''1983'' is a Polish thriller drama television series produced for and released by

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

on 30 November 2018. The series, created and written by Joshua Long and based on an original idea by Long and

Maciej Musiał Maciej Musiał (born 11 February 1995) is a Polish actor and television personality. Biography The son of actors Andrzej and Anna Musiał, he began his acting career at an early age with a cameo appearance in a 2004 episode of the long-running ...

, is set in an

alternate timeline Alternate history (also referred to as alternative history, allohistory, althist, or simply A.H.) is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which one or more historical events have occurred but are resolved differently than in actual history. As ...

in which the fall of the communist

Polish People's Republic The Polish People's Republic (1952–1989), formerly the Republic of Poland (1947–1952), and also often simply known as Poland, was a country in Central Europe that existed as the predecessor of the modern-day democratic Republic of Poland. ...

never happened, and the

Iron Curtain The Iron Curtain was the political and physical boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. On the east side of the Iron Curtain were countries connected to the So ...

is still in place. It is Netflix's first Polish original series.

Premise

The series is set in 2003; 20 years after a coordinated terrorist attack took place on multiple sites in Poland in 1983 which altered the course of history. The Iron Curtain (and probably the Berlin Wall) is still in place and the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

did not end. Law student Kajetan (

) and

Citizens' Militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or serve ...

investigator Anatol (

Robert Więckiewicz Robert Więckiewicz (born 30 June 1967) is a Polish film and television actor from Nowa Ruda, Poland. He is a member of the European Film Academy. In 2013, he received Best Actor Award at the Chicago International Film Festival for his role in fil ...

) uncover a conspiracy that could potentially start a revolution.

Setting

The story is set in a gloomy and cold

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

, where dilapidated, grimy Soviet-style apartment blocks stand side by side with futuristic and imposing government and police buildings. The

secret police image:Putin-Stasi-Ausweis.png, 300px, Vladimir Putin's secret police identity card, issued by the East German Stasi while he was working as a Soviet KGB liaison officer from 1985 to 1989. Both organizations used similar forms of repression. Secre ...

of the Security Bureau now use computer surveillance mechanisms, tracking cell phones and digitizing citizens' data (classified according to their "level of danger"). People need to scan their digital ID cards before entering government buildings, leaving a record of their activities. Society is run by the "Party", a privileged elite who enjoy a good education, high economic and social status, and live in gated compounds. The rest of the population is uninterested in politics and are distracted by escapism and

consumerism Consumerism is a socio-cultural and economic phenomenon that is typical of industrialized societies. It is characterized by the continuous acquisition of goods and services in ever-increasing quantities. In contemporary consumer society, the ...

, at least for goods that are not censored or prohibited. Many Western books are censored. The "Light Brigade", a group of young resistance fighters, oppose this dictatorship. Poland is imagined to have seen massive immigration from Indochina, and in particular from the socialist republic of

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

. Some night scenes set in overcrowded Asian neighborhoods hint at Ridley Scott's ''

Blade Runner ''Blade Runner'' is a 1982 science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott from a screenplay by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples. Starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, and Edward James Olmos, it is an adaptation of Philip K. Di ...

''. There are few explicit references to communism in the series (no statues of

Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov ( 187021 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist. He was the first head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 until Death and state funeral of ...

in the streets, no red stars on uniforms or revolutionary chants). The regime created an Orwellian state, whose sole ideological goal is the suppression of dissent and the control of individuals.

Cast

Main

as Kajetan Skowron *

as Anatol Janów *

Michalina Olszańska Michalina Olszańska (born 29 June 1992) is a Polish actress and writer. She is a daughter of actors Agnieszka Fatyga and Wojciech Olszański. She has published two novels as a teenager. For her role in '' I, Olga Hepnarová'' she received the ...

as Ofelia Ibrom * Zofia Wichłacz as Karolina Lis *

Andrzej Chyra Andrzej Chyra (, born 27 August 1964) is a Polish actor and theatre director. He is a member of the Polish Film Academy and the European Film Academy. In 2006, he received the Polish Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in Feliks Fal ...

as Władysław Lis

Recurring

Ewa Błaszczyk Ewa Błaszczyk (born 15 October 1955) is a Polish actress. She has made over 35 appearances in film and television. She starred in Krzysztof Kieślowski Krzysztof Kieślowski (, 27 June 1941 – 14 March 1996) was a Polish film director and ...

as Maria Gierowska *

Edyta Olszówka Edyta may refer to: People * Edyta Bartosiewicz (born 1965), Polish rock singer * Edyta Dzieniszewska (born 1986), Polish sprint canoer * Edyta Geppert (born 1953), popular Polish singer * Edyta Górniak (born 1972), Polish pop singer * Edyta Herb ...

as Julia Stępińska *

Agnieszka Żulewska Agnieszka is the Polish equivalent of the female given name Agnes. Notable people with this name include: * Agnieszka Arnold, Polish documentary filmmaker * Agnieszka Baranowska (1819–1890), Polish playwright and poet * Agnieszka Bednarek (bo ...

as Maja Skowron *

Wojciech Kalarus Wojciech () is a Polish name, equivalent to Czech Vojtěch , Slovak Vojtech, and German Woitke. The name is formed from two Slavic roots: * ''wój'' (Slavic: ''voj''), a root pertaining to war. It also forms words like ''wojownik'' ("warrior") a ...

as Mikołaj Trojan *

Mirosław Zbrojewicz Mirosław Zbrojewicz (born 25 February 1957) is a Polish actor. Filmography Actor cast * 2025: '' Just One Look'' as Borys "Gajos" Gajewicz * 2022: '' Hold Tight'' as Borys "Gajos" Gajewicz * 2020: '' Angel of Death'' as Włodzimierz Suzin ...

as Kazimierz Świętobór *

Patrycja Volny Patrycja Volny (born 5 February 1988) is a Polish actress known for her role as Dobra Nowina in the 2017 crime film '' Spoor'', the Polish entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 90th Academy Awards. She first appeared in 2012 legal drama ...

as Dana Rolbiecki * Vu Le Hong as Bao Chu ("Uncle") *

Clive Russell Clive Russell (born 7 December 1945) is a British actor. He is known for his roles as Chief Inspector Frederick Abberline in '' Ripper Street'', Angus O'Connor in ''Happiness'', Lord Lovat in '' Outlander'', and Brynden Tully in the HBO series ...

as William Keating *

Mateusz Kościukiewicz Mateusz Kościukiewicz (; born 1 May 1986 in Nowy Tomyśl) is a Polish film actor. Early life and career He grew up in Nowy Tomyśl, where he attended the General and Post-Secondary Schools. He studied at the Kraków State Higher Theater School ...

as Kamil Zatoń

Episodes

Production

On 6 March 2018, Netflix announced that the series was in production, consisting of 8 episodes. On 2 October 2018, the first teaser trailer was released, with the series set to premiere globally on 30 November. A second season is being considered.

References

External links

*
''1983''
on

{{Netflix original ended series (2012–2018), state=collapsed Netflix television dramas Polish-language television shows 2018 Polish television series debuts Alternate history television series Television series set in 2003 Television shows set in Poland Television shows set in Warsaw Television series about the Cold War Dystopian television series Polish spy television series Polish speculative fiction television series Multilingual television series