Princess Diana has arrived in the new teaser for “The Crown.” Season 4 of Netflix’s royal family drama brings the People’s Princess (Emma Corrin) into the Windsor fold. And while the princess’ wedding to Prince Charles (Josh O’Connor) is described as “the stuff of which fairytales are made,” the spot emphasizes that what’s to come for the couple and their broader family — conflict, divorce, death, Margaret Thatcher — is actually the stuff of nightmares.
Set to the sermon from Diana and Charles’ wedding service, the clip offers glimpses of Diana basking in the public limelight and clashing with her husband in private. Meanwhile, Queen Elizabeth II (Olivia Colman) continues to suppress her emotions, Princess Margaret (Helena Bonham Carter) is struggling, and long-simmering tensions between Charles and Prince Philip (Tobias Menzies) seem to come to a head. The teaser also introduces us to Thatcher (Gillian Anderson), the new prime minister.
“Fairytales usually end at this point, with the simple phrase, ‘They lived happily ever after,'” the vicar declares at the royal couple’s nuptials. “[However,] our faith sees the wedding day not as the place of arrival, but the place where the adventure really begins.”
A six-season portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign, from the ’40s to the present, “The Crown” has won 10 Emmys. Claire Foy played the monarch in Seasons 1 and 2, and Imelda Staunton will take on the role in Seasons 5 and 6.
“The Crown” returns November 15.