‘The Crown’ Under Fire! Crew Members Fear a ‘Line Has Been Crossed’ While a Former Prime Minister Labels Season 5 ‘Malicious Nonsense’

The Crown Season 5 is already causing controversy, and it hasn’t even premiered yet. The new season will cover the 1990s, one of the darkest decades for the royal family in recent memory. It will include the divorce of then-Prince Charles and Princess Diana, his affair with Camilla Parker Bowles, and Diana’s tragic death in a Paris car crash in 1997. 

The subject matter itself presented difficult challenges for production. And in the wake of Queen Elizabeth II’s death, the timing of the new season is quite sensitive. According to crew members on The Crown, a “line has been crossed” in the season 5 storytelling. While a former Prime Minister has labeled the upcoming season “malicious nonsense.”

‘The Crown’ is taking on a scandalous decade with a new cast

The Crown Season 5 was filmed before the queen’s death and is set to premiere on Netflix in November. Elizabeth Debicki is taking on the role of Diana, Dominic West will play Charles, and Olivia Williams is in the role of Camilla. Imelda Staunton will star as Queen Elizabeth, and Jonathan Pryce takes on the role of Prince Philip.

The cast is taking on a scandalous royal decade that saw public support for the royal family plummet amid Charles and Diana’s nasty divorce and the tragedy that followed. As the story gets closer and closer to the present day, though, the real-life events that the series dramatizes are becoming more memorable to The Crown audience. And with the new season coming so soon after the queen’s death, it’s causing some backlash.

Did season 5 cross a line?

The Crown has always presented itself as a dramatized, fictional version of royal history.  After all, no one knows exactly what goes on behind palace doors. But some production insiders claim that “a line has been crossed” in season 5 because of the wild plotlines — which includes Prince Philip having an affair — and insensitivity so soon after the queen’s death.

“To be going back to Paris and turning Diana’s final days and hours into a drama feels very uncomfortable. Finally, some of the crew members are pushing back on the ideas being tabled,” an insider told The Sun.

“The show always tried to present a fictional version of royal history with as much sensitivity as possible. But lately, as things get closer to the present day, it feels harder to strike that balance. With some of those moments still so fresh and upsetting, it feels as though a line is being crossed. Some production staff are now starting to speak up about their feelings.”

There will be scenes that focus on Diana’s ill-fated Paris trip, and her final days and hours will be dramatized. However, Netflix has confirmed that “the exact moment of the crash impact will not be shown.” And, a spokesman for The Crown said in a statement that season 5 “is a fictional dramatization, imagining what could have happened behind closed doors.”

A former Prime Minister labels ‘The Crown’ Season 5 ‘malicious nonsense’

Season 5 of The Crown will also see a new prime minister in the United Kingdom — Sir John Major, played by Johnny Lee Miller. In addition to the Diana drama and the suggestion that Prince Philip cheated, season 5 will also reportedly have scenes that depict Charles, then the Prince of Wales, plotting with Major to oust the queen. 

A spokesperson for Major told The Scottish Daily Express that if those scenes are in The Crown, they are “malicious nonsense.”

“They should be seen as nothing other than damaging and malicious fiction,” the spokesperson added.

The Crown Season 5 drops on Netflix on November 9.