>>723079413
It's a distinction some people don't seem to get.
There are history media and "Telly history" media.
Total War is in the latter category sitting right besides "Egypt was built by ancient Aliens" shows on Discovery, movies about modern leaders in a dress like Napoleon (really just a diss Trump), and so on.

These games are not built on a foundation of the kind of autism that makes Mesoanon or British Museum staff possible.
They are built for your fat uncle who saw Shogun on the telly and now wants to, like, order some slanteyes around as a designated waifu explains what the fuck is going around him... you know, the exact Shogun Total War experience (itself building on the popularity of Shogun re-runs).
Thrones of Britannia had no movie, Pharaoh had no movie, Three Kingdoms had no movie. Only Troy got that part right, but forgot the audience of these games is too young to have actually seen 2004's Troy, and besides you want to strike the iron while it's hot. Just because there was a popular movie about it ages ago doesn't mean shit unless it's being re-run over and over again.
Like, literally, Dune: Total War would be a more fitting "historical" today than anything else. They're not doing it solely because the IP license must cost a fortune and a half.