Netflix is having a very good year. Not only did House of Cards pick up some Emmys and Orange is the New Black pick up millions of viewers, but the network has earned enough to bid more than $100 million to make a series chronicling the life of Queen Elizabeth II. The drama, entitled The Crown, will dramatize her more than six decades on the throne and will come from screenwriter Peter Morgan, who already penned The Queen, a film about Her Royal Highness in the aftermath of Princess Diana’s death.
Sources say that the drama will cost more than $100 million, which would make it an even pricier bid that House of Cards. The Crown will air 20 episodes and feature three actors playing the Queen at different stages in her life. It will chart Queen Elizabeth II’s reign from the time she succeeded George VI, as a young woman of 26, to the current political era. According to the Daily Mail, the series will begin when Princess Elizabeth married Phillip in 1947.
Unfortunately, Dame Helen Mirren is not attached to reprise her Oscar-winning role, which she reprised last year in the play The Audience (also written by Morgan). No casting has been announced at this time, but finding three actors for the lead role, as well as the various other royals, dignitaries, presidents, prime ministers and world leaders who have crossed paths with the Queen, could take a while. Luckily, there’s plenty of time, as the series is not slated to arrive on Netflix until 2016.
Since the start of the year, Netflix has added around 2.5 million new subscribers worldwide. With more Europeans discovering the service and Netflix’s recent announcement to expand to more countries this year, including France and Germany, The Crown could be a smart investment to hook overseas audiences, as well as those interested in the Royal Family.
Tell us, are you looking forward to another Queen Elizabeth II drama from Peter Morgan? Sound off below!
