‘The Crown’ Will End After Season 5 With Imelda Staunton as Queen Elizabeth

By Manori Ravindran

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – “The Crown” will end after season five, in which Imelda Staunton is to play Queen Elizabeth, Variety has confirmed.

The historical drama from Sony-backed Left Bank Pictures, once believed to be an open-ended pursuit that could see the inclusion of Meghan Markle and her new family, will end with Staunton, who had been rumored to be helming the series for a number of months.

“” has been Netflix’s most global-facing original out of the U.K., and saw Claire Foy play the Queen across its first two seasons, earning her both Golden Globe and Emmy Awards. The most recent season, which debuted last year, saw Oscar-winning “The Favorite” actor Olivia Colman portraying the monarch.

Production has begun on season four, which will see the introduction of Princess Diana (Emma Corrin). “God’s Own Country” actor Josh O’Connor plays Prince Charles, while Colman will also return as the Queen.

Creator and executive producer Peter Morgan confirmed that Staunton will take the show into the 2000s: “I’m absolutely thrilled to confirm Imelda Staunton as Her Majesty The Queen for the fifth and final season, taking ‘The Crown’ into the 21st Century. Imelda is an astonishing talent and will be a fantastic successor to Claire Foy and Olivia Colman.”

Morgan said he had envisioned the show, which launched in late 2016, as 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. I’m grateful to and Sony for supporting me in this decision.”

Cindy Holland, VP of original content for Netflix, said: “The first three seasons of ‘The Crown’ defined an era, and I know the upcoming fourth season will build further on that success. It’s a stunning example of award-winning entertainment, created in the U.K. and loved by millions of fans around the world. I fully support Peter Morgan’s creative decision and am excited to see how he, Imelda Staunton and the cast and crew of Season 5, bring this landmark series to a fitting and spectacular end.”

Staunton added: “I have loved watching ‘The Crown’ from the very start. 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.”

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