El Sultán spoilers reveal Telemundo took a different direction with its latest offerings. The network recently aired La Sultána (The Sultan), a historical fiction series centered around the ancient Ottoman empire. Their latest fictional offering at 8 PM is the show that proceeded it elsewhere: El Sultán. This Turkish drama from 2011 tells the story of Sultan Suleiman (Halit Ergenç). This is a sharp departure from its original programming strategy. But the title character might be upstaged. Here’s what you need to know.
El Sultán spoilers: Upstaged
The real star of the show is Hürrem Sultan (Meryem Uzerli). Originally, the character was named Aleksandra. A slave sold to the Ottoman empire, she resented being treated like property. In the first week of the series, she’s caused plenty of drama in the palace, earning multiple scoldings. The actress’s expressions and the character’s moxie are a highlight of the series.
However, her attitude changed when she realized what she could gain with obedience. She quickly resolved to become the Sultan’s favorite consort. Her unconventional methods (at one point, she faints after calling out to him—something frowned upon in those days) worked. He took an interest in her. This week, he gave her a special ring that denoted her as a favorite. He also gave her the name Hürrem. But this rise isn’t easy.
El Sultán spoilers: War of the palace
There’s an obstacle in her way, and her name is Mahidevran Sultan (Nur Fettahoğlu). The mother of the Sultan’s only child at this point is jealous of Hürrem and wants her gone. A recent ploy involved ordering someone to steal Hürrem’s ring. Real life history shows she won’t be successful.
El Sultán spoilers: The truth—sort of
As we mentioned, this story is based in real history and that history has Hürrem coming out the winner. She reaches an unprecedented level of power within the empire and is the mother of five more children for the Sultan. History seems to agree about her origin as a slave, but there’s mixed talk about her on Wikipedia as to other aspects of her life, most of which the page says is based in Palace talk. A lot of this has already been worked into the show, and we’re assuming more will follow.
