Netflix announced today that acclaimed royal drama The Crown is set to end after its fifth season. Season 3 only just arrived on the streaming service late last year, which introduced the revamped cast – led by Olivia Colman as Queen Elizabeth II – to audiences, and season 4 is already shooting, but after that, there’ll be just one more run left. And once again, it’ll come with an all-new cast, signifying the story reaching the Queen’s later years.

Deadline revealed the dual news this morning that season 5 would be the last of the series and that Imelda Staunton would be taking over the role of the British monarch from Colman. Staunton is best known for her turn as the wicked Professor Umbridge in the Harry Potter movies. In contrast to Claire Foy, who played the young Elizabeth in seasons 1 and 2, and Colman, Staunton will only portray Her Majesty for a single season.

Fans may know that the long-term plan for the show has been to make it stretch to six seasons, with each leading actress getting a dual stab at the central role. However, this decision to curtail The Crown‘s run early comes from creator Peter Morgan, who explained in a statement that he decided this was the best time to call it a day when developing season 5.

Morgan said it “became clear… that this is the perfect time and place to stop. I’m grateful to Netflix and Sony for supporting me in this decision.”

 

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