The Crown’s Elizabeth Debicki recalls how “unbearable” it was to film Princess Diana’s final moments

Elizabeth Debicki portraying Princess Diana in The Crown
(Image credit: Netflix)

The world is awaiting The Crown season six, with the highly anticipated Netflix instalment set to be the most dramatic yet.

The sixth and final season is premiering in two parts, with the first instalment set for release next week on 16 November, and the second set to air on 14 December.

And while the upcoming season will see new actors coming onboard, most notably Ed McVey and Meg Bellamy as the Prince and Princess of Wales, it is the returning cast members and characters who have been making the most news, namely Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana.

The first instalment of season six is expected to follow the events leading up to Princess Diana's tragic death, with the trailer focusing solely on the late Princess of Wales.

Elizabeth Debicki has opened up about recreating Princess Diana's final moments for the Netflix show, most notably the fatal car chase, which she described as "unbearable".

According to the Daily Mail, Debicki called the experience "heavy and very manic, and incredibly invasive".

“It was difficult to recreate," she continued. "At times it’s almost like an animalistic response to being pursued by that many actors playing the press, because there’s nowhere you can go and you only have to be in a situation like that for about a minute before you realise this is completely unbearable.”

Debicki's co-star Khalid Abdalla also shared his experience, with the 42-year-old playing Dodi Fayed, who also died in the car accident with Princess Diana.

“There are all sorts of things that I have understood about the geography of what happened on that day that I didn’t understand before doing this, or until doing what I did as I walked the entire trajectory of the car down to the Alma tunnel, back and forward, to understand it,” he explained. “It’s a huge responsibility, and I hope audiences, when they see it, feel that we have done it right and honoured how sensitive it is.”

The Crown season six (part one) is set to air on November 16.

We will continue to update this story.

Jenny Proudfoot
Features Editor

Jenny Proudfoot is an award-winning journalist, specialising in lifestyle, culture, entertainment, international development and politics. She has worked at Marie Claire UK for seven years, rising from intern to Features Editor and is now the most published Marie Claire writer of all time. She was made a 30 under 30 award-winner last year and named a rising star in journalism by the Professional Publishers Association.