Helena Bonham Carter Says End ‘The Crown’ Now: It’s No Longer ‘Historic Drama’ and Should Not ‘Carry On’

In a recent interview with The Guardian, Helena Bonham Carter said that Netflix’s The Crown should end now that it’s no longer a historical drama. The actor portrayed Queen Elizabeth II’s younger sister, Princess Margaret, in the third and fourth seasons of the Netflix royal drama, reprising the role of Venessa Kirby. The fifth season of The Crown premiered in November 2022 and brought the show from the past into more recent events as it covered the royal family in the 1990s. Lesley Manville starred as Princess Margaret.

“I should be careful here too, but I don’t think they should really go ahead,” said Bonham Carter. I’m in and I’ve loved my episodes, but now it’s very different. When The Crown began it was a historical drama, and now it plunges into the present. But that’s up to them.”

Bonham Carter also declined a question about Prince Harry’s lively new memoir, Spare, saying: “I don’t really want to contribute to the whole thing. It’s complicated and taken out of context. And I think that has been given enough attention.”

While Bonham Carter thinks “The Crown” should call it quits, the show is set to return for a sixth and planned final season, which will cover the late 1990s and bring the show into the early 2000s.

In 2021, Bonham Carter has also spoken out against “The Crown” because Netflix should add a disclaimer to the series letting viewers know it’s historical fiction. The show’s final seasons have faced backlash and intense scrutiny from family and friends of Britain’s royals for its dramatization of events, particularly the toxic marriage between Princess Diana and Prince Charles. There has been an ongoing debate about adding a disclaimer to The Crown. British politician Oliver Dowden notably urged Netflix to add a disclaimer, with Bonham Carter later agreeing, saying the show has a “moral responsibility” for doing so.

“It’s dramatized,” Bonham Carter said on an official podcast for the series. “I feel very empowered because I think we have a moral responsibility to say, ‘Wait a minute guys, this isn’t… it’s not a drama doc, we’re doing drama.’ So they are two different entities.”

Five seasons of The Crown are now streaming on Netflix. The show’s sixth season does not yet have a release date.