Oscar-nominated actor Jonathan Pryce will play the role of Prince Philip in the final two series of The Crown.
Deadline was the first to report that Jonathan will take over the role from Tobias Menzies in the fifth and sixth series of the hit Netflix drama.
The Duke Of Edinburgh was previously played by Matt Smith in the first two series of The Crown.
Jonathan will be acting in the show alongside Imelda Staunton, who is succeeding Olivia Colman in the lead role of Queen Elizabeth II.
Jonathan was nominated for his first Academy Award in 2020, for his portrayal of Pope Francis in another Netflix offering, The Two Popes, which he said has inspired him to work with the streaming giant once again.
“I am delighted to be working with Netflix again,” he said. “The positive experience I had making The Two Popes has given me the confidence to tackle the daunting prospect of portraying Prince Philip.
“To be doing so with Peter Morgan in the company of Imelda and Lesley [Manville, who is playing Princess Margaret] will be a joy.”
Other on-screen credits from Jonathan’s lengthy career in film include the big-screen version of the musical Evita, the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies and the drama The Wife, in which he appeared opposite Glenn Close.
He also played The High Sparrow in two series of Game Of Thrones.
Netflix had always planned for The Crown to run for a total of six series, with three different actors taking on the lead role of Queen Elizabeth II throughout that time.
However, when Imelda was confirmed as the successor to the drama’s throne, it was announced that they were cutting this short and ending at the fifth run.
Fortunately for fans, this is a decision that has since been reversed, with creator Peter Jackson saying: “As we started to discuss the storylines for series five, it soon became clear that in order to do justice to the richness and complexity of the story we should go back to the original plan and do six seasons.”
It’s worth noting that the fourth series of The Crown – the last with Olivia Colman at the helm – is also still to come, with the team managing to wrap production just before the UK went into lockdown.