Dominic West had a very specific reason for limiting his son Senan West’s involvement on The Crown. The 54-year-old British actor, who is currently playing Prince Charles on the hit Netflix drama, originally encouraged his 15-year-old son to appear as his on-screen son, Prince William, on season 5 of the show.
But ahead of the sixth and final season, Dominic kept Senan from reprising the role.
“I didn’t really fancy doing the scene at Balmoral [Castle], telling a boy his mother has died,” Dominic told the Radio Times, per The Times. “They invited Senan back because he did such a good job, and he was great, but I did slightly balk at that. It was unfair of me because he did want to do it, but I wouldn’t have fancied that, to be honest.”
Part 1 of season 6 covered the tragic death of William and his brother Prince Harry’s mother, Princess Diana, who died in 1997 in a car crash in Paris, France. At the time, William, Harry and Charles were all staying at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on holiday with Queen Elizabeth II. The heirs to the throne learned of their mother’s death from Charles at Balmoral.
Actor Rufus Kampa replaced Senan in the role of Prince William for Part 1 of season 6, and actor Ed McVey will take on the role for Part 2, which drops Dec. 14. The second part of the royal drama’s final season will follow William’s early love story with his future wife, Kate Middleton (Meg Bellamy), at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.
Dominic shares son Senan with his wife, Catherine FitzGerald. The couple shares three other children and Dominic is also father to daughter Martha with his ex, Polly Astor.
Part 2 of season 6 of The Crown will be released on Thursday, Dec. 14.
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