All interviews quoted in this article were conducted in April 2023.
Despite its royal trappings, The Crown has never been much of a fairy tale. Over the groundbreaking series’ previous five seasons, creator and writer Peter Morgan has pulled back the curtain to reveal the mechanics behind the mystique of the royal family, allowing viewers to imagine the real, often flawed, people at the heart of the institution.
Season 6, Part 1, which premieres on Nov. 16 with four episodes, closes the chapter on one of the series’ most iconic characters: Princess Diana. Elizabeth Debicki reprises her role in the trailer for Part 1, which follows Diana in the final weeks leading up to her death on Aug. 31, 1997.
“It’s a really unique challenge as an actor to portray those days,” Debicki told Netflix about returning for Season 6. Indeed, the distinct nature of the story is reflected in the way the season is structured: the first four episodes released as Part 1, with the final six premiering on Dec. 14 as Part 2. Episode 1 is helmed by Alex Gabassi, with longtime director Christian Schwochow taking over for Episodes 2, 3, and 4, a narrative arc he calls “a three-part tragedy.” These episodes, he warns, are very different from anything you’ve ever seen in The Crown. “They are almost like a thriller,” he said.
You get a sense of that tense atmosphere from the trailer, which picks up where the Season 5 finale left off, with Diana heading to the south of France to spend the summer holidays with her two sons at the invitation of Mohamed al-Fayed (Salim Daw). “I don’t really know how I ended up here: dashing around and losing sight of myself in the process,” Diana says in a voice-over. “You know I think that’s been the story of my whole life.”
Set to a haunting cover of “Mad World” by Tears for Fears, the clip teases the escalation of paparazzi interest in Diana and her burgeoning relationship with Dodi Fayed (Khalid Abdalla), as well as the royal family’s struggle to read the public mood in the aftermath of her devastating accident. You can also catch a glimpse of Debicki re-creating one of the most famous photographs of Diana as she sits alone on the edge of the diving board of the yacht, clad in a blue swimsuit.
The significance of the series’ entering one of the most scrutinized and poured over periods in royal modern history wasn’t lost on the actor, who relished the opportunity to take viewers beyond the paparazzi shots seen around the world. “There was just something about that swimsuit and re-creating that moment that felt very sacred and important,” Debicki said. “In a way it reminded me a little bit of when we shot the revenge dress [in Season 5]. It’s as close as possible to the real imagery, and yet what I get to do as an actress is enter into that space and get to discover what’s emotionally in that moment.”
Stepping back into Diana’s shoes to depict those tumultuous weeks was bittersweet for Debicki. On the one hand, she said, “it was like coming home.” Having undergone movement and speech training for Season 5, she was able to naturally react to situations as Diana. “It’s a thrill because it was much less recall, it almost felt more normal,” she said. But the character’s journey this season also required the actor to explore some very dark spaces. While filming scenes in Paris, she and Abdalla were relentlessly pursued by actors playing paparazzi, mirroring the constant scrutiny that Diana and Dodi were under as they embarked on their relationship. “It was difficult,” she said about the emotional toll of re-creating those moments. “It was heavy and very manic, and incredibly invasive. You only have to be in a situation like that for about a minute before you realize this is completely unbearable. [But] we let it happen, because it feels like a very important part of the story to tell.”
Like many viewers, Debicki was always aware of how her character’s story would ultimately end. In fact, she has her own personal connection to the events surrounding Diana’s death. “I was 7 when it happened,” she said. “I have a very distinct memory of watching the funeral when I was a kid and watching the two princes. My mother was devastated and I was trying to process.”
Still, she stressed, The Crown is as intent on celebrating Diana’s life as it is doing justice to her death. “For me, one of the things that felt so important — because we know where the story is going — is to make sure that there was real joy and happiness and lightness and genuine fun on the screen,” she said. “That was really the piece I felt that I could control in a way, and that became a real focus.”
Moments when Diana is goofing around with sons Prince William (Rufus Kampa) and Prince Harry (Fflyn Edwards) on the yacht in Saint-Tropez brought her particular delight. “They’re really beautiful kids,” Debicki said about working with the two young actors. “They’re very smart and they’re funny, and they’re very kind — I was genuinely so much happier when they were on set and I had scenes with them.”
Likewise, Debicki found joy and support in leaning on her co-star Abdalla, with whom she shares some of the season’s most captivating scenes. “I adore Khalid, I think he’s an amazing actor and he’s the most wonderful person,” she said. “I’m so grateful for him. I couldn’t imagine doing it with anybody else.” The actors’ natural chemistry was crucial in building their common vision for their characters’ relationship. “You look at the images of that time, and one of the crucial things that you see between them is a physical ease and a physical tenderness,” Abdalla told Netflix. “You don’t get that on-screen without getting that off-screen.”
As she prepares to say goodbye to the series, Debicki is proud of what she’s leaving behind. But withdrawing from such a complex and beautiful character is never easy. “I really will miss playing this role,” she said. “There have been so many tumultuous and painful bits of storytelling that I’ve had to do, but also it’s so vivid and there’s so much beauty there and there’s so much love and there’s so much desire to connect to people. It’s not something that you can do in everyday life.”
The experience has given her renewed awe, but also tenderness for Diana — both the character she’s played and the real icon, whose impact can still be felt to this day. “She was so vivid to people,” Debicki said. “When I talk to people about her through making the show, and when people talk about the loss they felt in losing her it was really like an incredibly luminous being was lost. Trying to create that has been really an amazing experience. I’ll miss that light.”
The Crown Season 6, Part 1 premieres on Netflix Nov. 16.
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