The casting of the Prince and Princess of Wales (Prince William and Kate Middleton) for Netflix’s sixth season of its immensely popular semi-fictional drama, The Crown has been announced.
Perhaps a surprising decision (albeit an exciting one for the show known for casting huge named award-winning actors like Olivia Coleman, Matt Smith, John Lithgow, Helena Bonham Carter, etc), the two actors hired to play Prince William (one in his teens and one in his early 20s) and the actor hired to play Kate Middleton are all unknown screen debutants.
Rufus Kampa, 16, will portray a young Prince William in episodes set in the period following the death of his mother, the Princess of Wales. The role will then be taken over by Ed McVey, 21, who will play the new Prince of Wales in his late teens and early 20s – including his time as a student at the University of St Andrews in Scotland. Meg Bellamy, 19, will portray Kate Middleton, also during her time as a student at the University of St Andrews where the two met.
No announcements have been made regarding the actor or actors who will portray Prince Harry, however, a casting call was issued by the production at the same time as for William and Kate in March 2022.
Although The Crown has not yet released its fifth season, filming for its sixth and final series was due to begin this autumn (it ceased for a short period out of respect for the late Queen Elizabeth II). It has been announced that the sixth season will continue the chronicle of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign from the immediate aftermath of the death of Diana, Princess of Wales into the early 2000s.
Notably, Netflix had previously announced the award-winning series would end after five seasons, however, show creator Peter Morgan recognised the need for a sixth, stating: “As we started to discuss the storylines for series five, it soon became clear that in order to do justice to the richness and complexity of the story we should go back to the original plan and do six seasons.”
The fifth season of The Crown is expected to release on Netflix later this year.
Words by Luke Horwitz
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