'The Crown' Release Date, Latest News: Netflix Announces Premiere 2016

Netflix has announced the launch of "The Crown," a new series that will debut in 2016. The series will draw heavily from the play "The Audience" written by Peter Morgan. It chronicles the decades since Queen Elizabeth II assumed the throne as well as her dealings with Prime Ministers who governed Britain after World War II.

Commenting on the launch of the series, Cindy Holland, who heads the Original Content division of Netfilx, stated: "The Crown bridges television and cinema and is created by Britain's foremost chroniclers of modern politics, class and society."

The first season of the series consists of 10 episodes. Morgan will be working again with Stephen Daldry who directed "Billy Elliot." Producing the series will be Andy Harries who worked with Morgan in the film "The Queen."

Netflix is rumored to be spending $100 million on the series. It will be the first original show from the streaming service that will be based on events in the U.K. Much like the award-winning play "The Audience," the series will feature the political happenings and personalities that influenced the decades since Elizabeth II came to the throne.

Providing more details about the series, Morgan noted that "it is features the royal family, but it is also about an empire in decline, a world in disarray and the dawn of a new era."

Deadline notes that the first season of "The Crown" will feature Elizabeth as a 25-year-old Princess working with Prime Minister Winston Churchill who led the U.K.through World War II.

The online source also notes that Claire Foy, who recently starred in "Rosewater," could play the young Elizabeth. However, since the series will look at 60 years of Elizabeth II's rule, three actresses will play the role of the queen. In the play "The Audience" and the film "The Queen" Helen Mirren played the older Queen. She went on to receive an Olivier Award for her performance in the play and an Oscar for "The Queen."