Season 5 of 'The Crown:' Everything We Know So Far

"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below."

Given the drama happening in the royal family lately⁠—Prince Andrew's association with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell; Harry and Meghan's decision to step back from their senior roles and move to California—fans of The Crown have been anticipating a season set in the modern day.

Sadly, for fans of the royal drama, it sounds like the series won't make it all the way to 2021, but the critically acclaimed show will have a few more chapters. Here's what we know so far about season five.

New episodes will premiere in November 2022.

Earlier this year, Deadline confirmed that the show is taking a brief break, and filming wouldn't pick back up until summer 2021. Variety later confirmed that production began in July. Per the publication, "the filming break has always been part of The Crown’s production schedule and is not related to the coronavirus pandemic, although sources acknowledged that the hiatus has been helpfully timed."

In September, Imelda Staunton confirmed that the series will return to Netflix in November 2022. Watch her share the announcement below:

Morgan has flip-flopped on how long the show will run.

In January of 2020, he confirmed that season five would be the final chapter of the show.

"At the outset I had imagined The Crown running for six seasons but now that we have begun work on the stories for season five it has become clear to me that this is the perfect time and place to stop," Morgan said, per the Hollywood Reporter. "I’m grateful to Netflix and Sony for supporting me in this decision."

But now, it seems the original plan to run for six seasons is back in place.

"As we started to discuss the storylines for series five, it soon became clear that in order to do justice to the richness and complexity of the story we should go back to the original plan and do six seasons," Morgan said in July, confirming the news alongside Netflix to the Hollywood Reporter.

Cindy Holland, Netflix's VP of original content also commented: "The Crown keeps raising the bar with each new season. We can’t wait for audiences to see the upcoming fourth season, and we’re proud to support Peter’s vision and the phenomenal cast and crew for a sixth and final season."

Who will be in the cast?

Morgan fully recast the show ahead of season three, and it seems like will give it a complete overhaul once again for seasons five and six.

As the show simultaneously covers drama in both the royal world and the political sphere, British Prime minister John Major will play a key role in season five. He will be played by Elementary and Trainspotting actor, Jonny Lee Miller.

He'll be joined by Imelda Staunton, who will take over from Olivia Colman as Queen Elizabeth. “I have loved watching The Crown from the very start," Staunton told the Hollywood Reporter. "As an actor it was a joy to see how both Claire Foy and Olivia Colman brought something special and unique to Peter Morgan’s scripts. I am genuinely honoured to be joining such an exceptional creative team and to be taking The Crown to its conclusion."

In July 2021, Netflix shared the first sneak peek of Staunton in character. See that photo here:

On BBC radio's Woman's Hour, Staunton also admitted that she will have an "extra challenge" playing the British monarch. "I think my sort of extra challenge, as if I needed it, is that I’m now doing the Queen that we’re a little more familiar with," she said, per People. "With Claire Foy, it was almost history and now I’m playing one that people could say 'she doesn’t do that,' 'she’s not like that,' and that’s my personal bête noire."

Morgan has said he is "absolutely thrilled" that Staunton, who was seen recently alongside her husband Jim Carter in the Downton Abbey film adaptation, is joining the cast, and "taking The Crown into the 21st Century."

And Colman is excited to see her take on the part, having admitted that Staunton has "already got a much better walk than me." In a press conference, Colman also wished Staunton "good luck" given that "the wig's itchy." She recently shared that she's “quite pleased” to be leaving the royal role behind.

According to Radio Times, during a virtual conversation put on by Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts, Colman reflected on the difficulties of playing a real person on screen.

“Because behind closed doors, we don’t know what she’s like,” she said. “I had a little bit of play with that. But definitely… the hardest part I’ve done is someone who’s real. I’m not ashamed to say that I’m quite pleased now to be able to move on to something else.”

In season five, Princess Margaret will be played by Leslie Manville. "As an actor it was a joy to see how both Claire Foy and Olivia Colman brought something special and unique to Peter Morgan’s scripts," she said. "I am genuinely honored to be joining such an exceptional creative team and to be taking The Crown to its conclusion."

Helena Bonham Carter, who has played the Princess in seasons three and four is glad to pass the proverbial baton.

"It's like handing a baton. It's like a relay race, but it never comes back," she said. "I want to hand her my cigarette holder and say, 'Good luck with this.' That would be nice, wouldn't it?"

Prince Philip will be played by Jonathan Pryce (The Two Popes, Game of Thrones), succeeding Tobias Menzies and Matt Smith, and Elizabeth Debicki (The Great Gatsby, Tenet) will play Princess Diana.

"Princess Diana's spirit, her words and her actions live in the hearts of so many," she initially said. "It is my true privilege and honour to be joining this masterful series, which has had me absolutely hooked from episode one."

Since then, though, she admitted that she's "terrified" to play the royal icon. “It’s a dream role. She is such a remarkable human being and she really does still live in the hearts of so many people,” she told the Mirror. “I’m overwhelmed, I’m terrified and I’m excited. I can’t wait to start."

Emma Corrin offered a bit of advice to her successor in an interview with Vulture: "Make it your own. Put blinkers on for the rest of the world and for the pressure. Grab onto things that resonate with you, that you relate to, or that you empathize with. And always trust the script. It won’t let you down."

Corrin recently saw the image of Debicki in character, and only had kind things to say about the continuation of Diana in The Crown.:

"I feel so happy to have done the arc of her life that I did, but for me it feels like a very closed chapter. I went into it knowing I wouldn’t continue. I saw the picture of Elizabeth [Debicki], and I just think she looks absolutely brilliant. And then there were our photos side by side, and I felt really special — almost like a sort of sister feeling that there’s this continued likeness," Corrin said. "She came to see the play that I just did in London because she’s friends with the director. We hadn’t met before, and it was wonderful. It was a bit of that thing where we felt like we knew each other so well, even though we didn’t."

Prince Charles will notably be played by Dominic West. But at this point, it's unclear who will play a number of other characters expected to turn up in the season, including Sarah Ferguson. The real life Fergie even offered to consult on her character. “Hello?” she told Town & Country. “Where is Fergie?” she said, noting her lack of screen time in season four. “I said to [executive producer to Andy Harries], ‘Why can’t I help my character?’ ” she says. Her offer was declined.

A recent photo from set showed Debicki as Diana and West as Charles alongside the young actors playing William and Harry. See that photo here:

What will the season cover?

Morgan has said that "season six will not bring us any closer to present day — it will simply enable us to cover the same period in greater detail." The Hollywood Reporter also confirmed that the story will end in the 2000s, but it's unclear exactly how time will be divided between seasons five and six. Certainly, though, Princess Diana's death will play a role in the series at some point.

If the show does zoom toward the present, in a recent interview with James Corden, Prince Harry suggested that he'd like Damian Lewis to play him.

Andrew Morton says season five will cover "the drama behind" his biography of Princess Diana.

In 1992, Morton published a groundbreaking biography of Princess Diana. While it was unknown at the time, Diana had participated in the writing of the Diana: Her True Story, secretly recording tapes, which were then used by Morton to share her story. Morton told Insider that season five would also cover the recording of those tapes.

He also noted that the season will show Diana's infamous 1995 Panorama interview in which she referred to Prince Charles's affair with Camilla by saying: "There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded."

The infamous 1992 fire at Windsor Castle will be featured.

The production was spotted recreating the blaze, which started in Queen Victoria's Private Chapel, and quickly destroyed 115 rooms in the historic castle, including 9 State Rooms.

You Might Also Like

• 12 Weekend Getaway Spas For Every Type of Occasion

• What Your Favorite Champagne Brand Says About You

• Beauty Gurus Share Their Makeup Secrets for Older Women