No, Netflix Has Not Yet Cast Imelda Staunton in ‘The Crown’
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Rumors swirled this week that Academy Award-nominated actress Imelda Staunton was cast as Queen Elizabeth II in the expected Season 5 and 6 of Netflix’s period royal drama “The Crown,” which currently stars Olivia Colman in the throne. But that is simply not the case, according to a statement from the company.
“We are currently filming season four of ‘The Crown’ but have not commissioned any further seasons as yet, therefore any news on casting remains pure speculation,” read the statement. That casting speculation originated out of The Daily Mail. The latest season of the crown features Colman, along with Helena Bonham Carter, who reportedly turned to a psychic to get the blessing to play the role.
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According to Deadline, Staunton was thought to be in talks with Left Bank Pictures to take on the part of the Queen, but that’s evidently fake news until a deal is made to renew the Primetime Emmy-winning series for more seasons. Staunton earned an Academy Award nomination for her performance as a working-class abortionist in Mike Leigh’s 2004 “Vera Drake,” and recently starred in “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil,” the “Downton Abbey” movie, “Paddington 2” in a voice role, and the TV miniseries “A Confession.”
“The Crown” creator Peter Morgan recently signed an overall deal with Netflix but its specific details remain unknown. Reportedly the idea was always to extend the series through six seasons. In 2018, the series scooped up Emmys for Claire Foy as Lead Actress, Stephen Daldry for Directing, as well as Outstanding Casting, Cinematography, and Costumes. The series prior earned nods for Production Design, and for John Lithgow’s supporting turn as Winston Churchill (and unlike with his role in “Bombshell” as Roger Ailes, he didn’t have to wear a fat suit.)
For Season 3, “The Favourite” Oscar winner Colman serves as the heir apparent to Claire Foy in the series, which in this seasons kicks off in 1963 with Beatles fever, and moves into England’s iconic win of the World Cup in 1966. The now-filming fourth season features “The X-Files” star Gillian Anderson in the role of Margaret Thatcher, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990, suggesting a time jump ahead for the next iteration of “The Crown.”
Season 3 dropped on Netflix November 17.
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