'The Crown' Casting, Release Date & Plot News: Olivia Colman to Replace Claire Foy as Queen Elizabeth
When Netflix's "The Crown" returns for its third and fourth season, Claire Foy will turn over her crown to Olivia Colman.
It is no secret that creator Peter Morgan has always intended to replace the main cast members as the series progresses, mainly to show how the characters have aged. By the third season and onwards, Colman is to take over Foy's role as the Queen.
"What's so beautiful about Claire is her youth," he told Variety prior to the show's debut in 2016. "You can't ask someone to act middle-aged. Someone has to bring their own fatigue to it. The feelings we all have as 50-year-olds are different than the feelings we all have as 30-year-olds."
Foy played the role of Queen Elizabeth II in the first and the upcoming second, which landed her a Golden Globe win as well as an Emmy nomination. She signed onto this role knowing she will only portray the character in the first two seasons of the series, which is about the early years of the Queen's reign. Colman will reportedly take over in 2019.
Eventually, Colman will be replaced by an older actress who will play the role of the monarch in later life, as the series is expected to progress until the present day.
Netflix content chief Ted Sarandos shared that the goal is to have six seasons, with each season covering a decade. And every two seasons, new cast members will replace the major roles.
This will not be Colman's first time to portray royalty. In the 2012 "Hyde Park on Hudson," she was also cast as Queen. And in the forthcoming "The Favorite" she will be playing Queen Anne.
"Doctor Who" alum Matt Smith is currently cast as the Duke of Edinburgh. There is still no word about his replacement.
"The Crown" season 2 is slated to air on Netflix in December.
