‘Crown’ roles aren’t keepers, even newcomer Princess Di
LOSANGELES— For viewers, “TheCrown” offers a peek into amodern royal family’s life and times, or at least an engaging dramatization. For the cast, it’smeant the lofty equivalent of gigwork as theNetflix series ticks through the decades.
Claire Foy played Britain’s youngQueen Elizabeth II for the first two seasons, withOlivia Colman stepping in to chart hermiddle years last season and in the 10 newepisodes out Sunday. Imelda Staunton ascends to the throne for the final two chapters.
WhenDiana Spencer makes her pivotal entrance this season, largely set in the 1980s, it’sEmma Corrin in the part opposite Josh O’Connor’s Prince Charles. Corrin’s job is one and done: Elizabeth Debicki takes over in seasons five and six as the bound-for-tragedy PrincessDiana, opposite a new, yet-to-be announced Charles.
Arole in “The Crown” is akin to a relay-race baton destined to be handed off, saidHelena Bonham Carter, back for her second whirl as tempestuous PrincessMargaret. The actor is sandwiched between Vanessa Kirby (seasons one and two) and Lesley Manville, whowill take Margaret across the finish line.
“I’m very sad that it’s over, but it’s time that shewas played by somebody else at some point. ... She’s just a great gift of a part,” BonhamCarter said during a joint interview with Colman andTobias Menzies, returning as Prince Philip.
Colmancalled Staunton’s casting “amazing,” then suggested thenewcomer could overshadowher. “It’s almost, ’wish shewasn’t quite good,’” she said, smiling. That prompted BonhamCarter topredict a battle of the stars after the series ends.
“Rate yourMargarets, rate your queens, rate your Philips,” she said.
Colmanwasaskedif shehadanyadvice forher successor. Her terse reply: “Goodluck. Thewig’s itchy.”
“TheCrown” casting directorRobert Sterne said swapping out actorswasn’t preordainedwhen he beganworking with series creator andwriter Peter Morgan.
Itwas an open question “whetherwe aged-up actors across their life span orwere bold andwe cast each time,” Sterne said in an interview. Choosing the latter optionmeant a series of challenges and opportunities, for the showand its parade of actors.
“You spend a lot of time looking at the pictures and images of people at particular stages of their life” to find the right actor to portray them at a particular stage of their lives, he said. Then he invoked the relay-race analogy in citing another key stop.
“You also have to take into account theway that that previous actor portrayed it. Whodo you think can take that baton and run with it?” he said, which he described as reinventing the role “but hopefully not in a jarring way.”
O’Connor said he relished his time on the series, including saying goodbye to a role he knew wasn’t for keeps— just as with Shakespeare’sworks.
“If you play ’Hamlet,’ you knowthat there’s 100 people who’ve played Hamlet before you, there’s going to be 100 people after you,” O’Connor said. “And they’ll all do it differently, and that’s the joy.”