Royal Family Insiders Dismiss ‘The Crown’ Season 4 as ‘Cruel,’ Exploitative, and ‘Not Accurate’
Zack Sharf
Reports are coming in from sources close to the British royal family that several members are upset with the just-released fourth season of Netflix’s “The Crown.” The new episodes of Peter Morgan’s popular series tackle the toxic marriage between Prince Charles (Josh O’Connor) and Diana Spencer (Emma Corrin). Royal biographer Penny Junor tells The Times of London that Charles would likely be “incredibly upset” by Season 4 due to a scene where Charles’ great-uncle, Lord Mountbatten (Charles Dance), says the royal family is disappointed in Charles’ relationship with Camilla Parker-Bowles (Emerald Fennell).
“It’s the most cruel and unfair and horrible portrayal of almost all of them,” Junor told The Times while claiming showrunner and writer Morgan has “invented stuff to make expensive and very rich drama.” The biographer added that Mountbatten’s dismissal of Camilla to Charles’ face is “just not historically accurate” and would be tough for the real Prince Charles to swallow as “he adored Mountbatten and he was absolutely devastated by his death.”
Confidantes of Prince Charles also spoke to The Mail on Sunday (via The Times) to accuse “The Crown” Season 4 of “dragging up things that happened during very difficult times 25 or 30 years ago without a thought for anyone’s feelings.”
“That isn’t right or fair, particularly when so many of the things being depicted don’t represent the truth,” one confidante said, noting the series painted Charles and Camilla in a “very unflattering light” and adding about the new season: “This is trolling with a Hollywood budget.”
The Mail on Sunday also reports Prince William is allegedly displeased with the depiction of his family in “The Crown” Season 4, with one friend close to the Duke of Cambridge saying he’s upset that “his parents are being exploited and presented in a false, simplistic way to make money.” The Netflix series depicts Charles verbally abusing Diana, and Diana confronting Charles at their wedding rehearsal about his relationship with Camilla — two encounters “friends of the prince [say are] events that never happened.”
Dickie Arbiter, a former royal aide, said the family is “pretty used to being portrayed” for entertainment purposes by now, although he was concerned that not every viewer of “The Crown” will realize that it’s not an accurate depiction of the events.
“The Crown” Season 4 is now streaming in its entirety on Netflix.
