Makers of The Crown have boasted that the fifth season of the Netflix drama will be ‘juicy’ amid growing criticism of their portrayal of the British Royal family.
Royal correspondent Michael Cole predicted the series, which is expected to cover Diana’s relationship with Dodi Fayed and her death in August 1997, will contain plenty of ‘dramatic material and startling revelations’.
The show has already faced widespread criticism over its ‘twisted’ depiction of the Firm, which portrays Prince Charles as callous and self-serving and his mother the Queen as cold.
Emma Corrin, 24, played Princess Diana in the fourth series of The Crown and is set to be replaced by The Night Manager star Elizabeth Debicki, 30, for the final two seasons.
Speaking to the Sunday Express, Martin Childs, production designer on The Crown, said while he couldn’t divulge details, scripts for the forthcoming series are ‘juicy’.
But royal author Hugo Vickers told the publication: ‘In my view all 40 episodes are [unpalatable]. And as they approach the present day, they seem to be getting worse. There was quite a backlash against season four.’
The sixth season of The Crown is is expected to cover Diana’s relationship with Dodi Fayed and her death in August 1997. Pictured, the royal in Bosnia the month of her death
Emma Corrin, 24, played Princess Diana in the fourth series of The Crown and is set to be replaced by The Night Manager star Elizabeth Debicki (pictured), 30, for the final two seasons
The Crown’s makeup designer Cate Hall added: ‘Oh they’re juicy. All the major people you would expect to be in there, are there.’
However, speaking about series four and five, former BBC royal correspondent Mr Cole suggested the screenwriter ‘had over egged the pudding’.
The next phase of the show will cover the early 1990s, including the Windsor Castle fire and end of three of the Queen’s children’s marriages.
Netflix are yet to announce who will take over from Josh O’Connor playing Prince Charles in the upcoming two final series.
Meanwhile, Jonathan Pryce, 73, will take over the role of Prince Philip and portray the royal through the 1990s and Imelda Staunton, 65, will play the Queen.
Emma Corrin (pictured right on screen) portrayed the late Princess of Wales in the fourth season of Netflix’s hit royal drama The Crown. Pictured left, Diana in 1982
Scenes in the fifth season of the show showing Diana gorging on food before vomiting into a toilet are so graphic that they carry on-screen warnings
Culture secretary Oliver Dowden demanded in November last year that Netflix make clear the royal drama is ‘fiction’.
He claimed viewers should be warned at the start of each episode that it was not ‘fact’ after mounting concern that fabricated scenes in the drama series were so damaging to the Royal Family.
‘It’s a beautifully produced work of fiction, so as with other TV productions, Netflix should be very clear at the beginning it is just that,’ he told The Mail on Sunday.
‘Without this, I fear a generation of viewers who did not live through these events may mistake fiction for fact.’
The fourth series of The Crown, which premiered last November, shows Charles meeting and marrying an innocent Diana while maintaining his affair with the then-married Camilla Parker-Bowles.
The Night Manager star Elizabeth Debicki has been cast as Princess Diana for the final two seasons of The Crown
The Two Popes actor Jonathan Pryce, 73, is taking on the role of Prince Philip in The Crown’s final two seasons
Elsewhere, scenes showing Diana gorging on food before vomiting into a toilet are so graphic that they carry on-screen warnings.
Controversy over invented scenes prompted the Princess’s brother to add his voice to the calls for a disclaimer.
Earl Spencer told ITV: ‘It would help The Crown an enormous amount if at the beginning of each episode it stated that, “This isn’t true but is based around some real events”. Because then everyone would understand it’s drama for drama’s sake.’
Corrin, who plays Princess Diana, has previously admitted that the controversial fourth series is ‘fictionalised to a great extent’.
During a series of interviews, she said the story-lines were invented and the members of the Royal Family depicted in the new series were ‘characters’ created by Peter Morgan.
The fourth series of The Crown, which premiered last November, shows Charles meeting and marrying an innocent Diana while maintaining his affair with the then-married Camilla Parker-Bowles. Pictured Corrin and Josh O’Connor in The Crown
In February, Prince Harry defended Netflix, with whom he has a multi-million pound contract, despite the show facing widespread criticism over its depiction of the Firm.
The Duke of Sussex, 36, gave his seal of approval to the Netflix show, saying the show is ‘fictional’ but is ‘loosely based on the truth’ and captures the feeling of being expected to put ‘duty and service above family and everything else’.
Meanwhile, Joanna Lumley revealed that she will never watch or appear in The Crown because she thinks it’s ‘awful’ that viewers don’t know it’s ‘mostly made up.’
The Absolutely Fabulous star, 74, who’s been close to the heir to the throne for years as an ambassador for The Prince’s Trust and attended his 2005 wedding to the Duchess of Cornwall, said she wouldn’t watch the hit Netflix show because she’s concerned some viewers don’t know it’s ‘mostly made up’.
Speaking on Chopper’s Politics podcast for The Telegraph, the actress said: ‘Lots of people love it and lots of people know it’s mostly made up, but lots of people don’t know it’s made up which is awful.’
MailOnline has contacted Netflix for comment.