Representative of the hit British series, “The Crown” has dismissed rumours that it has been struggling to cast an actor to play the controversial royal Prince Andrew in the fifth season of the show.
In a statement released on 27 April, the spokesperson stressed that it was a normal practice for productions to advertise its casting needs on the casting website Spotlight and that they were not in any way experiencing difficulties finding an actor for the role.
Tabloids previously pointed out that the show was looking for an actor in his mid-30s to early 40s to play the role was a sign that nobody wanted to play the scandalous prince, who sparked speculations of his own moral behaviour due to his close relationship to the disgraced US financier and paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Epstein was arrested in 2019 on charges of sex trafficking and conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking on minors, though the case never went anywhere as he was later found dead in his jail cell. The suicide ruling by medical examiner was highly disputed due to his associations with many big and powerful names including Prince Andrew himself.
Prior to season 5, which is going to be the penultimate season, the character was played by newcomer Tom Byrne.
Season 5 of “The Crown” will continue with a new cast including Imelda Staunton, who will be taking the reins from Olivia Colman (season 3 and 4) and Claire Foy (season 1 and 2) as Queen Elizabeth, Lesley Manville as Princess Margaret (formerly played by Helena Bonham Carter), Jonathan Pryce as Prince Philip (previously played by Tobias Menzies) and Dominic West and Elizabeth Debicki taking over as Prince Charles and Princess Diana from Josh O’Connor and Emma Corrin, respectively.
Filming will begin in summer, and will cover the British Royal Family during the mid-to-late 90s.
