TOPLINE
The Crown, the Emmy-winning fictionalized drama chronicling the life of Queen Elizabeth II and the royal family, has returned to Netflix’s Top 10 this week after the monarch died on September 8, as overall interest in media showcasing the royals has increased.
KEY FACTS
In the week ending September 11, Season 1 of The Crown was the No. 7 most-watched English series on Netflix, with 17.5 million hours of the show viewed.
Clips of HBO Max’s The Prince, an animated satirical comedy about Prince George, Prince Harry’s episode of Oprah Winfrey’s AppleTV+ series The Me You Can’t See, and The Crown have been trending on TikTok this week, as interest in the royal family surges.
Meghan Markle’s podcast Archetypes remains the No. 2 show on Spotify in the U.S., despite not releasing new episodes during the mourning period for Queen Elizabeth II.
Forbes has reached out to AppleTV+ and HBO Max for comment.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Season 5 of The Crown is set to debut in November. Imelda Staunton has taken over the role of Queen Elizabeth II from Olivia Coleman. Jonathan Pryce will play Prince Philip, Dominic West is Prince (now King) Charles, Elizabeth Debicki is Princess Diana and Olivia Williams is Camilla Parker Bowles (now Queen Consort). Come Season 6, newcomers Ed McVey and Meg Bellamy will take on Prince William and Kate Middleton. Season 5 will focus on the 1990s.
KEY BACKGROUND
Queen Elizabeth II died at age 96 last week at her home in Scotland. Her funeral is scheduled for Monday. She is currently lying in state at Westminster Hall. The Crown paused production of Season 6 the day after Queen Elizabeth II passed, and a spokesperson for the company saidproduction will also stop on Monday, during her funeral. Season 6 will be the show’s final season, though it’s not clear whether it will take on the queen’s death, or Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s rift with the family.
By Marisa Dellatto, Forbes Staff