squid Game, and Shogun. It taught Netflix that they couldn't just throw money at a "prestige" concept and expect it to stick. They needed tighter scripts and a clearer vision.
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The cancellation after Season 2 felt abrupt. We were left on a cliffhanger involving the mysterious "Prester John," a legendary Christian monarch who was rumored to lead a massive army in the East. It was a thread that promised a supernatural or at least a highly stylized third season that we will never see.
How to watch it today
If you’re going to dive into the Marco Polo TV series 2014 now, do it for the visuals and Benedict Wong. It’s still on Netflix, and in 4K HDR, it looks better than 90% of what’s released today.
- Watch the One Hundred Eyes special after Season 1, Episode 6. It fits better there chronologically in terms of character development.
- Ignore the "White Savior" criticisms for a moment and focus on the ensemble. The women of the court—specifically Empress Chabi (Joan Chen) and Kokachin (Zhu Zhu)—are often more cunning and interesting than the men.
- Pay attention to the soundtrack. Altan Urag, a Mongolian folk-rock band, provided music that gives the show an authentic, haunting pulse you don't hear in standard orchestral scores.
The Marco Polo TV series 2014 didn't fail because it was bad. It failed because it was too early for its own ambitions. It tried to be a cinematic universe before that was a requirement for survival. It remains a beautiful, flawed, and fascinating relic of a time when Netflix was still figuring out who it wanted to be.
Actionable insights for fans and creators
If you’re a fan of historical epics or a creator looking at how to build worlds, there are specific lessons to pull from the wreckage of this series.
First, character must outshine spectacle. No amount of $10,000 silk robes can save a scene if the audience isn't invested in the person wearing them. The show’s best moments were quiet conversations between Kublai and his advisors, not the massive sieges.
Second, niche beats broad. The show tried to appeal to everyone—history buffs, action fans, and romance seekers. In the modern era, successful shows like Shogun succeed by leaning heavily into a specific cultural authenticity and tone, even if it feels "difficult" for a general audience at first.
Finally, for those looking for similar vibes, check out The Last Kingdom or Age of Samurai: Battle for Japan. They carry the torch that Marco Polo lit, often with a fraction of the budget but a clearer sense of purpose. The Marco Polo TV series 2014 might be over, but its influence on high-budget, international storytelling is baked into the DNA of every big-budget show you stream today.
Explore the "One Hundred Eyes" special first if you want a low-stakes entry point into the style of the series. It’s only 28 minutes long and serves as a perfect microcosm of what the show did best: high-stakes martial arts mixed with deep philosophical underpinnings. Once you see Tom Wu’s performance there, you’ll understand why the cult following for this series remains so loyal despite its short life.
Next Steps:
- Audit the Credits: Look into the work of John Fusco if you enjoyed the blend of Western and Eastern storytelling; his passion for Mongolian culture is what drove the series.
- Comparative Viewing: Watch the 1982 Marco Polo miniseries to see how much the 2014 version modernized the "Silk Road" narrative.
- Technical Deep Dive: Search for the "behind-the-scenes" featurettes on the costume design. The level of historical research into 13th-century Mongolian armor is genuinely world-class and worth a study for any aspiring production designer.