'The Crown' Cast A Brand New Young Queen Elizabeth In Its Final Season
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Several actors have played Queen Elizabeth II in The Crown over the show’s six seasons, including Claire Foy, Olivia Colman, and Imelda Staunton.
Given that the massively popular Netflix series is in its sixth and final season, you might have assumed Imelda would be the final Queen Elizabeth on the show—but the second part of season six introduces a brand new actor, Viola Prettejohn, to the role.
During a throwback scene in episode 8, which takes the viewer back to May 8, 1945, aka Victory in Europe Day, which marked the end of World War II, a new face appears as a teenage version of the queen. The scene shows Elizabeth and her sister, Princess Margaret, sneaking out of Buckingham Palace and going to the Ritz to celebrate the history-making moment. The young Queen shows up again in episode 10.
So who is Viola Prettejohn what else has she been in? Here’s the deal.
Why did producers recast the role?
It’s not clear. Young Elizabeth was previously played by Verity Russell, but Verity has only ever appeared on The Crown, per IMDB. Meaning, she hadn't acted in anything before the series started, and she hasn’t been in anything since.
Casting director Robert Sterne told Netflix’s Tudum that Viola was cast because she looks like Claire Foy (who played a younger Queen Elizabeth). “There were a couple of people who I thought of, but when we started putting the Elizabeths and Margarets together, it was clear. She had all the qualities of Claire Foy,” Sterne said. “She looked like her, but she had a kind of openness and a seriousness. There’s a bit of her that wants to break out of herself, but she’s holding herself back—all of those things that you associate with the way Claire played Elizabeth. [Viola] was like a mini version.”
Viola got her first big acting role in 2018.
Viola hasn’t been in a ton of things, but she’s been in enough. She got her big break in 2018 on the TV series Counterpart, according to IMDB. She played a young version of Emily on the show.
What else has Viola been in?
Viola has also appeared in The Witcher, as well as the TV series The Nevers. The Nevers, in case you’re not familiar with it, is an HBO series that follows several Victoria women who have unusual abilities and a bunch of enemies.
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