According to the British "Independent" reported on September 9, with the death of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, the Netflix hit series "The Crown", which focuses on her 70 years of reign and the story of the British royal family, may be suspended.
"The Crown" producer and screenwriter Peter Morgan said the show was "a love letter" to the Queen, and he hoped that the sixth season would "stop filming out of respect", which The American media Deadline said should be suspended for a while.
In the six seasons of "The Crown", Elizabeth II played three characters
On September 8, local time, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom died at Balmoral Castle in Scotland at the age of 96.
After the news came out, the attention of many foreign media fell on those most affected by this matter: members of the British royal family, organizations sponsored by the Queen of England for a long time, and of course, the British-American co-production drama "The Crown".
Released by Netflix and co-produced by Left Bank Pictures in the United Kingdom and sony pictures in the United States, the historical drama has attracted much attention since the first season of 2016, sweeping the North American awards season for four consecutive seasons. The sixth season, which will be the final season of the "Crown" series, is currently being filmed, with the fifth season scheduled to premiere on Netflix in November.
Stills from the fourth season of The Crown (right) compared to old royal photos
According to Hollywood media Deadline, after learning the news of the Queen's death, on September 8, local time, "The Crown" producer and screenwriter, the British actor and screenwriter Pete Morgan, who won the Emmy Award for Best Screenplay in the Drama Category by relying on this drama, said that "The Crown" is a "love letter" written to Elizabeth II, and said that he has nothing else to say at present, only silence and respect, "I hope we will stop shooting out of respect."
Pete Morgan is a "professional" of British royal-themed literary works, creating the film "The Queen" (2006) starring Helen Mirren and the play "The Audience" (2013), both of which are also the source of "The Crown".
After Pitt Morgan responded to Deadline, Variety also quoted sources close to Morgan as saying that the sixth season of "The Crown" may be discontinued, but Netflix and Left Bank Pictures have not yet given an official statement.
Deadline said that in fact, when the "Crown" series began to be produced, Netflix had a plan. In 2016, Stephen Daldry, executive producer and co-director of the first season of The Crown, promised that if the Queen of England died during the show's filming, production would be suspended for a while out of "tribute and respect", "she (Elizabeth II) is a global figure and that's what we should do".
In the fifth and sixth seasons of The Crown, Imelda Staunton (the actor who played "Umbridge" in Harry Potter) will play Elizabeth II. Previously, Claire Foy starred as Young Elizabeth II in seasons one and two, and Olivia Colman played middle-aged Elizabeth II in seasons three and four.
Stills from the fifth season of The Crown, from left, "Princess Diana" (Elizabeth Debiczi), "Elizabeth II" (Imelda Staunton) and "Prince Charles" (Dominique Debiczzi) West as )
The popularity of the "Crown" series can continue to rise, in addition to relying on exquisite costumes and casting close to the prototype, largely because the story is based on the experience of the Queen of England's reign, relying on the portrayal of royal life to arouse the curiosity of the audience, and is regarded by the outside world as "breaking the window paper of the British royal family".
In particular, the fourth season, which aired in November 2020, focuses on the marriage of Princess Diana and Prince Charles, and tells the story of the impact that Thatcher's rise to power had on the British royal family and British society. After the launch, the response was unprecedented, the "Rotten Tomatoes" film critic rating reached 95, and the sharp portrayal of the image of Prince Charles, Camilla and Prince Philip in the play caused discussion from all walks of life.
Stills from The Crown (left, Emma Colin as Princess Diana) compared to old photos of Princess Diana
At that time, the British media quoted British royal family insiders as saying that the royals were "dissatisfied" with the fourth season of "The Crown", and the close friends of the royals also accused the fourth season of "not considering the feelings of anyone (of the royal family)" in an interview, portraying Prince Charles and Camilla as "very unpleasant" and "hyping with hollywood budgets".
In addition, the play has received some criticism for its inaccuracies in showing historical events.
According to the Guardian in 2020, after the fourth season of "The Crown" aired, Oliver Dowden, then Britain's secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sports, said that Netflix "should be very clear" that the show is "fictional", and he is worried that young viewers who have not experienced those historical events may take the script as fact, hoping that Netflix will mark the show as "fiction" in the opening credits.
According to the US "Business Insider" in 2021, British TV producer jemima Goldsmith, a former friend of Princess Diana, resigned as an adviser to the fifth season of "The Crown", she said, because the Netflix series did not show "respect or sympathy" when telling the story of the last years of Diana's life. Jamima also said that she was involved in the outline and scripting of the fifth season's story, but when she realized the direction of the season's creation, she opted out and asked to delete all the information she had previously provided and not to take her byline.
However, Queen Elizabeth II never spoke publicly about The Crown during her lifetime. Claire Foy, who played Elizabeth II in the first season, once said she didn't want the Queen to see the show and think she had "exaggerated everything" and that "when you play a real person, you never want to be cruel".
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