'The Crown' Season 3 Casting News: 'Outlander' Star Tobias Menzies Plays New Prince Philip
Tobias Menzies has been tapped to replace Matt Smith in portraying the more mature version of Prince Philip in "The Crown" season 3.
Deadline revealed that the British actor, known for portraying dual roles in Starz's critically acclaimed time-traveling saga "Outlander," will step in to play the role of the British royalty after the period that was played by Smith in the Netflix period drama's first two seasons.
The role was initially offered to Paul Bettany, but the "The Da Vinci Code" star's deal did not push through for an undisclosed reason.
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This is not the first time that Menzies will play a nobleman on TV. He just wrapped up his portrayal of the Duke of Cornwall in BBC's "King Lear" alongside Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson. He also played the role of Brutus in "Rome" from HBO as well as Edmure Tully in the "Game of Thrones" saga.
Aside from Menzies, the third season of "The Crown" will also star Olivia Colman as the new Queen Elizabeth II. The role was first portrayed by Claire Foy in seasons 1 and 2.
They will also be joined by Helena Bonham Carter, who will play the role of the Queen's younger sister Princess Margaret which was earlier played by Vanessa Kirby.
Series creator Peter Morgan earlier revealed in an interview with Variety that he had been intending to replace the main cast members of the show in its later seasons. "You can't ask someone to act middle-aged. Someone has to bring their own fatigue to it. The feelings we all have as 50-year-olds are different than the feelings we all have as 30-year-olds. That informs everything we do," Morgan said before the first season premiere in 2016.
Foy also told Vulture in an interview back in 2016 that she only signed up for two seasons. "They're getting rid of all of us. I don't [know] how they're planning on doing it, but they're such an incredible bunch of directors and producers that it's gonna be different and exciting," the actress stated.
While details about the plot of "The Crown" season 3 remains under wraps, a report from Vanity Fair that the historical drama can be expected to center on the real-life events that happened between 1971 to 1979, including the "Wilson era" when Harold Wilson served as the prime minister of the UK.
Some of the events that happened during that time were the controversial divorce of Princess Margaret from the Earl of Snowdon due to their numerous affairs with different partners.
The report also claimed that season 3 of "The Crown" could also tackle that miners' strike in 1972 which eventually resulted in the power crisis in the country. It might also deal with the dwindling influence of the British royal family in Canada as well as the assassination of Lord Mountbatten that was plotted by the Provisional Irish Republican Army and the passing of the Duke of Windsor.
Other details about "The Crown" season 3 remains scarce, but Netflix is expected to air the new season not earlier than 2019.
