1. May 1: “Shardlake” (Hulu)
![Shardlake -- Season 1 -- Drenched in mystery, suspense and deception, this four-part drama, based on the first novel in C.J. Sansom’s internationally popular Tudor murder mystery series, is an eerie whodunnit adventure, set in 16th century England during the dissolution of the monasteries. Shardlake’s sheltered life as a lawyer is turned upside down when Cromwell instructs him to investigate the murder of one of his commissioners at a monastery in the remote town of Scarnsea. Cromwell (Sean Bean), shown. (Photo by: Adrienn Szabo/Disney+)](https://cdn.statically.io/img/www.indiewire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/sl_ep1_03074_3k.jpg?w=300)
Sean Bean returns to TV in this drama about Tudor England, based on the book series by C.J. Sansom. After one of Thomas Cromwell’s (Bean) commissioners is murdered at a monastery, he hires the lawyer Matthew Shardlake (Arthur Hughes) to investigate, now entangling the murder investigation with Cromwell’s political career. Costarring Anthony Boyle, Babou Ceesay, Paul Kaye, Ruby Ashbourne Serkis, Peter Firth, Matthew Steer, Brian Vernel, Irfan Shamji, David Pearse, Miles Barrow, Mike Noble, and Kimberley Nixon. Stephen Butchard wrote the series, with Justin Chadwick directing.