Netflix adds disclaimer to The Crown trailer amid Judi Dench criticism

Show has been accused of ‘sensationalism’

Netflix has added a disclaimer to its latest trailer for The Crown season five amid backlash.

In its trailer, posted on YouTube, Netflix writes: “Inspired by real events, this fictional dramatisation tells the story of Queen Elizabeth II and the political and personal events that shaped her reign.”

The change comes after the series was accused by Dame Judi Dench for “sensationalism” in its depiction of royal family members, including King Charles III and Princess Diana.

On Wednesday (19 October), Dench called on Netflix to include a disclaimer at the start of episodes, stating it is a “fictionalised drama” as a “mark of respect” to the late Queen. 

“The closer the drama comes to our present times, the more freely it seems willing to blur the lines between historical accuracy and crude sensationalism,” she wrote for The Times.

The Oscar winner added that the fictionalised accounts of historical events expected to play out in the upcoming season are “cruelly unjust to the individuals and damaging to the institution they represent”.

Former Prime Minister Sir John Major also told The Telegraph that a scene, which apparently depicts a plot to oust the late Queen, was “nothing other than damaging and malicious fiction” and “a barrel-load of malicious nonsense”. 

Jonny Lee Miller as Sir John Major, from series five of The Crown (Netflix/PA) (PA Media)

The new disclaimer appears on The Crown’s social media channels and the Netflix web page, but not on TV or on the smartphone app.

A spokesperson for the series said: “The Crown has always been presented as a drama based on historical events.

“Series five is a fictional dramatisation, imagining what could have happened behind closed doors during a significant decade for the royal family – one that has already been scrutinised and well documented by journalists, biographers and historians.”

Season five of the show will be released on 9 November, and is expected to portray the struggles in then Prince Charles’ marriage to Diana, Princess of Wales.

The Crown is steaming on Netflix now.