Imelda Staunton has admitted that she's frightened about playing Queen Elizabeth in The Crown season 5 but she's taking the "extra challenge" head-on as the Netflix royal drama heads into production for its last two seasons.
The veteran actress revealed that she's conscious of the potential comparisons to her take on the queen since The Crown season 5 will cover a time period that's still fresh in the public's mind. She's mostly afraid that the audience will say that her depiction of the monarch is not on the mark compared to Claire Foy, who did the first two seasons, and Olivia Colman, who was the queen in The Crown season 3 and 4.
Staunton is also hoping that Queen Elizabeth does not watch The Crown. Despite her hesitations, the actress has been preparing for the role months before the start of production by watching videos of the queen and reading everything about her life.
The Crown season 5 will start filming in June in London and Staunton said that they will open the time period in 1991. An upcoming episode will also feature a poignant part of the monarch's life, where she said that 1992 has been her "annus horribilis" (horrible year), amid the broken marriages of her children, Prince Charles, Princess Anne and Prince Andrew.
The new season will introduce Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana. Fans of the Netflix drama can expect scenes covering Diana's explosive interview with Martin Bashir, which set the course of her divorce from Prince Charles.
However, Emma Corrin, who played the younger Diana in season 4 could likely cameo. A Netflix source revealed that they won't discount her return because viewers have been receptive of the actress' performance.
Corrin even won a Golden Globes award for her take on the Princess of Wales. So, while Debicki will take over for her, Corrin could still be invited back for some flashback scenes in the same way Foy was asked to reprise her role as the queen in two flashback scenes for seasons 3 and 4.
The Crown season 5 will also cover the death of the princess in the final episode before fans have to wait for a few more years for season 6. Show creator Peter Morgan said that he pitched this royal drama as a six-season series and will probably end the show in the same time period as the fifth season.
Netflix has not yet determined the air date for The Crown season 5.
