The real Queen Elizabeth II died earlier this year, but the fictionalized retelling of her life continues in Netflix‘s breakout hit, The Crown. The upcoming fifth season jumps ahead to the ’90s, which was a very pivotal time for the British royal family. It also throws the spotlight on Diana, Princess of Wales (Elizabeth Debicki), the woman who usurped Queen Elizabeth’s place in the hearts and minds of her subjects. The marriage of Diana and Prince Charles (Dominic West) was a storybook moment in the ’80s. But as you can see in the trailer below, the time for fairy tale endings is over. And Diana won’t go quietly.
This season, Imelda Staunton is taking over the role of Queen Elizabeth, with Jonathan Pryce as her husband, Prince Philip. And for perhaps the first time in her long reign, Elizabeth seems to be at a loss when it comes to dealing with her incredibly popular daughter-in-law. The dissolution of Charles and Diana’s marriage is further complicated by his mistress, Camilla Parker Bowles (Olivia Williams), and by Diana’s media savvy. Diana is, or was, the people’s princess. And the queen simply can’t wrap her head around that.
Jonny Lee Miller also stars this season as Prime Minister John Major, with Flora Montgomery as Norma Major, Lesley Manville as Princess Margaret, Claudia Harrison as Princess Anne, James Murray as Prince Andrew, Emma Laird Craig as Sarah, Duchess of York, Sam Woolf as Prince Edward, Senan West as Prince William, Andrew Havill as Robert Fellowes, Natascha McElhone as Penelope Knatchbull, and Khalid Abdalla as Dodi Fayed.
The Crown was created by Peter Morgan, and the fifth season will premiere on Netflix on November 9.
