The majority of filming took place in Lithuania, chosen for its scenery and favourable film tax incentives, with locations including Vilnius, Pažaislis monastery and Trakai Island Castle.

Rundāle Palace in Latvia served as the main filming location for the throne room scenes, corridor scenes, the cross-dressing ball at the end of Episode 1, and the scenes on the stairs outside the palace.

Some scenes were filmed on location in Russia itself, including St Petersburg, Peterhof Palace, and Catherine Palace in Tsarskoye Selo.

On Rotten Tomatoes the miniseries holds a 68% approval rating based on 40 reviews, with critics agreeing that its sumptuous setting often outshines its storytelling despite Helen Mirren's performance.

On Metacritic the series received a weighted average score of 61 out of 100 based on 18 critics, indicating 'generally favorable reviews'.

Several critics, including Variety and The New York Times, criticized the series for lacking ambition and featuring excessive melodramatic arguing, while praising Helen Mirren's central performance.