A new Queen Elizabeth II will appear on the third season of "The Crown." Olivia Colman is set to play the monarch, taking over the role from Claire Foy.
Foy plays the younger version of Queen Elizabeth II and the actress has been critically praised for her accurate performance. Though she will play the queen one more time for the show's second season, she will pass the crown on to Colman to once season 3 starts.
Variety confirmed the casting shakeup, announcing that the 43-year-old Colman will take over as the Queen Mother. There hasn't been an official order for the third and fourth seasons but production is already underway.
Peter Morgan, the creator of the series, had always planned for his principal actors be the same age as the characters during a certain period of the show to provide a certain level of authenticity.
Prior to nabbing the role of the older Queen Elizabeth, Colman was rumored to be the next Doctor until Jodie Whittaker was officially inducted to the role, replacing Peter Capaldi.
Colman recently appeared in television shows like ITV's "Broadchurch" and "The Night Manager" on AMC. She is also set to star alongside other notable actors in the remake of the "Murder on the Orient Express."
The British actress has also experienced playing royalty as she had played Queen Elizabeth in "Hyde Park on Hudson," a biographical historical comedy-drama, alongside Bill Murray as Franklin D. Roosevelt and Samuel West as King George VI. She is also set to play another royal figure in the upcoming "The Favourite," playing the role of Queen Anne.
"The Crown" is a biographical drama that premiered on Netflix last year. The first season focused on Queen Elizabeth's unexpected ascension to the throne following the death of her father while on a safari trip in Kenya with her husband. The show also focused on the first couple of years of her reign as she balanced her roles as ruler of England and a married woman.
"The Crown" season 2 premieres on Friday, Dec. 8, on Netflix.
