'The Crown' will end after fifth season

31 January 2020

'The Crown' will end after the fifth season.

Imelda Staunton

It has been confirmed that the popular Netflix drama about the royal family will finish after the fifth series, with Imelda Staunton taking on the role of Queen Elizabeth for its final string of episodes.

Speaking about the end of the show, creator Peter Morgan said: "At the outset I had imagined 'The Crown' 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 Netflix and Sony for supporting me in this decision."

Imelda will be taking over from Claire Foy (seasons one and two) and Olivia Colman (seasons three and four) as the British monarch.

Speaking about her new role, Imelda said: "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."

Whilst creator Peter added: "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."

Meanwhile, the creators of 'The Crown' previously insisted they wouldn't bring the show to the present day.

Executive producer Suzanne Mackie shared earlier this month: "To be honest, whatever the life of 'The Crown' is after where we are now, I doubt we'll ever go as far into the present day."

Whilst Peter added back in 2018: "I feel uncomfortable writing about events within a certain time period. Let's wait twenty years and see what there is to say about Meghan Markle. I don't know what there is to say about Meghan Markle at the moment. I wouldn't know and I wouldn't presume. She'll only become interesting once we've had twenty years to digest who she is and what her impact has been. If I were to write about Meghan Markle I would automatically be writing journalistically. I've got nothing to say about Meghan Markle."