Why remember a one-year-wonder from 2006? Because The Borgia (2006) occupies a fascinating niche in TV history. It was the first serious, multi-episode drama about the Borgia family produced in the 21st century. It walked so that The Borgias (Showtime) and Borgia (Canal+/Netflix) could run.
Moreover, its failure taught producers a lesson: For a Renaissance drama to succeed, it needs either an auteur’s vision (Fontana’s gritty realism) or star-powered glamour (Jordan’s Irons). The 2006 version had neither—just a thoughtful script, a washed-out palette, and a release date that was five years too early.
Today, searching for The Borgia -2006-2006 is an act of television archaeology. It is a show without a legacy, a season without a sequel—yet for those who find it, it offers a haunting, melancholic vision of the Borgias: not as monsters, but as tired politicians trapped in the machinery of history.
Final Verdict: If you are a completist of historical dramas, track down the DVD. If you simply want Borgia intrigue, stick with the 2011 versions. But know this: The 2006 original is the quiet, forgotten sibling—flawed, slow, and utterly human. The Borgia -2006-2006
Keywords integrated: The Borgia -2006-2006, French miniseries, Rodrigo Borgia, Cesare Borgia, Lucrezia Borgia, lost TV series, European co-production.
"The Borgia" is a historical drama television series that aired from 2011 to 2013, not 2006. However, I believe you are referring to the 2006 TV movie "The Borgia" or possibly the series' pilot, which was reworked and became the basis for the later series. Given the confusion, I'll provide information on both.
Produced by Spanish network Telecinco and French broadcaster France 2, The Borgia (original Spanish title: Los Borgia) was directed by Antonio Hernández. Unlike the later big-budget productions that leaned into American-style melodrama or art-house excess, this miniseries feels like a late-period European historical epic—a bridge between the classic sword-and-sandal films of the 1970s and the prestige TV boom of the 2010s. Why remember a one-year-wonder from 2006
It aired in only two feature-length episodes in 2006 and promptly vanished from most international radars, largely because of the title confusion that followed.
The series focuses on the meteoric rise of Rodrigo Borgia (played with a weary, calculating menace by Lluís Homar) and the subsequent fall of his children. It follows a condensed but surprisingly accurate timeline:
The 2006 film The Borgias, directed by Måns Mårlind and Björn Stein, presents a dramatized portrait of the notorious Italian Renaissance family, focusing on the interplay of power, religion, corruption, and familial ambition. This paper analyzes the film’s historical framing, narrative structure, character portrayals, thematic concerns, cinematic techniques, and its position within representations of the Borgias in popular culture. Keywords integrated: The Borgia -2006-2006
The original concept for "The Borgia" was indeed explored in a proposed TV movie or pilot in 2006. This project was meant to serve as a backdoor pilot for a potential series. The story aimed to explore the intrigue, power struggles, and scandals of the infamous Borgia family during the Renaissance.
Review: Without specific details on the 2006 production, it's challenging to provide a comprehensive review. However, given that the project evolved into a series, it's clear that the concept had merit. The later series received attention for its depiction of the Renaissance era and the notorious family.
This is the central frustration for collectors. As of 2025, The Borgia -2006-2006 is not available on any major streaming platform (no Paramount+, no Netflix, no Amazon Prime). It is a “lost” series for English-speaking audiences.
Your only options: