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The award-winning show, which follows the reign
of Britain's Queen Elizabeth, returns for a fifth season on
Wednesday, portraying the royals in the 1990s, when they faced
marital upsets, public dissent and a fire at Windsor Castle.
It has drawn criticism and calls for disclaimers over its
dramatised storylines. Some commentators have voiced concern
over its airing just two months after Elizabeth's death and the
impact it could have on her son Charles' reign.
Netflix describes "The Crown" as "fictional dramatization",
inspired by real events.
"Everyone has watched 'The Crown' for four seasons, hasn’t
bothered them before," actor Imelda Staunton, who plays
Elizabeth in season five, told Reuters.
"I think the audience will be comforted by just spending time
with these people again."
Staunton was filming season six when Elizabeth died.
"I was inconsolable that night and it surprised me... I thought
'Well I’ve been living with her so closely with her for 2 and
half years'... (Seeing) People lining up to see her, it was so
moving."
New plotlines include Charles' divorce from the late Princes
Diana and intimate conversations with Camilla Parker-Bowles, now
his wife.
"It’s a time of his life that was not only the prime of his life
but also in many ways the most difficult time of his life,"
actor Dominic West, who plays Charles, said.
"I felt enormous empathy and sympathy for him, and that’s been
one of the challenges and also the joys of playing him... I
don’t think (season five) is flattering but I think it’s fair."
Olivia Williams, who plays Camilla, said: "It was a very hard
time for her and I wanted to do justice to that."
Critics have given mixed reviews on season five but most praised
actor Elizabeth Debicki's portrayal of Diana.
"When you join ‘The Crown'... there’s an enormous amount of
archival footage that’s available to you, so I just dove in,"
she said of preparing for the role.
(Reporting by Sarah Mills; Writing by Marie-Louise Gumuchian;
editing by Jonathan Oatis)
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