All hail The Crown!
The Netflix period drama may've just released its fifth season Nov. 9, but we're already looking to the future, which includes the show's sixth and final season. And with season five wrapping up with Princess Diana (Elizabeth Debicki) heading into her final months of life, it's expected that the next installment will be an emotional one.
When asked to spill royal tea (sorry, we had to) about the new season, Debicki told E! News that she didn't "want to give it away," but did share the love and respect she had for the late princess after playing her. "I think that she had a tremendous amount of wisdom to do with evolution of her kind," Debicki told E! News. "She evolved an enormous amount with so much grace, and she survived so many knocks, and she continued to blossom and she got stronger. And I just think that she was absolutely incredible for that and her capacity to give to people was unmatched really."
Excited to see more of Debicki as Princess Di? Then you'll want to check out everything we know about The Crown's final chapter:
Imelda Staunton will continue on with her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II for season six of The Crown. Claire Foy and Olivia Colman also played the British monarch for two seasons each.
Jonathan Pryce and Dominic West are also returning to their respective roles of Prince Philip and Prince Charles.
Season six, which is currently in production, will be The Crown's last season. Elizabeth Debicki, who plays Princess Diana in the fifth and upcoming sixth season of the period drama, confirmed this to be true, telling E! News, "It really is. It's the final season."
Season six is set to follow the monarchy between the end of the '90s and into the '00s. This means Princess Diana's tragic car crash, which resulted in her death in August 1997, will also be covered. However, Netflix shared in a statement released to The Sun that "the exact moment of the crash impact will not be shown."
In Sept. 2022, Netflix revealed that two actors will portray a young William in season six: Rufus Kampa and Ed McVey. And Meg Ballamy will play Kate.
As the final season is expected to cover the royal family's lives in the early '00s, the death of Princess Margaret (played by Lesley Manville) may be featured. The queen's sister passed away in February 2002 after suffering a stroke and cardiac issues.
Since season six is currently in production, the final season won't hit Netflix until at least 2023.
In an August 2020 interview with The Hollywood Reporter, The Crown creator Peter Morgan confirmed that the series will not depict the modern-day lives of royals. In short, the saga of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle exiting the Firm as senior royals will not be a storyline.
"Meghan and Harry are in the middle of their journey," he said, "and I don't know what their journey is or how it will end. One wishes some happiness, but I'm much more comfortable writing about things that happened at least 20 years ago."
Seasons one through five of The Crown are available to stream on Netflix.