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Ken Burns’ The American Revolution Premieres Tonight on PBS With Six Nights of New Episodes

The 12-hour series reframes the nation’s founding as a violent, internally divided conflict through historians’ analysis alongside an A-list ensemble voicing primary sources.

In the absence of period photography, Ken Burns' landmark documentary "The American Revolution" makes the most of other forms of imagery*
The 1851 painting by Emanuel Leutze titled “Washington Crossing the Delaware.” Ken Burns is back with “The American Revolution,” a six-part, roughly 12-hour documentary that debuts Sunday, Nov. 16, on PBS.
Ethan Hawke and Maya Hawke in April 2024.
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Overview

  • The series begins Sunday, Nov. 16 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on PBS with two-hour installments nightly through Friday, Nov. 21, also streaming on PBS.org and the PBS app.
  • Co-directed by Ken Burns with Sarah Botstein and David Schmidt, the six-part documentary totals roughly 12 hours.
  • About 50 actors read roughly 400 first-person quotes, with voices including Tom Hanks, Meryl Streep, Samuel L. Jackson and Paul Giamatti.
  • The production treats the Revolution as a civil-war-like struggle that foregrounds brutality, internal divisions and the experiences of Indigenous peoples and enslaved and free Black Americans.
  • Filmed over several years across locations within and beyond the original 13 colonies, the series uses archival research, animated maps and reenactments, and producers say companion classroom materials are in development for grades 3–12.