Elizabeth Debicki and Emma Corrin, who both played Princess Diana in 'The Crown,' spoke to each other about the role for 'Variety.'
Just when you're about to give up on a dream, think of this tale of the two TV Princess Dianas.
Emma Corrin and Elizabeth Debicki, who both portrayed Princess Diana in different seasons of Netflix's The Crown, came face to face when they were paired for Variety's annual Actors on Actors series. During their sit-down, Corrin and Debicki both recalled auditioning for other characters before ultimately landing the coveted role as the late Princess of Wales.
As Debicki remembered, she went in to audition for a non-British character in the second season and later heard from her agent that they were thinking about her for Princess Diana instead. As viewers know, Diana makes her first appearance in the fourth season of the show.
"The funny thing is, for like five or six years, I thought -- I wouldn't think about it frequently, but every now and then I would think -- and I continued to watch The Crown religiously -- I would think, 'I wonder if that's ever going to come around,'" Debicki said. "...And then when you were cast, at that point there was no season 6 planned... I thought, 'Well, it was a nice dream.'"
While she thought Corrin was perfect for the role, she simultaneously "gave up" on playing Diana herself.
Of course, fate had different plans for Debicki, who ultimately got cast as an older Diana for the final two seasons and has since won a Golden Globe for her performance.
Meanwhile, Corrin's first introduction to The Crown casting was when she auditioned for a minor role as a lady in waiting for the queen. She told Debicki she was then asked to read with the actors auditioning to play Camilla Parker Bowles.
Corrin, too, won a Golden Globe for their performance as Diana in season 4.
"Most of all, thank you so much to Diana," Corrin said during their acceptance speech. "You have taught me compassion and empathy beyond any measure that I could ever imagine and, on behalf of everyone who remembers you so fondly and passionately in our hearts, thank you."
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