The Crown won't address Prince Andrew's friendship with Jeffrey Epstein
The sixth and final season of the Netflix show is expected to feature James Murray reprising his role as Prince Andrew.
The upcoming sixth and final season of The Crown, which will focus on the lives of the royal family throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s, will not feature or address Prince Andrew's friendship with Jeffrey Epstein.
The news was first reported by the Metro and is understood by RadioTimes.com to be correct. Netflix declined to comment.
Having been convicted of procuring a child for prostitution and of soliciting a prostitute in 2008, Epstein was arrested again in 2019 after being charged with sex trafficking and died in his cell later that year.
Prince Andrew went on to be interviewed by Emily Maitlis in November 2019 about his friendship with Epstein. A memoir by the Newsnight guest booker Sam McAlister about the procurement of the interview is soon to become a Netflix film starring Gillian Anderson as Maitlis and Rufus Sewell as Prince Andrew.
Murray previously spoke about taking on the role of Andrew in The Crown season 5, saying that he learnt "how quick people are to judge".
"It's difficult, because a lot of opinions about Andrew in recent years have rightfully been negative, so people will turn any ambiguous story into a negative one if they've decided somebody is a wrong 'un," he said.
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"So many people have come up to me since I got the role and told me stories – either they met him, or someone they know met him, or their parents met him – but while the stories themselves were innocuous, there was usually a spin put on them. His behaviour, and the choices he made, have made him into almost a pantomime villain."
The sixth season of The Crown is set to be the show's last, and while there have been rumours of film or TV spin-offs from the show, RadioTimes.com understands there are currently no concrete plans in place for these.
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A first look at this sixth season was revealed earlier this year, with images featuring Ed McVey as Prince William and Meg Bellamy as Kate Middleton released.
The Crown season 6 will stream on Netflix, while seasons 1-5 are available now. Sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.
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Authors
James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.