He is a disgraced prince.
Michael Sheen, 55, transforms into the infamous Prince Andrew in the premiere of Prime Video’s series “A Very Royal Scandal.”
Sheen is used to playing everything from angels (Good Omens) to serial killers (Prodigal Son), and now the Welsh star will be taking on the role of a disgraced British royal.
The series will dramatise the infamous Newsnight interview with Prince Andrew and Emily Maitlis (played by Ruth Wilson from The Affair).
Per Prime Video’s description, “One night. One hour. The interview that shocked the world. Based on the true story of an interview conducted in 2019 by Emily Maitlis and Prince Andrew regarding the scandalous allegations they faced regarding their involvement with Jeffrey Epstein and Virginia Giuffre.”
The official synopsis continues: “A Very Royal Scandal follows Maitlis and Prince Andrew’s actions leading up to the interview, the groundbreaking event itself, and the many questions left in its aftermath that would change their lives forever.”
During the infamous interview, the BBC presenter and his team confronted the Duke of York, now 64, about his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who is believed to have committed suicide earlier that year.
She also confronted Prince Andrew about Giuffre’s sexual abuse allegations, which he denied (and they settled her lawsuit out of court in 2022).
At the time, Prince Andrew defended his choice to stay at the convicted sex offender’s home during a visit to New York, famously (and bizarrely) saying Epstein’s residence was “a convenient place to stay.”
As a result of the disastrous interview, Prince Andrew was relieved of his royal duties by his mother, Queen Elizabeth.
“It was a devastating moment for both parties. His reputation was in tatters,” a source told The Sun at the time about the overwhelming backlash.
The interview was also dramatized in the film “Scoop,” which released on Netflix in April, starring Rufus Sewell as Prince Andrew and Gillian Anderson as Emily Maitlis.
The cast of A Very Royal Scandal also includes Joanna Scanlan (After Love) as Andrew’s personal assistant Amanda Thirsk, Ena Hardwick as Newsnight deputy editor Stewart, Alexander Owen (Dreaming Whilst Black) as investigative producer Jake Morris, Sam Troughton as the Queen’s press secretary Donal McCabe, Claire Rushbrook as Andrew’s ex-wife Sarah Ferguson and Clare Calbraith as Newsnight booker Sam McAllister.
The show is being produced by actual Maitlis executives, and the series is part of an anthology series that also includes “A Very English Scandal” (starring Hugh Grant as a politician who plots to kill his lover) and “A Very British Scandal” (starring Paul Bettany and Claire Foy and dealing with the divorce of the Duke and Duchess of Argyll).
“A Very Royal Scandal” will premiere on Prime Video on September 19th.
