There is no sugar-coating the fact that The Crown season 5 is a political minefield for Netflix. The streaming giant has set in stone a November 2022 release date for the fifth season of its historically-inspired series, with no shortage of stars lining up to don the iconic roles of the British Royal Family. Elizabeth Debicki and Dominic West portray Princess Diana and Prince Charles in the new season, respectively, while Imelda Staunton is confirmed as The Crown's latest Queen Elizabeth incarnation.
The Crown season 5 is set to follow in the Netflix series' chronological footsteps, with the show's fifth season taking place across the late 1990s and early 2000s. The new season will bring the maturing Queen's reign into the new century while covering the tenures of prime ministers John Major and Tony Blair across a highly transitional political period in Britain. Although not yet confirmed by Netflix, The Crown season 5 is almost certain to also include the dissolution of Prince Charles' and Diana's marriage, as well as Diana's tragic death in the summer of 1997.
Yet if Netflix accurately portrays even half of these tumultuous years for the Royal Family, then The Crown season 5 will be a political minefield for the streaming giant. There is no escaping the fact that The Crown season 5 aims to portray the most controversial period of the monarchy's history, with the wounds of Charles' infidelity, Diana's death, and New Labour's shameless political posturing still highly incendiary topics in contemporary culture. The Crown season 5's plot, therefore, will likely and inescapably see renewed outcry against the Netflix original series as it tackles the most sensitive segments of modern royalty's history.
The Crown season 4 was not without controversy itself after British Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden demanded Netflix released a statement stating their series as fiction in November 2020. As reported by the Daily Mail, Dowden's ire stems from the fact he feels several of the series' key scenes are damaging to the Royal Family's image, with the Culture Secretary going on to request Netflix issues a "health warning" at the start of each episode. These impassioned comments from Dowden are endemic of the reserves of emotion that still exist surrounding the British Royal Family and bring further scrutiny on Netflix's The Crown season 5.
However, in its 5th season, The Crown seems to be diving headfirst into a political nightmare as it promises to navigate some of the most difficult royal topics of all. The Crown season 5's story looks set to delve into a time period in which the Queen's health is suffering, and the British government is trying to ensure stability in the monarchy for a seamless transition of the crown to Charles. Furthermore, these events bookend the most emotionally fraught of topics concerning Diana's failed marriage to Charles and subsequent death, which to many feels as raw today as it did in 1997. As a result, The Crown season 5 needs to tread very carefully indeed to avoid pedaling a socially dangerous blend of fact and artistic license to its audiences, or else the Netflix series may find itself in the middle of a political minefield once again.