The Empress Ends on Netflix as Season 3 Launches Worldwide on November 12

Netflix's period drama The Empress reaches its final chapter on November 12, when the third and last season launches worldwide.

The series, known in German as Die Kaiserin, follows Empress Elisabeth of Austria, often called Sisi, in nineteenth-century Europe. Devrim Lingnau plays the title role. The season had its world premiere in Berlin at the Delphi Filmpalast, where Lingnau attended alongside Katharina Eyssen, Robert Eyssen and Philip Froissant, according to Deadline.

Katharina Eyssen is the showrunner and head writer for all three seasons. Her husband, Robert Eyssen, is the co-showrunner. A showrunner is the person who runs a series day to day, from the scripts to the look of the finished episodes.

The new season picks up some dark threads. Emperor Franz, played by Froissant, comes back traumatised from the Sardinian War. Sisi, meanwhile, leaves Vienna for a distant island, where she meets Count Andrássy, a leader of the Hungarian revolution. Dejan Bucin plays the count.

Speaking to Deadline, Eyssen described the end of the show as a "mix of emotions." She said she is relieved, and happy to finish the series on her own terms.

The story may not stop there entirely. Eyssen said she has thought about how the wider Empress world could grow, although nothing is currently in development. She pointed to Shonda Rhimes' approach to the Bridgerton spin-offs as one model she has considered. Possible extensions could go back in time, telling an origin story or a tale from Sisi's childhood or youth. She also said the lives of Elisabeth's children hold material for future stories.

Eyssen's next project for Netflix is Witches. The series is set during the German witch hunts of the 1700s. Deadline describes it as one of the streamer's biggest-budget European originals.

For viewers, the immediate news is simple. The final season is ready to watch from November 12, and the story of Sisi's last chapter will be complete on screen.