Olivia Colman (The Lobster, Hot Fuzz) has been tapped to replace Claire Foy in the popular Netflix drama series The Crown. She will be portraying an older Queen Elizabeth, as Foy was only set to play her for two seasons.
This is right in line with the plan that Netflix content chief Ted Sarandos laid out of the show sometime last year. “This is going to take Queen Elizabeth from age 29 to, presumably, the current day,” he told the Hollywood Reporter. “We’ll see it lay out over decades. The idea is to do this over six decades, in six seasons presumably, and make the whole show [run] over eight to ten years.”
It is presumed that new cast members will continue to replace the major roles every two seasons, meaning Colman will be in seasons three and four.
Foy, who won a Golden Globe for her role in The Crown, also spoke to the Hollywood Reporter about the show. “I’m quite philosophical about these things, and I think the amazing thing about the show is the fact that it will go on and that it hasn’t ended badly,” she said. “It’ll go on and have another life. I can’t wait to watch it, and I just think whoever they get to play that part, they’ll be extraordinary. I will never watch it with any sense of bitterness or regret. I will feel what I feel now, which is so happy and lucky for the experience.”
Foy, however, has nothing to worry about as far as getting work goes. She’s starring in this year’s Andy Serkis directed biopic Breathe alongside Andrew Garfield, as well as the title role in next year’s The Girl in the Spider’s Web. She’s also said to appear in Damien Chazelle’s (Whiplash, La La Land) Neil Armstrong biopic First Man.
Colman, on the other hand, should be a great fit to the show. In addition to the previously mentioned films, she has appeared in television series in the past as well; including Fleabag, Flowers, Peep Show, Rev., Broadchurch and The Night Manager (which she also won a Golden Globe for). She can also be seen in the upcoming Murder on the Orient Express.
The second season of The Crown hits Netflix on Dec. 8. In addition to Foy, the season also stars Matt Smith as Prince Philip, Vanessa Kirby as Princess Margaret, Michael C. Hall as John F. Kennedy, Matthew Goode as Lord Snowdon, Victoria Hamilton as Queen Mother and Jeremy Northam as Antony Eden.
Watch the trailer for season 2 of The Crown below, and let us know if you think Olivia Colman is a good fit as Queen Elizabeth in the comments below.