Why the Prince Harry and Meghan Markle story will not be depicted on The Crown

It has been a traumatic few months for the British royal family, culminating in today’s announcement by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle that they intend to “step back” from their position as senior royals and split their time between Britain and North America.

Anyone hoping to see this seeming schism in the Windsor ranks depicted in Netflix’s drama The Crown, however, is likely to be disappointed. While show creator Peter Morgan hopes the series will last six seasons, he also plans to end his depiction of Queen Elizabeth and her family some time before the present day.

“I know how my show is going to end — but that’s long before where we are now,” Morgan told EW in December 2018, during production of the show’s now-available-to-watch third season. “I feel uncomfortable writing about events within a certain time period. I think there’s a certain amount of time within which, if you write about it, what you do instantly becomes journalistic. Because it’s too close to the moment. If you wait a certain amount of time, if you allow fifteen or twenty years, basically a generation, between you and [the events] then you can write about it somewhat freely as drama. Let’s wait twenty years and see what there is to say about Meghan Markle. I don’t know what there is to say about Meghan Markle at the moment. I wouldn’t know and I wouldn’t presume. She’ll only become interesting once we’ve had twenty years to digest who she is and what her impact has been. If I were to write about Meghan Markle I would automatically be writing journalistically. I’ve got nothing to say about Meghan Markle.”

Related content:

• Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announce plans to ‘step back’ as senior members of royal family
• Buckingham Palace responds to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s decision to step back as ‘senior’ royals
• The Crown creator explains why Queen Elizabeth II is like Tony Soprano
• See The Crown‘s royal family next to their real-life inspirations