The Crown casts its Prince William: Dominic West's son to play teenage royal

Dominic West and his son will play Prince Charles and Prince William in The Crown. Photo / Netflix

After searching throughout the UK, The Crown has finally found its young Prince William.

Newcomer Senan West, the real-life son of actor Dominic West, will play the teenaged royal in the upcoming fifth season of the hit Netflix show, reports Variety.

The 13-year-old is the son of the actor who replaces Josh O'Connor as Prince Charles in the highly anticipated series. Elizabeth Debicki will play his mother Diana, replacing Emma Corrin.

According to the outlet, Senan has been cast as a slightly older Prince William, portraying him in his teenage years, making his debut in the final episodes of the season.

It's believed the young actor's audition tape caught the attention of producers.

Prince William had just turned 15 in 1997 when Princess Diana died in a car crash in Paris. Variety revealed in September that Diana's boyfriend at the time Dodi Al Fayed will be played in the series by Khalid Abdalla.

The Crown's producers haven't commented on whether Diana's death will be portrayed on the show, but the casting suggests viewers will see events leading up to and perhaps following the crash.

The show has changed its cast every couple of seasons to reflect the passage of time in the lives of the royal family.

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Series five will see Imelda Staunton take over from Olivia Colman as the Queen, while Jonathan Pryce has been cast as an older Prince Philip. Lesley Manville will play Princess Margaret, while Jonny Lee Miller is set to appear as then-Prime Minister John Major.

The fifth season will follow the royals through the 1990s, during which three of the Queen's four children split from their partners and Windsor Castle caught fire. This time period is also remembered for Diana's famously controversial BBC interview with Martin Bashir about her relationship with Charles, in which she commented that there were "three people" in her marriage.

Senan West isn't the first child actor to star opposite a real-life parent.

Liam Neeson recently starred alongside his son Micheál Richardson in Made in Italy, while Honor Swinton Byrne appeared alongside her mum Tilda Swinton in The Souvenir: Part II.

Senan's older sister Martha West has also appeared opposite their father Dominic in the recent BBC adaptation of The Pursuit of Love.