00:00Elizabeth Debicki and the cast of The Crown are opening up about the pressure cooker that was filming Princess Diana's final moments.
00:08The sixth and final season split into two parts, follows the royals as they cope with the death of Diana,
00:14the Queen's Golden Jubilee, and the future of the monarchy with Prince William and Kate Middleton.
00:19Part 1, which premieres on November 16th, will focus on Diana's final days and her blossoming romance with Dodi Fayyad,
00:26son of billionaire businessman Mohammed Al-Fayed.
00:30Princess Diana tragically passed away on August 31st, 1997,
00:34alongside her partner Dodi in a car crash in Paris after their car was chased down by paparazzi.
00:40Debicki and Khaled Abdullah, who plays Dodi, chatted with The Hollywood Reporter on the pressure of filming Diana's final days,
00:46particularly shooting episode three.
00:48Making that episode was just like an accumulative sense of like being in a kind of pressure cooker.
00:55It was really difficult, really harrowing.
00:59And sort of, in a way, the chasing the paparazzi's presence through the day and into the evening,
01:06because obviously that episode is centered on one day.
01:09Khaled and I, Khaled who plays Dodi,
01:12we just kind of had to stay in that space for quite a while, if you know what I mean.
01:18And like, of course, we would sort of go out of it and, you know, be like a normal person and try and like eat and sleep and whatever.
01:24But I sort of feel like it was, um, it just feels like one long period of time when I look back, when I think back to shooting that.
01:32The series will also depict the aftermath of the tragedy and the differences between how the two families coped with the loss.
01:38For Abdullah, he says he hopes people will see Dodi in a different light.
01:43What do you hope viewers take away from watching these first few episodes,
01:47specifically how they view Dodi both during his courtship with Diana as well as after his death?
01:53They don't know much about his life.
01:56Maybe they knew his father.
01:57And, you know, I'm immensely proud that finally, after 26 years, he's known a little, hopefully loved a little, and then finally mourned.
02:12Debicki also reflected on the last two seasons she spent playing Diana and revealed the only time she felt truly happy in the role.
02:20The love for her children was just so profound.
02:24And when I played that character, the only time I'm really happy is when I'm with my boys, the kids that play my kids.
02:32And, you know, so I kind of experienced a version of how much she needed them and they needed her.
02:40Season six of The Crown premieres on Netflix November 16th.
02:44For more on this story, head to THR.com.
02:47And for the latest entertainment news and updates, keep watching The Hollywood Reporter News.
02:54We'll see you next time.
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