Did Netflix Just Insult Prince Harry & Meghan Markle? The Crown Season 6’s Diana Story Gets Way Too Meta
Summary
- In The Crown Season 6, the show takes creative liberties with Princess Diana’s story to indirectly insult Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
- The show’s timeline will end in 2004, meaning it won’t cover Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s romance.
- The self-referential jabs in season 6, such as the insult to Prince Harry, could be problematic if the show continued into modern-day history.
The Crown might not reach the present day to include Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, but it seems like Netflix has its own way of insulting them in season 6 with the help of Princess Diana’s story. The popular drama, which is based on historical events, is heavily fictionalized and has reached one of the most expected moments in the series: Princess Diana’s final moments and her death. However, that includes taking a lot of creative freedom and some hints at current events.
Although The Crown is not a documentary, Peter Morgan’s Emmy-winning series follows Queen Elizabeth II’s reign from her coronation, combining real events with made-up stories for more impact. Throughout its six seasons, The Crown has featured a generous cast that changed every two years to keep up with the ages of the people they were portraying, with season 6 introducing new actors portraying Prince William and Prince Harry: Rufus Kampa and Fflyn Edwards, respectively. The Crown‘s timeline will stop around 2004, which means it won’t cover Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s romance.
Queen Elizabeth’s “Half In” Statement About Diana Reflects A Real Prince Harry Approach To The Royal Family
Coincidentally, Prince Harry Shared a Similar Statement In His Netflix Doc
In The Crown season 6, episode 1, Queen Elizabeth II (Imelda Staunton) discusses Princess Diana (Elizabeth Debicki) and her desire to continue to be involved in the work the royal family does and use her talents to help people. Since she and Charles have divorced, Queen Elizabeth says, “Diana is now learning the difference between being officially in the royal family and out.” Although she’s still a part of the family for having given birth to Harry and William, Diana isn’t allowed to continue working as one of the members of the family. Elizabeth adds, “I always say it’s hard to be half in anything; you’re either in or out.”
Elizabeth’s line on the show seems to be a direct insult to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. In the documentary Harry & Meghan, which is also on Netflix, Harry said that he wanted to have a “half-in, half-out” approach to being in the royal family. Netflix became way too meta in its own original show, and the move was surely deliberate, as Prince Harry revealed he watches The Crown and fact-checks everything.
The Crown Season 6’s Self-Referential Jabs Make The Show’s Timeline Conclusion A Relief
The Timeline Ends In The Mid-2000s
The Crown‘s season 6 timeline is a relief due to self-referential jabs like the one in season 6, episode 1, “Persona Non Grata,” which is risky territory for the Emmy-winning series. Although they might provide some comic relief in an otherwise serious drama, references like these take away from the dramatization of the British family. If The Crown continued beyond its planned 2004 ending, the jokes would have become an even worse problem as it approached modern-day history, and would have created even more problems for the British monarchy, as the series has received backlash on how it has handled or fictionalized important themes before.
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The Crown
- Release Date:
- 2016-11-04
- Cast:
- Claire Foy, Olivia Colman, Imelda Staunton, Matt Smith, Tobias Menzies, Jonathan Pryce, Vanessa Kirby, Helena Bonham Carter, Lesley Manville, Victoria Hamilton, Marion Bailey, Marcia Warren
- Main Genre:
- Biography
- Genres:
- Biography, Drama, History
- Rating:
- TV-MA
- Seasons:
- 5
- Summary:
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This drama follows the political rivalries and romance of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign and the events that shaped the second half of the 20th century.
As the 1970s are drawing to a close, Queen Elizabeth (Olivia Colman) and her family find themselves preoccupied with safeguarding the line of succession by securing an appropriate bride for Prince Charles (Josh O’Connor), who is still unmarried at 30. As the nation begins to feel the impact of divisive policies introduced by Britain’s first female Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (Gillian Anderson), tensions arise between her and the Queen which only grow worse as Thatcher leads the country into the Falklands War, generating conflict within the Commonwealth. While Charles’ romance with a young Lady Diana Spencer (Emma Corrin) provides a much-needed fairytale to unite the British people, behind closed doors, the Royal family is becoming increasingly divided.
- Website:
- https://www.netflix.com/title/80025678
- Cinematographer:
- Stuart Howell, Adriano Goldman
- Creator:
- Peter Morgan
- Distributor:
- Netflix
- Main Characters:
- Peter Townsend, Prince Philip, Anthony Eden, Queen Elizabeth, Princess Diana, Queen Mary, Prince Charles, Princess Margaret
- Producer:
- Andy Stebbing, Martin Harrison, Michael Casey, Andrew Eaton, Oona O’Beirn, Faye Ward
- Production Company:
- Sony Pictures Television, Left Bank Pictures
- Sfx Supervisor:
- John Smith, Chris Stoaling
- Writers:
- Peter Morgan
- Number of Episodes:
- 50
