The Decameron is to drop this week with Netflix teasing its unforgettable cast ahead of its release. Based on Giovanni Boccaccio’s short story collection, originally published in the 14th Century, The Decameron is an eight-episode black comedy that sees a group of nobles and their servants flee to a grand villa in Florence to escape the Black Death. As the countdown begins until the show’s release date, here’s all there is to know about the stars of The Decameron and where viewers would have seen them before.
Who is in the cast of The Decameron on Netflix? Licisca - Tanya Reynolds Born into servitude, obedient yet sometimes unpredictable servant Licisca has spent her entire life at the bottom of the food chain, working for Filomena’s family. Despite Filomena’s cruel attitude towards her, Licisca has always done what she is told but with the Black Death looming over all of their heads, she decides to finally let loose. Actress Tanya Reynolds will be recognised for starring as Lily Iglehart in the first three seasons of comedy-drama Sex Education on Netflix .
Some of her other most notable roles have been in Emma, Delicious, The Baby and I Hate You. Tindaro - Douggie McMeekin Reynolds will be starring alongside actor Douggie McMeekin who starred as Charles Quigley in the ITV series Harlots, as well as Yuvchenko in Chernobyl and Sunny Blandford in The Crown. McMeekin will portray Tindaro in The Decameron, a noble who has a blunt disdain for women and so, unsurprisingly, remains an eligible bachelor.
Filomena - Jessica Plummer Filomena is a spoiled bratty noble who leaves Firenze for her cousin’s home at Villa Santa alongside her servant Licisca. She often reminds Licisca of their noble-servant relationship but how will Filomena react when her faithful servant decides to rebel? Soap fans will recognise actress Jessica Plummer from EastEnders where she starred as Chantelle Atkins who was murdered by her abusive husband Gray Atkins ( Toby-Alexander Smith ). She has also been in How To Talk To Girls At Parties and The Girl Before.
Misia - Saoirse-Monica Jackson Misia is a co-dependent servant whose sole purpose is to please her demanding master Pampinea, with her self-worth relying on pleasing the bossy noble. Irish actress Saoirse-Monica Jackson rose to fame as Erin Quinn in the Channel 4 comedy Derry Girls, starring in the comedy for four years until its end in 2022. She has since featured in Coffee Wars, The Flash, The Doll Factory and Upgraded.
Sirisco - Tony Hale Actor Tony Hale is remembered as Buster Bluth in Fox’s comedy Arrested Development, Gary Walsh for seven years in Veep, as well as the voice of Forky in Toy Story 4. He will play Sirisco, the ill-prepared and eager-to-please steward of Villa Santa, working for master Leonardo who gave him a job after meeting at a brothel. Pampinea - Zosia Mamet Pampinea, who will soon be the lady of the villa, is described as “full of hope and absolutely lacking in self-awareness”.
Actress and musician Zosia Mamet is behind Pampinea, having previously played Annie Mouradian in HBO’s The Flight Attendant. Some of her other roles have been in Parenthood, Girls, United States Of Tara and Mad Men. Dioneo - Amar Chadha-Patel Dioneo is somewhere between the upper and lower class thanks to his profession as a physician.
He is “cocksure” of himself and serves as noble Tindaro’s doctor and friend, using his alliance to get access to the luxuries experienced by the noble class. Prior to the Netflix show, Amar Chadha-Patel has featured in Willow, The Third Day, The Wheel of Time and Fifteen-Love. The Mangy Bandit - Ricky Champ Actor Ricky Champ is behind The Decameron’s The Mangy Bandit, although few details have been released about his character.
He is best known for portraying Stuart Highway in EastEnders and is now starring in ITV’s Piglets as Sergeant Daz Black. Panfilo - Karan Gill Panfilo, a charming yet cunning son of a political family in Florence, arrives at the villa in the hope of securing a future for himself and his wife Neifile. Actor Karan Gill will be remembered for Cobra, I May Destroy You, Screw and Bad Behaviour.
Neifile - Lou Gala Neifile is Panfilo’s wife who adores her other half and it appears they have a strong relationship but the passion has been missing from their marriage for quite some time. Actress Lou Gala has been in Julia, Our Crazy Family and Secrets d’histoire just to name a few of her credits. Stratilia - Leila Farzad Leila Farzad was nominated for a BAFTA for her role as Naomi Jones in Sky Atlantic’s I Hate Suzie, before starring in BBC One’s Better as Lou Slack and Mona Javadi in Black Mirror .
She is behind Stratilia in The Decameron, a “wise and steady” cook and servant of Villa Santa who works hard to protect her own secrets. The Decameron premieres on Thursday, July 25, on Netflix..
