The Crown Is Minus a Prince Philip As Paul Bettany Bows Out
Are you an approximately six-foot-tall white male with a slightly aristocratic air? If so, you are i..
Are you an approximately six-foot-tall white male with a slightly aristocratic air? If so, you are in luck.Vanity Fair has confirmed that Paul Bettany, the reported front-runner to replace Matt Smith as Prince Philip on Netflix’s third season of The Crown, has bowed out of negotiations with the streaming service. The actor, who is appearing in two blockbuster productions premiering in May, Avengers: Infinity War and Solo: A Star Wars Story, was unable to commit to the series because of the massive time commitment—reportedly eight months of a year filming in the U.K.
Last October, Netflix confirmed that Olivia Colman will succeed Claire Foy as Queen Elizabeth for the third season, which will pick up in the 1970s—about a decade after Season 2 ended. Helena Bonham Carter will replace Vanessa Kirby as Princess Margaret.
The Sunday Times has additionally reported that the drama’s third season will center on Britain’s “Wilson era,” referring to Prime Minster Howard Wilson’s term from 1974 to 1976, while the fourth season will focus on Margaret Thatcher and Princess Diana.
Meanwhile, The Crown’s history consultant, Robert Lacey, revealed that the third season will feature the breakup of Princess Margaret and Lord Snowdon’s marriage and their 1978 divorce—a juicy plot point that Kirby has said she was devastated she couldn’t enact herself.
“I was so desperate to do further on . . . because it’s going to be so fun [to enact] when their marriage starts to break down,” Kirby told Vanity Fair. “You see the beginnings of that in Episode 10. I kept saying to [series creator Peter Morgan], ‘Can’t you put in an episode where Margaret and Tony have a big row, and she throws a plate at his head?’ I’m so envious of the actress who gets to do it.”
The Crown producer Suzanne Mackie has also confirmed that the third season will introduce Camilla Parker Bowles—who met future husband Prince Charles in 1970, when she was Camilla Shand.
The Crown’s third season does not yet have a premiere date.
Get Vanity Fair’s HWD NewsletterSign up for essential industry and award news from Hollywood.Julie MillerJulie Miller is a Senior Hollywood writer for Vanity Fair’s website.
