The Crown season 5 will not air until 2022 due to filming break

Filming for the fifth season will begin in June 2021

Season five of The Crown will not air until 2022 as the show will take a break in filming this year.

Production on the fifth season of the acclaimed Netflix series will not begin until June 2021.

The fifth season will be the first with new cast members Imelda Staunton and Lesley Manville, who will play Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret, respectively.

There was a similar extended break between seasons two and three amid the first cast changeover, which saw Olivia Colman, Tobias Menzies and Helena Bonham Carter join the series. it seems showrunner Peter Morgan is doing the same again.

This makes the news seemingly unrelated to the Covid-19 pandemic, which has caused a huge number of delays in the film and television industry.

Production would have to be gearing up now if the series were to return to screens next year. Sources have told Deadline that the ambitions of the show and combination of studio and set-piece location shoots would make this difficult.

In the third season, Colman replaced Claire Foy. Bonham Carter took over from Vanessa Kirby.

Season four of The Crown is yet to air, with no release date confirmed. It is speculated the next instalment will arrive on Netflix in November or December later this year.

Production on the fourth series was fortunately wrapped ahead of the pandemic disruptions to the television industry in March.

It was previously announced in January that season five would be The Crown’s final series. However, creator Peter Morgan reversed his decision earlier this month after announcing there will be a sixth season.

With season five starting filming in summer 2021, the sixth and final season is expected to begin shooting in 2022.

Find everything we know about the future of The Crown here.