﻿Imelda Staunton will reportedly replace Olivia Colman as the Queen in Netflix’s The Crown.

The 63-year-old actor will take the role for seasons five and six of the critically acclaimed show, according to the Daily Mail.

Colman made her debut as the Queen on Sunday, when all 10 episodes of season three were made available.

She will reprise the role when the fourth instalment arrives next year. Claire Foy played the Queen in the first two seasons of the show.

Staunton received a best actress Oscar nomination for her lead role in the 2004 drama Vera Drake, and is also known for playing Dolores Umbridge in the Harry Potter films.

If she is cast as the Queen, it is likely her spell on The Crown would feature several royal crises including Prince Charles’s split from Diana, Princess of Wales.

The Crown, created by Peter Morgan, first aired in 2016. It originally starred Foy in the lead role, with Matt Smith as the Duke of Edinburgh and Vanessa Kirby as Princess Margaret.

Producers opted to refresh the cast when dealing with a later time period in season three, rather than using technology to digitally age the actors.

Tobias Menzies and Helena Bonham Carter are currently playing Philip and Princess Margaret, respectively.

