Stars of The Crown said they were moved to tears while filming scenes surrounding Princess Diana’s death.
The Netflix series faced backlash for choosing to dramatize the tragic events of 1997, despite executives insisting that the portrayal was done with the utmost sensitivity.
Elizabeth Debicki, 33, who plays the princess, said she found filming the scenes leading up to her death “hard and very manic and incredibly intrusive.”
Ahead of the royal drama’s sixth season launch next week, she said: “It was difficult to recreate.”
“Sometimes it’s almost like an animalistic reaction to being chased by so many actors playing the press, because you can’t go anywhere and you only have to be in a situation like that for about a minute before you realize that it’s totally is unbearable.”‘
Leisure: The Crown’s Elizabeth Debicki has shed light on the filming of iconic Princess Diana scenes, including her on a diving board in a blue swimsuit
Iconic scene: A picture of the late Princess of Wales shows her in a turquoise swimsuit, elegantly floating on the edge of a diving board in Portofino
Doomed: Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana and Khalid Abdalla as Dodi Fayed in “The Crown.”
Elizabeth Debicki with actor Rufus Kampa, who plays Prince William in the Netflix series
The Australian actress said filming Diana’s final 24 hours was “very demanding” and added: “I think it will be really interesting to see how people react to the show.”
An iconic image of the late Princess of Wales shows her in a turquoise swimsuit in 1997, elegantly floating on the edge of a diving board in Portofino, Italy.
Elizabeth revealed the careful steps the Netflix show took to recreate it as closely as possible.
She said: “There was something very sacred about that swimsuit and recreating that moment and it was very important that we got it right.”
Jonathan Pryce, 76, who plays Prince Philip, said he “couldn’t stop crying” as director Christian Schwochow put together clips from the series about Diana’s death for them to watch.
He added: “Neither the cameraman who filmed it nor the director who filmed it.” It was an extraordinary moment. It was reliving waking up and listening to the radio.’
Fellow actor Khalid Abdalla, 42, who plays Dodi Fayed, said he even walked the path taken by the car in which the couple died in the Alma Tunnel to better “understand” what happened.
The actor said: “There are a lot of things I understood about the geography of what happened that day that I didn’t understand before, or until I did, walking down the entire trajectory of the car. “ to the Alma Tunnel, back and forth to understand it.
“It’s a big responsibility and I hope that when the audience sees it, they feel like we got it right and appreciate how sensitive it is.”
Dodi’s father Mohamed Fayed, played by Salim Daw, can be seen grieving in some scenes.
Young actor Fflyn Edwards, who plays Prince Harry, surprised director Schwochow with his ability to capture the prince’s emotions after his mother’s death.
Prince William (Rufus Kampa), Prince Harry (Will Powell) and Prince Charles (Dominic West) in emotional scenes after the death of Princess Diana in “The Crown”.
Persecution: Ms. Debicki (pictured left) as Diana in Paris. Stars of The Crown said they were moved to tears while filming scenes surrounding Princess Diana’s death
Father: Salim Daw as Mohamed Fayed. Dodi’s father Mohamed Fayed, played by Salim Daw, can be seen grieving in some scenes
Olivia Williams transformed into Camilla Parker Bowles for the series
Imelda Staunton reprises her role as Queen Elizabeth in the final season of The Crown
“For me in my directing career, it was seeing this 12-year-old actor surrounded by a hundred extras, a hundred film crews and all these star actors, and from the first take he showed an emotion that just took all of our breath away. “said Mr. Schwochow.
Crown producers came under fire earlier this year when it was revealed they had filmed scenes leading up to the accident, footage of a destroyed car and Diana’s coffin.
The late princess will also appear as a ghost in an emotional reconciliation with the grieving Prince Charles, played by Dominic West.
In other season six storylines, Prince William attempts to integrate into life at Eton following the death of his mother.
Elizabeth Debicki (pictured in April 2023), 33, who plays the princess, said she found filming the scenes leading up to her death “hard and very manic and incredibly intrusive”.
Leisure: The Crown’s Elizabeth Debicki has shed light on the filming of iconic Princess Diana scenes, including her on a diving board in a blue swimsuit
The Queen, played by Imelda Staunton, 67, reaches her Golden Jubilee and ponders the future of the monarchy with the wedding of Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles.
Lesley Manville, 67, who is reprising her role as Princess Margaret, said she understood some of the criticism of the Queen’s sister as she was a “spoiled princess” who “didn’t do much to make money”.
The first four episodes will be released on November 16th and the remaining ones on December 14th.