Did you notice an uncanny resemblance between Prince Charles and Prince William in Season 5 of The Crown? Well, you can thank the magic of casting, but also genetics: The two characters are played by IRL father-and-son duo Dominic and Senan West.
Unlike William’s path to royal succession, Senan’s journey to the screen was far from preordained. His name came up during conversations led by creator Peter Morgan about who could potentially take on the role, which required a particularly delicate balancing act from a young actor. According to Morgan, he was looking for a “13-year-old Etonian,” a reference to William’s enrollment at the prestigious Eton College this season. That was Dominic West’s cue. “He said, ‘I have one at home!’” Morgan tells Tudum.
Even with that glowing introduction, Senan’s casting wasn’t a given. With no prior acting experience, he earned the role after a rigorous audition process. His obvious talent surprised even West, who tells Tudum he got a kick out of having his son on set.
“I didn’t even know if he could act,” West laughs. “He can, it turns out. He’s rather good. It was lovely having him at work and it was lovely seeing him have a good time. He really enjoyed it, and he really caught on very well with Elizabeth [Debicki], who was really lovely to him.”
West did find it “kind of weird” looking at his son on set and “pretending to be Charles to his William.” But he adds, “Kids are better able to suspend disbelief than adults, I think. The play comes much more naturally to them. I was looking at him going, ‘Sorry Seny, I know I’m Dad, but I’m now pretending; this is weird.’ All that in one glance and all I got back was, ‘Just relax, old man.’”
Fans of The Crown met Charles and Diana’s firstborn son as an infant, when he accompanied his parents on a royal tour of Australia in Season 4. Fast-forward more than a decade to Season 5, and William is entering adolescence, juggling regular concerns like how to fit in at a new school with the drama of his parents’ increasingly public separation. Specifically, William’s close relationship with his mother, Princess Diana (Debicki), takes center stage as she turns to him in some of her darkest moments of the season.
Debicki tells Tudum it was important to her that the show properly pay tribute to her character’s deep devotion to her sons. “I got to build that relationship with those two really young actors who were honestly so delicious and just so glorious and funny and smart,” she says, adding that she was particularly impressed by Senan’s ability to juggle a number of complex emotions during their scenes together.
“Senan plays William at that really crucial time where the characters are breaking out of the nest in a way,” she says. “I just thought we were so lucky to have him because he was very raw as an actor, [a] very instinctive and intelligent child and also very loving. I don’t know what else you could ask for in a human and an actor.”
But you won’t actually get to see her favorite moment of the season when The Crown drops on Nov. 9. That took place behind the scenes, as Debicki glimpsed her co-star West simply burst with pride as he watched his son follow in his acting footsteps.
“I once caught Dom just watching the monitor absolutely transfixed and flummoxed, like, ‘There’s my son just being amazing. Who knew he could do that?’” she says. “It was definitely an added super moving element of making the season.”
