What is The Crown season 6 release date? It’s time to pour yourself a cup of tea and get ready to head back to Buckingham because Netflix has confirmed that The Crown season 6 is indeed happening and already on its way to our small screens.
That’s right, although the hit drama series about the British Royal Family was rumoured to end after five instalments, the streaming service has answered the cries of the people and is bringing us more opulent arguments, national strife, and royal guidelines to enjoy.
The dramatic retelling of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign has gripped the public’s attention since 2016, and more episodes of the Emmy award-winning TV series is always welcomed news. And in preparation for the next chapter, The Digital Fix is here to offer all of the regal intel.
From The Crown season 6 release date, plot, cast and more, we’ve breached the gates of Buckingham Palace to get the inside scoop on what to expect from the final season of the Netflix series.
The Crown season 6 release date speculation
We don’t know when The Crown season 6 release date will be exactly. Still, the good news is The Royals are officially returning to the small screen, and we can make some educated guesses as to when they’ll be back.
Although Netflix hasn’t given us a firm date, it is expected that the next chapter will follow a production schedule similar to past seasons – meaning that, since filming is already underway, we will likely see The Crown season 6 premiere sometime in November 2023.
But, take this date with a grain of salt as some delays may be ahead of us. Filming for season 6 was paused due to the passing of the Queen in September 2022. “The Crown is a love letter to her, and I’ve nothing to add, for now, just silence and respect. I expect we will stop filming out of respect too,” said writer Peter Morgan to Deadline.
With this in mind, The Crown season 6 release date may be held back until December 2023 or even early 2024. We will keep you posted as more updates on the matter head our way.
The Crown season 6 plot speculation
Since The Crown is based on the real-life events of the monarchy, we actually know quite a bit about what The Crown season 6 plot will look like, with the final chapter of the entire series focusing on the death of Princess Diana.
Princess Diana passed away due to a car accident in 1997, and the series will likely be portraying the build-up to the event and then the aftermath of the tragedy. The actual death of the Princess is supposedly not going to be on screen, meaning that the emotional consequences and toll it took on friends and family will be at the forefront of the upcoming chapter.
Diana will be the main event of the show; however, The Crown season 6 will also detail the budding relationship between Prince William and Kate Middleton during their time at St. Andrews university, as well as Tony Blair’s years in power as Prime Minister. So the early 2000s of the Royals’ life will be unpacked to the fullest extent, giving us potentially a small time jump or two as well.
But speaking of time jumps, it’s unlikely that season 6 will dive into current scandals and drama that have surrounded the Royal Family over the last five years or so. Producer Suzanne Mackie previously explained that showrunner Peter Morgan wouldn’t go beyond the early 2000s in an interview with Broadcast.
“Peter has said it very articulately that he simply can’t write something unless there has been time to gain a proper perspective,” Mackie said. “I think he’s always felt ten years is the minimum amount of time that he can see something in a historical context to allow him to really understand it.”
But since it is the last season of the Netflix series, there is a tiny hope that the show will break this rule (at least in our minds, anyway). We may be getting a small tribute to the late Queen – who was the primary protagonist of all six seasons, or maybe a flash forward to Prince Charles’ coronation, which is set to take place in May 2023 – months before the show airs.
It would be strange to end the show without mentioning the end of the reign of the Queen we’ve followed for years, right? This is purely speculation on our part, but we know that whatever Morgan’s decision, The Crown season 6 will end with a bang for sure.
The Crown season 6 cast
There will be no major changes between The Crown season 5 and The Crown season 6 cast. However, there will be some new faces added to the roster.
Prince William will be played by two actors. Rufus Kampa will portray the Prince during his teen years, while Ed McVey will play the character as a young adult – courting Kate Middleton, who will be portrayed by Meg Bellamy.
Here is the expected cast list for The Crown season 6:
- Imelda Staunton as Queen Elizabeth II
- Jonathan Pryce as Prince Philip
- Lesley Manville as Princess Margaret
- Jonny Lee Miller as John Major
- Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana
- Dominic West as Prince Charles
- Olivia Williams as Camilla Parker Bowles
- James Murray as Prince Andrew
- Claudia Harrison as Princess Anne
- Bertie Carvel as Tony Blair
- Marcia Warren as Queen Elizabeth
- Khalid Abdalla as Dodi Fayed
- Salim Daw as Mohamed Al-Fayed
- Timothy Dalton as Peter Townsend
- Rufus Kampa as a young Prince William
- Ed McVey as an older Prince William
- Meg Bellamy as Kate Middleton
- Will Powell as a young Prince Harry
Currently, the role of an older Prince Harry is yet to be announced (although some set photos were shown to have a slightly older looking Harry amongst the ranks), but Will Powell is set to play the Prince during his early years just as he did in season 5.
However, while we wait on that update, we do have some exciting news. Tristan Gemmill has been cast in an undisclosed role, and Kelly Brook is scheduled to make a cameo too.
We will be sure to keep you posted as more developments head our way! In the meantime, be sure to check out The Crown season 5 ending explained, and here is our guide to everything we know about The Gilded Age season 2, The Great season 3, or The Watcher season 2.
