The actor who played Prince Philip says he heard the queen watched 'The Crown' on a projector.
Claire Foy and Matt Smith are paying tribute to Queen Elizabeth II. In the days since her death on Sept. 8, both of the actors, who starred on Netflix's The Crown as Queen Elizabeth and her late husband, Prince Philip, respectively, have spoken out about the late monarch in interviews.
"I think that she was an incredible monarch," Foy told BBC at the Toronto Film Festival. "She united people and she was a massive symbol of continuity and dignity and grace."
"My main feeling is just thinking about her as a mother and a grandmother and a great-grandmother, really," she added. "I'm very honored to have been a teeny tiny, small part of her story."
As for Smith, he recalled meeting some of the royals. "I met the now-King Charles [III], I told him that he had fabulous shoes … and then I met Harry once at the Polo," he said on the Today show. "[Harry] walked up to me and he went, ‘granddad,’ because he watched the show."
When it comes to Queen Elizabeth, Smith noted, "I heard the queen had watched [The Crown], and she used to watch it on a projector on a Sunday night, apparently."
Smith also shared that he hopes to return to London for Queen Elizabeth's funeral on Sept. 19.
"I think it's a piece of history," the actor explained. "I don't think we'll ever have a monarch who serves for 70 years again... I just want to be in London. I want to experience it. I think in the ceremony of it, really."
"My mom's going to go [to the procession]. I don't know if I'm actually going to go to the procession, but I'd like to watch it," Smith added. "I might watch it in my local pub, actually, with a group of friends."
Following Foy's stint on the show, Olivia Colman took on the role of the late monarch. Imelda Staunton is set to take over the role next season.
Colman previously told ET that it was "so much fun" to play Queen Elizabeth.
After the monarch's death, a rep for Netflix confirmed to ET that as a mark of respect, filming on The Crown was suspended for a day. Filming will also be suspended on the day of Her Majesty The Queen’s funeral.
Prior to her death, Stephen Daldry, the show's executive producer, told Deadline if the show was in production when she died, it would stop for a respectable period of time.
"None of us know when that time will come but it would be right and proper to show respect to the queen. It would be a simple tribute and a mark of respect," he said. "She’s a global figure and it’s what we should do. She’s an extraordinary woman and people will be upset."
The Crown is far from the only project to focus on Queen Elizabeth's life. Helen Mirren, who played Queen Elizabeth in multiple projects, reacted to the news on Instagram.
"I am proud to be an Elizabethan," Mirren wrote alongside a photo of Queen Elizabeth. "We mourn a woman, who, with or without the crown, was the epitome of nobility."
Then, in a statement to ET, Mirren said, "I’m mourning along with the rest of my country, the passing of a great Queen. I’m proud to call myself of the Elizabethan age. If there was a definition of nobility, Elizabeth Windsor embodied it."
In a previous interview with ET, Mirren described how she viewed Queen Elizabeth.
"Honest and decent and fun-loving and warm," Mirren said. "Above all, responsible to her duty as the monarch, and everything else had to take second place to that, including her family."
The actress also recalled "very briefly" meeting the late monarch once upon a time.
"I was lucky that I met her in an environment, in a situation that she was relaxed in," she told ET. "She was relaxed and happy and having a good time. She was absolutely charming and twinkly and sweet."
Mirren won a Tony Award for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth in Peter Morgan's play, The Audience. She later stepped into the royal's shoes again in the 2006 film, The Queen, for which she won the Oscar for Best Actress.
For updates on Queen Elizabeth's death, visit ET's ongoing coverage here.
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