The plays were produced in 2015 by the same team that made the first series of films but were directed by the former artistic director of Royal Court Theatre and Olivier Award winner, Dominic Cooke.

[7] The title of the series is taken from a line in Richard II: For within the hollow crownThat rounds the mortal temples of a kingKeeps Death his court...List indicators: The BBC scheduled the screening of Shakespeare's history plays as part of the 2012 Cultural Olympiad, a celebration of British culture coinciding with the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Executive producer Pippa Harris stated, "The critical and audience reaction to The Hollow Crown series set the bar high for Shakespeare on screen, and Neal Street (Productions) is delighted to be making the concluding part of this great history cycle.

By filming the 'Henry VI' plays as well as 'Richard III,' we will allow viewers to fully appreciate how such a monstrous tyrant could find his way to power, bringing even more weight and depth to this iconic character.

Significant scenes involving Talbot and Joan of Arc are cut and Jack Cade's Rebellion is not included.

[14] The plays were shown in the United States from 20 September to 11 October 2013 as part of the PBS Great Performances series.

The original music soundtrack from The Hollow Crown: The Wars of the Roses composed by Dan Jones was released on the Wave Theory Records label in June 2016 and performed by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales.