Olivia Colmans reign has begun. On Monday, Netflix released a first look of the actress playing Queen Elizabeth II in the next season of the Emmy-winning series The Crown. In the image, Colman is in character as the reigning monarch, wearing a pink coat and pearls and having a spot of tea. The photo is accompanied with a simple caption: “Patience.” Easier said than done, Netflix, considering Season 3 of the series wont be airing until 2019.
Colman is replacing Claire Foy, who played a younger version of the Queen in Seasons 1 and 2. The role made a star of the actress, who won a Golden Globe and earned two Emmy nominations for her performance. (You can catch her next in a completely unrecognizable turn as hacker Lisbeth Salander in The Girl in the Spiders Web.)
Season 3 of the show will jump ahead in time, requiring the entire main cast be replaced by a new coterie of stars. In addition to Colman, Helena Bonham Carter will play an older version of Princess Margaret (previously played by Vanessa Kirby); Tobias Menzies will play Prince Philip (previously played by Matt Smith); and Ben Daniels will play Lord Snowdon (previously played by Matthew Goode).
In an interview with Variety back in February, show creator Peter Morgan explained how the show landed on Colman for the role of Elizabeth II.
“I think we all felt Olivia had something that corresponded [to what we wanted], that ability to be both plain and dazzling, and to be both knowable and unknowable,” he said back in February. “And then we rang her up, and she said yes on the phone.”
And why wouldnt she? The sumptuous regal drama is arguably the crown jewel of Netflixs TV slate, a pricey, tastefully done series that earned instant attention from awards circles. The recent still of Colman is the first real teaser Netflix has released for the upcoming season of the show, which, again, will be coming out in a thousand years, a.k.a. 2019.
Get Vanity Fairs HWD NewsletterSign up for essential industry and award news from Hollywood.Yohana DestaYohana Desta is a Hollywood writer for VanityFair.com.
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