Judi Dench says Netflix's 'The Crown' uses 'crude sensationalism'
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[October 21, 2022]
By Marie-Louise Gumuchian
LONDON (Reuters) - British actress Judi
Dench has called on Netflix to add a disclaimer to royal drama "The
Crown", joining a chorus of voices criticising the series' fictionalised
storylines.
In a letter to The Times on Thursday, the 87-year-old veteran said as
the award-winning show approached present times "the more freely it
seems willing to blur the lines between historical accuracy and crude
sensationalism".
"While many will recognise The Crown for the brilliant but fictionalised
account of events that it is, I fear that a significant number of
viewers, particularly overseas, may take its version of history as being
wholly true," Dench wrote.
Dench has portrayed historical queens Elizabeth I and Queen Victoria on
screen as well as James Bond's boss "M".
Netflix says "The Crown", which follows the reign of late Queen
Elizabeth over the decades, is "fictional dramatization", inspired by
real events.
Its fifth season, in which a new cast will portray the royal family in
the 1990s, premieres on Nov. 9, two months after King Charles ascended
the throne.
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"No one is a greater believer in artistic freedom than I, but this
cannot go unchallenged... the programme makers have resisted all calls
for them to carry a disclaimer at the start of each episode," Dench
wrote.
"The time has come for Netflix to reconsider — for the sake of a family
and a nation so recently bereaved, as a mark of respect to a sovereign
who served her people so dutifully for 70 years, and to preserve its
reputation in the eyes of its British subscribers."
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![](../images/102122PIX/ent_c.23.jpg)
Judi Dench poses on the red carpet
during the Oscars arrivals at the 94th Academy Awards in Hollywood,
Los Angeles, California, U.S., March 27, 2022. REUTERS/Mike
Blake/File Photo
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2017/Jul/22/images/ads/current/rohlfs_lda_072017.png) Dench's letter follows other
criticism, including a statement from former Prime Minister John
Major's office to the Daily Mail calling a new scene a "barrel load
of nonsense".
According to the newspaper, the scene reportedly shows Charles
speaking to Major as part of a plot to get the queen to abdicate.
Major's office denied any such conversation took place.
Dench referenced the scene, calling it "both cruelly unjust to the
individuals and damaging to the institution they represent". Some
royal commentators have also voiced concern the impact the show
could have at the start of Charles' reign.
A Netflix representative did not immediately respond to a request
for comment.
"I think we must all accept that the 1990s was a difficult time for
the royal family, and King Charles will almost certainly have some
painful memories of that period," series creator Peter Morgan told
Entertainment Weekly this week.
"But that doesn't mean that, with the benefit of hindsight, history
will be unkind to him, or the monarchy. The show certainly isn't."
(Reporting by Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)
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