'The Crown' Season 4 on Netflix: Did Prince Charles and Princess Diana ‘hate’ each other?
Fans of Netflix’s drama series ‘The Crown’ finally have an answer to their long wait. On Tuesday, October 13, the trailer for season 4 arrived and it promises a gripping tale, especially with Princess Diana’s addition to the show. Emma Corrin will play the role of Diana this season before Elizabeth Debicki takes over the role for the season 5.
As per Netflix, ‘The Crown’ Season 4 will see the 1970s drawing to a close. Queen Elizabeth (Olivia Colman) and her family will find themselves preoccupied with safeguarding the line of succession by securing an appropriate bride for Prince Charles (Josh O’Connor), who is still unmarried at 30. While Charles’ romance with a young Lady Diana Spencer (Emma Corrin) provides a much-needed fairytale to unite the British people, as the transformation from teenager to Princess of Wales takes place, it will be anything but a fairy tale for Diana.
Gillian Anderson of ‘X-Files’ and ‘Sex Education’ fame will also be joining the cast this season as Margaret Thatcher. Colman’s performance as Queen Elizabeth has earned her critical acclaim. So it is obvious that this season will again see her giving a terrifying and terrific performance. But fans were busy speculating on the not-so-obvious parts of this season.
On Reddit, referring to the trailer, a fan asked, “That's Mountbatten's funeral they keep teasing right?” They were, of course, referring to Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten, Earl Mountbatten of Burma, generally known as Lord Mountbatten, the uncle of Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. He was played by Greg Wise in seasons 1 and 2, and by Charles Dance in season 3 of ‘The Crown’. Because we know that Debicki will play Diana in season 5, so obviously the funeral in the trailer cannot be hers. Another fan on the same thread said, “I’ve been waiting for the Diana drama since the show started. This looks so good, cannot wait for this season. Everything seems to be on point.”
The Charles-Diana equation is one that has captivated public imagination for years now. The latter’s tragic death became the focus of the whole world. Naturally, fans on YouTube could not help themselves as they discussed this relationship. One fan wrote in the comments section on YouTube, “For a brief moment I was looking forward to Charles and Diana’s relationship after seeing them lovingly dancing together. And then their later scenes reminded me that they hate each other.”
Another fan in the comments pointed out, “He never really loved her, she was a 19-year-old, sheltered girl infatuated by a prince. She thought it would be happily ever after. Charles always loved Camilla [Parker Bowles, the Duchess of Cornwall] and that's who he wanted but he knew Diana would be a suitable choice. He was content with marrying Di but having his true love as a mistress. Unfortunately for him, Diana wasn't going to take that and started her own affairs. Not to mention, Charles was quite cold due to his upbringing so didn't know how to handle her mental issues.”
But not everyone agreed with that. Another fan responded, “Well Diana never really hated Charles. Charles didn't love her after a while and wanted to get back with Camilla. However, Diana was supportive and just wanted Charles to be happy.” Yet another fan wrote, “I don't think they hated each other, not really. They were just thrust into an impossible situation. She was an infatuated child, he, the heir apparent with huge pressure from above and forbidden to marry his true love. They hurt each other, I think that much is true, but never on purpose. The crown just crushed both of them in their own ways.”
With any luck, the upcoming season will cover this complicated relationship with nuance. ‘The Crown’ Season 4 will debut Sunday, November 15, on Netflix.
