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Netflix issues statement over The Crown's controversial new storyline
17 October 2022, 13:25
Watch The Crown Season 5 teaser trailer
Netflix has been forced to defend the new series of The Crown after backlash.
Netflix has shared a statement defending The Crown after recent backlash over the new series.
In season five of the royal drama, viewers will be taken back to the 1990s with episodes covering the period around the breakdown of King Charles and Diana's marriage.
According to reports, it will also include scenes depicting Charles plotting to oust his mother, the late Queen, as well as Princess Anne's divorce and the fire at Windsor Castle.
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Following fears these storylines could ‘harm King Charles’ reputation’, a spokeswoman for The Crown said the drama should be treated as fictional and a dramatisation.
"The Crown has always been presented as a drama based on historical events,” they said.
"Series five is a fictional dramatisation, imagining what could have happened behind closed doors during a significant decade for the Royal Family - one that has already been scrutinised and well-documented by journalists, biographers and historians."
This comes after a spokesperson for Sir John Major, who will be played by Jonny Lee Miller in the drama, described the series as "damaging and malicious fiction".
Meanwhile, other cast members include Imelda Staunton as the Queen, Dominic West as Prince Charles, Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana and Jonathan Pryce as Prince Phillip.
Lesley Manville is also starring as Princess Margaret, Claudia Harrison as Princess Anne and Olivia Williams as Camilla Parker Bowles.
The latest series of The Crown also looks at into Diana's now infamous Panorama interview with journalist Martin Bashir.
The Paris car crash that killed Diana in August 1997 won’t be depicted in the drama, Netflix has confirmed.
It’s thought the series will show the lead-up and aftermath, but not the crash itself.
While the popular drama was due to end after the fifth series, creator and writer Peter Morgan has now said it will be extended to include a sixth.
