Producers of The Crown’s final season are reportedly paying tribute to the late Queen Elizabeth II with new scenes with all three actors who have starred as the British monarch on the Netflix drama: Claire Foy, Olivia Colman, and Imelda Staunton.
According to The Sun, the scenes will also include a wartime depiction of Elizabeth, played by newcomer Viola Prettejohn (The Nevers).
Foy played Elizabeth for the first two seasons and guest-starred in later episodes, earning two Emmy Awards for her portrayal. Colman played the queen for the third and fourth seasons, winning one Emmy. And Staunton started playing Elizabeth in Season 5.
“Netflix [is] playing a clever hand with these four queens, bringing the story of Her Majesty to a sensational end after telling virtually all of her life story over 60 episodes,” an insider told The Sun.
“The idea would most likely have been devised last year, around the time that the Queen passed away, as a way of paying tribute to her,” the insider added. “Getting the actresses together was no mean feat, as both Claire and Olivia went on to bigger things after making The Crown and have packed schedules.”
Since her starring role on the period drama, Foy has starred in the films First Man, The Girl in the Spider’s Web, and Women Talking, and she co-headlined the TV series A Very British Scandal.
Colman, meanwhile, has racked up two more Academy Award nominations — for The Father and The Lost Daughter — and starred in the TV shows Landscapers, Great Expectations, and Heartstopper. She’s also a cast member of the upcoming Marvel series Secret Invasion.
Neither Netflix nor producers of The Crown have confirmed The Sun’s report that Foy, Colman, and Prettejohn will be involved in Season 6.
In addition to Staunton, The Crown’s final season will feature Jonathan Pryce as Prince Philip, Lesley Manville as Princess Margaret, Dominic West as Prince Charles, Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana, Claudia Harrison as Princess Anne, and Olivia Williams as Camilla Parker Bowles.
The supporting cast includes Bertie Carvel as Prime Minister Tony Blair, Salim Daw as Mohamed Al Fayed, Khalid Abdalla as Dodi Fayed, Ed McVey as Prince William, Luther Ford as Prince Harry, and Meg Bellamy as Kate Middleton.
The Crown, Season 6, 2023, Netflix