Judi Dench says ‘The Crown’ is ‘cruelly unfair’, forcing Netflix to disclaimer – National

Judi Dench criticized Netflix for not adding a disclaimer for the popular series Crown, which she declared to be “cruel injustice” in its description of the British Royal Family.

In an open letter to The Times UK, the Oscar-winning actress wrote that the “fictional drama” presents “an inaccurate and hurtful account of history”.

Crown follows the life and reign of Queen Elizabeth II, who died in September at the age of 96, having served 70 years on the throne. In the upcoming fifth installment, the queen (now played by Imelda Staunton) moves forward to celebrate her 40th anniversary on the throne amid a difficult time for the British Royal Family in the 1990s.

Dench, 87, writes: “Indeed, the closer the drama is to our present day, the more willing it seems to be to blur the line between historical accuracy and raw sensationalism.

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While also praising the Netflix original as “awesome,” Dench echoed the complaints of former British Prime Minister John Major.

Major, shown as a character in Season 5 of Crowntold The Mail on Sunday the series was “a container of malicious nonsense.”

“Sir John has not cooperated in any way with Crown. He has also never been approached by them to fact-check any script material in this or any other film,” reads a statement from his office.

In the latest installment of CrownMajor (played by Jonny Lee Miller), is seen talking to Prince Charles (now King Charles) about the queen’s possible abdication.

A Netflix spokesperson replied: “The Crown has always been presented as a drama based on historical events. “Series five is a fictional play, imagining what might have happened behind closed doors during an important decade for the Royal Family – partly covered by journalists, biographers, etc. and historians scrutinize and fully record.”

In his open letter, Dench wrote that the Major was “not alone in his concerns”.

“I am afraid that a large number of viewers, especially overseas, may take (Crownof) version of history is completely real,” she wrote.

Dench insists there should be a disclaimer at the beginning of each episode, despite the streaming giant’s earlier statement that it has no plans and sees no need to add such a warning.

“No one believes in artistic freedom more than I do, but this cannot go unchallenged,” Dench writes.

“It’s time for Netflix to reconsider – for the sake of a family and a country that he recently lost, as an homage to a king who served his people so well. unique for 70 years and to preserve its reputation in the eyes of its UK registrants,” she concluded.

Dench previously played Queen Elizabeth I in Shakespeare in love (for which she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress). She also portrayed Queen Victoria in Victoria & Abdul in 2017 and Mrs. Brown in 1997.

Part 5 of Crown premieres on Netflix on November 9. The series recently halted production “out of respect” following the queen’s death.

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