The Crown
Season 6
Promotional poster
Starring
Country of origin
  • United Kingdom[1]
  • United States[2]
No. of episodes4
Release
Original networkNetflix
Original release16 November 2023 (2023-11-16) –
present
Season chronology

The sixth and final season of The Crown, which follows the life and reign of Queen Elizabeth II, is being released by Netflix in two volumes. The first volume of four episodes was released on 16 November 2023, and the second, consisting of six episodes, is set for 14 December. This final season has been produced after the death of Queen Elizabeth II on 8 September 2022.

Premise

The Crown portrays the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, from her wedding in 1947 through to the early 21st century.

The sixth season is set from 1997 and expected to portray events through to 2005, including the premiership of Tony Blair, the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, the wedding of Prince Edward and Sophie Rhys-Jones, the deaths of Princess Margaret and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, the early relationship of Prince William and Kate Middleton, and the wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles.[3][4]

Cast

Main

Recurring

Notable guests

Episodes

No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten by [22]Original release date [23]
Volume 1
511"Persona Non Grata"Alex GabassiPeter Morgan16 November 2023 (2023-11-16)
In Paris, a car pursued by paparazzi speeds into the Pont de l'Alma tunnel and crashes. Eight weeks earlier, Diana lobbies Prime Minister Blair for an official role in the royal family, but the Queen rejects the idea. Diana takes her two sons on a yachting holiday in Saint-Tropez, France, at the invitation of Mohamed Al-Fayed. Prince Charles prepares to throw a party for Camilla's 50th birthday; he petitions the Queen to attend, knowing it will win approval for Camilla, but she refuses. Dodi travels to Saint-Tropez at the insistence of Mohamed, leaving behind his fiancée, and is shocked to see Diana, who gets the photographers to leave by posing in a bathing suit, upstaging Camilla's party in the newspapers and infuriating Charles. Dodi invites his fiancée to Saint-Tropez but keeps her in a smaller yacht, away from Diana. Dodi confides in Diana about his reconsidering his marriage, and they bond over both of their difficult relationships with their fathers. After hearing about the party from Margaret, the Queen tells Charles that she is happy that he is happy. Dodi tells Diana that she will always be welcome. Returning to Kensington Palace, Diana finds an invitation to Paris.
522"Two Photographs"Christian SchwochowPeter Morgan16 November 2023 (2023-11-16)
The royal family is informed that Diana spent a weekend in Paris with Dodi, which puts pressure on the British government regarding its consistent denial of citizenship to Mohamed, who arranges to have taken photographs of Diana and Dodi kissing, leading to a bidding war by the newspapers. The Queen and Diana are warned about the photographs. Diana says farewell to William and Harry, who are going to Balmoral Castle to spend time with Prince Charles, and travels to Bosnia to support the Landmine Survivors Network charity. However, her work is overshadowed by the publication of the photographs. Charles's public relations adviser, Mark Bolland, informs him that Dodi is being sued by his fiancée for breach of contract and urges him to counter Diana with his own photographs. Charles persuades William and Harry to be photographed spending time together at Balmoral. The Queen discusses Diana's erratic behaviour with Prince Philip. Diana retreats to the south of France with Dodi.
533"Dis-Moi Oui"Christian SchwochowPeter Morgan16 November 2023 (2023-11-16)
Diana decides to return to London. Mohamed tells Dodi that if he marries Diana, he will make Dodi an equal partner in his company. At Monte Carlo, Diana and Dodi continue to be pursued by paparazzi. They enter a jewellery shop for refuge; Dodi asks if there's something she likes, and she points out a ring. They prepare to return to London, but Dodi plans a stop at Paris. At Balmoral, Prince William shoots his first stag deer stalking. Diana and Dodi continue to be pursued by paparazzi in Paris; Diana is stunned when Mohamed offers her Villa Windsor. Diana and Dodi stay at Hôtel Ritz Paris; while on a phone call with William and Harry, William asks Diana if she will marry Dodi, who proposes to Diana with the ring, but she replies that she is not ready. They diagnose each other's problems: Dodi tells her she needs to slow down, and Diana says he needs to get away from his father. Dodi decides to return to his apartment; he, Diana, and Diana's bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones get into a car at the hotel's rear, driven by drunken hotel employee Henri Paul. Pursued by paparazzi, the car crashes off-screen.
544"Aftermath"Christian SchwochowPeter Morgan16 November 2023 (2023-11-16)
Diana dies from the accident, along with Dodi and Henri Paul. A grief-stricken Mohamed travels to Paris to retrieve Dodi's body. Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip and Prince Charles learn of Diana's death; Charles tells William and Harry. Mohamed returns Diana's possessions to the royal family and writes to them, although the palace does not respond. Charles flies to Paris to accompany Diana's coffin back to the UK; he has a vision of Diana and expresses his regret. At Balmoral, Charles tells the Queen and Prince Philip of the reactions he witnessed, and pushes for a more public response from the family. Mohamed lays his son to rest and has a vision of Dodi, in which each regrets the mistakes of the other. William leaves Balmoral without informing anyone and returns fourteen hours later. The royal family faces a public backlash at its muted response. The Queen has a vision of Diana; she then agrees to a ceremonial funeral and travels to London. The princes, Philip, Charles, William, and Harry, and Diana's brother, Earl Spencer, walk behind the funeral procession, and Queen Elizabeth delivers her televised address.
Volume 2
555TBATBAJonathan Wilson and Peter Morgan14 December 2023 (2023-12-14)
566TBATBADaniel Marc Janes and Peter Morgan14 December 2023 (2023-12-14)
577TBATBAJonathan Wilson and Peter Morgan14 December 2023 (2023-12-14)
588TBATBAMeriel Sheibani-Clare and Peter Morgan14 December 2023 (2023-12-14)
599TBATBAJonathan Wilson and Peter Morgan14 December 2023 (2023-12-14)
6010TBATBAPeter Morgan14 December 2023 (2023-12-14)

Production

Development

Although the series was initially planned to run for six seasons, in January 2020 creator Peter Morgan announced that it would instead conclude with the fifth season.[24] However, in July 2020 Morgan reversed his decision and announced that the series would end with a sixth season as originally planned, saying, "As we started to discuss the storylines for Season 5, 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. To be clear, Season 6 will not bring us any closer to present-day—it will simply enable us to cover the same period in greater detail."[25]

Casting

In January 2020, Imelda Staunton was announced as succeeding Colman as the Queen in the fifth season, and her role in the final sixth season was reported in July.[26][27] The same month, Lesley Manville was announced as portraying Princess Margaret,[28][27] and the following month, Jonathan Pryce and Elizabeth Debicki were cast as Prince Philip and Diana, Princess of Wales, respectively.[29][30] In October 2020, Dominic West was in talks to play Prince Charles, which was officially confirmed in April 2021.[31][32] In June 2021, Olivia Williams announced that she would portray Camilla Parker Bowles.[33][34] In September 2022, Rufus Kampa and Ed McVey were cast as Prince William, while Meg Bellamy was cast as Kate Middleton.[17] Viola Prettejohn was cast as young Elizabeth, while Beau Gadsdon reprised her role as young Margaret, for flashback scenes set on Victory in Europe Day.[7]

Filming

Filming for the season began in early September 2022, but was paused following the death of Queen Elizabeth II on 8 September 2022.[35][36] Filming resumed the following week, but was paused again on the day of the Queen's funeral on 19 September 2022.[37] Filming wrapped on 21 April 2023.[38]

"Ghost of Diana" controversy

Shortly after releasing the teaser for season 6 on 9 October 2023, Netflix ran into controversy after an insider described a scene in which Diana would appear as a ghost in front of her ex-husband, Charles, and the Queen. After a backlash, a Netflix spokesperson claimed that: "These sensitive and thoughtful imagined conversations seek to bring to life the depth of emotion that was felt after such a seismic tragedy struck at the heart of the family."[39][40][41] Peter Morgan said of the scenes, "I never imagined it as Diana’s ‘ghost’ in the traditional sense — it was her continuing to live vividly in the minds of those she has left behind."[42]

Release

The season is being released in two parts: the first four episodes were released on 16 November 2023, and the remaining six are set for 14 December 2023.[5][23] The trailer for the first part was released on 26 October 2023.[43]

Critical response

According to review aggregator Metacritic, the first volume of the season received "generally favorable reviews", based on a weighted average score of 61 out 100 from 29 critic reviews.[44] On Rotten Tomatoes, 55% of 62 reviews are positive and the average rating is 6.2/10. The website's critics consensus states, "Elizabeth Debicki's haunting portrayal does right by the Princess of Wales, but The Crown's final season often feels like a reign extended past its prime."[45] The BBC reported that the first four episodes "have split critics, but many have given [them] the thumbs down" in the UK,[46] while French reviews largely praised them.[47] The cast's performances, especially those of Debicki, Staunton, and West, were widely praised, including by critics who reviewed the season more negatively.[lower-alpha 1]

In a top-marked review for Newsday, Verne Gay praised the four episodes, presenting "a cohesive and deeply moving picture" of the last hours of Diana and Dodi, with particular commendation for a humane rather than a more vilified depiction of Dodi.[54] Writing for Variety, Aramide Tinubu contended that by portraying Diana's relationship as "a comforting friendship that had only started to blossom", the show prompts viewers to reflect on the British royal family's choices, juxtaposed against the reigning monarch's stoicism and adherence to tradition, which, according to the reviewer, has led to the monarchy being perceived as "relic-like".[48] Carol Midgley of The Times wrote that, despite some "gauche imaginings" of characters, the majority of performances were "excellent" and the show was still "a compelling piece of television with very high production values that makes you want to see more".[55] Entertainment Weekly's Kristen Baldwin thought Diana and Dodi's romance and their deaths in Paris were depicted with a "wistful, careful, and restrained approach".[56] Lacy Baugher from Paste gave the first part of the season a score of 7.2 out of 10 and considered it to be an "excellent Diana miniseries", but questioned its suitability as the final season, which initially had broader scope and bigger ambitions, due to its perceived simplicity or its potential bias to portray Charles in a "wildly friendly" way.[57] In a mixed review for The Independent, Nick Hilton similarly opined that the series left little to say "about what it means to be British" as it nears its conclusion.[51]

Reviewing the first volume for The Guardian, Lucy Mangan gave it one out of five, describing the "Diana-obsessed series" as "the very definition of bad writing", despite the "brilliant performances from the entire cast". She particularly criticised scenes featuring "Ghost Diana", which is "all of a piece with what is now simply a crass, by-numbers piece of film-making, with a script that barely aspires to craft, let alone art, any more".[53] Caryn James, writing for BBC Culture, said that the series has "failed to right the terrible flaws of the last season", scoring it two out of five.[58]

Historical accuracy

Episode one shows Princess Margaret attending Camilla's 50th birthday party in 1997, though she was not present at the event.[59] The Queen is also keen for Camilla to not be viewed as "wicked" but there were reports that she once referred to her as "that wicked woman" in front of Charles.[60] In the following episode, it is portrayed that Mohamed Al-Fayed hired Italian paparazzo Mario Brenna to take photos of his son Dodi and Diana during their trip in the south of France; however, there is no evidence that Al-Fayed was behind this and Diana's biographer Tina Brown suggests that it was Diana herself who notified Brenna.[59][60] The episode also suggests that news of Diana's relationship with Dodi broke during her trip to Bosnia and she was disturbed by the media enquiring about them, but in reality the photos of them did not appear in the papers until a few days after the trip was over.[59]

Episode three features a scene during which Diana and Dodi are forced into the Repossi jewellery store in Monte Carlo while trying to escape a group of fans.[59] In reality, Dodi visited the Paris branch of Repossi quietly and purchased a ring which he kept at his apartment, rather than the Ritz hotel where he and Diana were staying, making the scene showing his proposal fictitious.[59][60] Episode four focuses on the row within the royal family about whether or not Diana should have a public funeral, which Buckingham Palace denied ever happened.[59] Another fictional plot involves Prince William going missing in Scotland shortly after his mother's death.[59][60]

Notes

  1. ↑ Attributed to multiple references:[48][49][50][51][52][53]

References

  1. ↑ "Netflix plans original UK drama about the Queen". BBC News Online. 23 May 2014. Archived from the original on 6 April 2019. Retrieved 27 October 2019.
  2. ↑ Brown, Mick (3 November 2016). "The Crown: Claire Foy and Matt Smith on the making of the £100m Netflix series". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 4 November 2016. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  3. ↑ Seth, Radhika (10 July 2020). "Here's Your First Look At Prince William And Kate Middleton In 'The Crown' Season 6". British Vogue. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  4. ↑ Kanter, Jake (4 September 2023). "'The Crown' Teaser: Final Season Will Feature Prince Charles' Second Royal Wedding". Deadline. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "'The Crown' Season 6 Will Chronicle Diana, Princess of Wales's Final Days". Vogue. 2 September 2022. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
  6. ↑ Frost, Caroline (10 June 2023). "'The Crown' Final Season Will Pay Tribute To Queen Elizabeth II With Three Stars Plus A New Name". Deadline. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
  7. 1 2 "The Crown Season 6 Films a Flashback of Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret in 1945". Town & Country. 22 November 2022. Retrieved 29 November 2022.
  8. ↑ Gibson, Kelsie. "Everything to Know About 'The Crown' Season 6". People. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
  9. ↑ Hunter, Sakaynah (12 April 2022). "EYNTK About The Confirmed Cast List For 'The Crown' Season 6, Including Kate Middleton And Prince William Actors". ELLE. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
  10. ↑ Gordon, Naomi (4 August 2021). "The Crown season 5: Claudia Harrison cast as Princess Anne". Good Housekeeping. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
  11. ↑ "Veteran actress Marcia Warren 'cast as The Queen Mother in". Media Mole. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
  12. ↑ Bergeson, Samantha (17 October 2022). "Netflix Confirms 'The Crown' Season 6 Will Not Show Princess Diana's Death". IndieWire. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
  13. ↑ "'The Crown' Films One of Princess Diana's Final Days, Though Fatal Car Accident Won't Be Shown". Peoplemag. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
  14. 1 2 Watson, Fay (11 November 2022). "The Crown season 6: Everything we know about the Netflix show's final season". gamesradar. Retrieved 18 November 2022.
  15. ↑ Moir, Sophia (15 November 2022). "The Crown Season 6: What will it cover? Who's playing Kate and William? All you need to know about final series of the Netflix drama". BT. Retrieved 20 November 2022.
  16. ↑ Bamigboye, Baz (30 October 2023). "Breaking Baz: 'The Crown' Director Who Filmed Diana And Dodi's Final Moments In Season 6 Says "Extraordinary" Sensitivity Was Involved In Handling Tumultuous Scenes". Deadline. Retrieved 30 October 2023.
  17. 1 2 3 4 Bamigboye, Baz (2 September 2022). "Netflix Drama 'The Crown' Finds Its William And Kate: Two Actors To Play Prince & Newcomer Cast As Kate Middleton In Season 6". Deadline. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
  18. ↑ Garner, Glenn (4 March 2023). "The Crown Cameras Roll on Final Season in London — See the Fresh Faces in the Cast!". People. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
  19. ↑ Dex, Robert (20 April 2023). "Welsh 13-year-old set to play Prince Harry in The Crown". Evening Standard. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
  20. ↑ "Winchester Cathedral: Stars seen filming season six of The Crown". BBC News. 25 January 2023. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  21. ↑ McTaggart, India (15 October 2023). "Unknown teenage actress cast as Pippa Middleton in The Crown". the Telegraph. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  22. ↑ "The Crown". Writers Guild of America West. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
  23. 1 2 Petski, Denise (9 October 2023). "'The Crown' Final Season To Launch In 2 Parts; Premiere Dates Set; Watch Trailer". Deadline. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
  24. ↑ White, Peter (31 January 2020). "'The Crown': Netflix Royal Drama To End With Season Five As Imelda Staunton Confirmed As Final Queen Elizabeth II". Deadline. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
  25. ↑ Kanter, Jake (9 July 2020). "'The Crown' Will Run For Six Seasons After Peter Morgan Changes Mind On Finale". Deadline. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
  26. ↑ Ravindran, Manori (31 January 2020). "'The Crown' Will End After Season 5 With Imelda Staunton as Queen Elizabeth". Variety. Archived from the original on 31 January 2020. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  27. 1 2 Kanter, Jake (9 July 2020). "'The Crown' Will Run For Six Seasons After Peter Morgan Changes Mind On Fifth Series Finale". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 11 July 2020. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
  28. ↑ Romano, Nick (2 July 2020). "The Crown season 5 dubs Lesley Manville the new Princess Margaret". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 3 July 2020. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
  29. ↑ Kanter, Jake (12 August 2020). "Oscar-Nominated 'Game Of Thrones' Star Jonathan Pryce Cast As Prince Philip In 'The Crown'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 12 August 2020. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
  30. ↑ Haring, Bruce (16 August 2020). "'The Crown' Adds Elizabeth Debicki As Princess Diana For Final Two Seasons". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 16 August 2020. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  31. ↑ Kanter, Jake (20 October 2020). "'The Crown': Dominic West In Talks To Play Prince Charles". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  32. ↑ Hill, Erin (7 April 2021). "The Crown Season 5 to Begin Filming in July with All-New Cast". People Magazine. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  33. ↑ "The Crown: Trainspotting's Jonny Lee Miller to play Sir John Major". BBC News. 25 June 2021. Retrieved 15 August 2021.
  34. ↑ Smith, Julia Llewellyn (5 February 2022). "Olivia Williams: My big royal comeback — now I'm playing Camilla in The Crown". The Times.
  35. ↑ Schonfeld, Alexandra (14 September 2022). "Filming on 'The Crown' Resumes in Spain Following Queen Elizabeth's Death". People. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  36. ↑ Yossman, K J.; Longeretta, Emily (9 September 2022). "'The Crown' Season 6 Officially Suspends Production Following Queen Elizabeth II's Death". Variety. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
  37. ↑ Collis, Clark (9 September 2022). "'The Crown' suspends filming after Queen Elizabeth II's death". EW.com. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  38. ↑ "The Crown season 6 has wrapped up filming". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  39. ↑ Hibbs, James (11 October 2023). "Netflix defends Diana 'ghost' scenes as "sensitive" after backlash". Radio Times. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  40. ↑ Yossman, K.J. "Long Live 'The Crown': Peter Morgan Confronts Final Season Rumors (Diana's Ghost!), Prequel Buzz and Claims of Exploiting the Royal Family". Variety. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  41. ↑ Kanter, Jake (16 November 2023). "Prince Harry To Skip Final Season Of 'The Crown' Due To "Sensitive" Princess Diana Storyline". Deadline. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  42. ↑ Yossman, K. J. (16 November 2023). "Everything You Need to Know About Diana's 'Ghost' Appearing in Season 6 of 'The Crown'". Variety. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
  43. ↑ The Crown: Season 6 | Part 1 Trailer | Netflix, retrieved 27 October 2023
  44. ↑ "The Crown season 6". Metacritic. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  45. ↑ "The Crown". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  46. ↑ "The Crown: Netflix's royal drama featuring Diana's ghost splits critics". BBC News. 16 November 2023. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
  47. ↑ Tartaglione, Nancy (16 November 2023). "'The Crown' Season 6 Reactions: Some UK Critics Aghast At "Ghost Diana"; French Reviewers Largely Swoon". Deadline. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  48. 1 2 Tinubu, Aramide (16 November 2023). "Netflix's 'The Crown' Reclaims Its Glittering Throne in Season 6 Part 1: TV Review". Variety. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  49. ↑ Hibbs, James (16 November 2023). "The Crown season 6 part 1 review: Diana's final days take focus in flawed run". Radio Times. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  50. ↑ Fienberg, Daniel (16 November 2023). "'The Crown' Review: Final Season Kicks Off With a Wobbly Take on the Diana/Dodi Romance". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  51. 1 2 Hilton, Nick (16 November 2023). "From Diana's ghost to a gossipy tone – The Crown's lost its way: review". The Independent. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  52. ↑ Sepinwall, Alan (16 November 2023). "'The Crown' Struggles Mightily With Princess Diana's Death". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  53. 1 2 Mangan, Lucy (16 November 2023). "The Crown season 6 review – so bad it's basically an out-of-body experience". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  54. ↑ Gay, Verne (15 November 2023). "'The Crown' review: Focusing on Diana's story, final season is powerful, satisfying". Newsday. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  55. ↑ Midgley, Carol (16 November 2023). "The Crown season 6 review — moving stuff, but exorcise the ghosts". ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  56. ↑ Baldwin, Kristen (16 November 2023). "'The Crown season 6 review: A wistful, restrained send-off to Princess Diana". EW.com. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
  57. ↑ "The Crown's Final Season Begins With Diana's Death, But Struggles to Convey Its Impact". Paste Magazine. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  58. ↑ James, Caryn (16 November 2023). "The Crown season 6 review: A 'clumsy, predictable' end to the Royal Family drama". BBC Culture. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
  59. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Larman, Alexander (16 November 2023). "Did Dodi really propose? Did Al-Fayed really hire paparazzi? The Crown season 6 fact-checked". The Telegraph. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  60. 1 2 3 4 Lewis, Isobel (17 November 2023). "The Crown: What is fact and what is fiction on season 6?". The Independent. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
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