The Crown Star Josh O'Connor Reveals He Initially Turned Down the Role of Prince Charles

Prince Charles has arrived!

OK, well technically his onscreen portrayer, The Crown star Josh O'Connor showed up in style at 2021 Golden Globes on behalf of the Netflix royal drama, which earned the most nominations. But the actor revealed to E!'s Karamo on Live From E!: Countdown to the Golden Globes that he nearly passed on the change to play the real-life royal.

"It's kind of embarrassing, really," O'Connor admitted. "I think I was working another job and I got a phone call saying, 'Would I want to come in and read for Charles?' I mean, it was a terrible mistake!"

As Julia Roberts once said in Pretty Woman: Big mistake. Huge! So why was O'Connor so hesitant to join The Crown's third season, especially when the show was already such a huge hit?

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"Partly, I hadn't seen the show and then I watched the show and realized it's incredible and what Claire [Foy] and Matt [Smith] did in the first two series was magic," he said. "I don't know where I'd been, I don't know how I missed this magical show. And then I fell in love with the show, so I met with the guys and they convinced me and just said, 'This is a great part.' And they told me the story and the journey we were going to go on and it was just a no-brainer."

O'Connor, 30, clearly made the right choice, earning rave reviews for his turn as Prince Charles and a nomination for Best Actor in a Drama Series at tonight's show, along with four of his co-stars.

While they can't cheer each other on in person, O'Connor revealed the cast, including Olivia Colman, Helena Bonham Carter and Emma Corin, are still with each other "in spirit" and are communicating constantly.

"We do have a Crown group and that's sort of pinging away at the moment," he shared, "but we're also texting each other individually."

Um, any chance we can get in on that royal group chat?!

Watch the 2021 Golden Globes live telecast tonight at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on NBC. For a recap of all the winners and biggest show moments, watch E!'s After Party Golden Globes special at 11 p.m.!