“Ask yourself, in the time I’ve been on the throne, what have I actually achieved?” Queen Elizabeth II asks in a new trailer for “The Crown.” Season 3 of Netflix’s monarchy epic sees Oscar-winner Olivia Colman succeeding Claire Foy, who portrayed the Queen in previous seasons.
Political strife and family tensions have made Elizabeth doubt herself as a leader. Britain is bankrupt, its national security is “in tatters,” and miners are taking to the streets to demand fair pay. The Queen is convinced she has done nothing to comfort her people — has perhaps even been the cause of their unhappiness.
“This country was still great when I came to the throne. All that’s happened on my watch is that the place has fallen apart,” the Queen says to her sister. “You cannot flinch,” Princess Margaret (Helena Bonham Carter) replies. “It’s only fallen apart if we say it has. That’s the thing about the monarchy: we paper over the cracks.”
There are a lot of cracks on the home front, too. Margaret and Prince Philip (Tobias Menzies) are chafing as Elizabeth’s “support act,” Margaret’s marriage is falling apart, and a young Prince Charles (Josh O’Connor) is beginning to realize how suffocating life as a royal can be. “Watch out for your family,” he’s warned. Judging from the trailer, that seems to be good advice for all the Windsors.
“The Crown” returns November 17.
https://youtu.be/vLXYfgpqb8A
