Netflix Orders New Drama THE CROWN Based on Peter Morgan's 'The Audience'

Variety reports that Netflix has put in an initial order for the new drama series THE CROWN, based on writer Peter Morgan's play 'The Audience,' directed by 'Billy Elliot's Stephen Daldry and produced by Andy Harries. Morgan, Daldry and Harries will serve as executive producers alongside Robert FOX and Matthew Byam Shaw.

The 10-episode season is set to debut worldwide in 2016 and marks Netflix's first U.K.- based original series.

The series will follow the story of "two of the most famous addresses in the world - Buckingham Palace and 10 Downing Street - and the intrigues, love lives and machinations behind the events that shaped the second half of the 20th century."

In a statement, Morgan commented, "'The Crown' is not only about the royal family but about an empire in decline, a world in disarray and the dawn of a new era. I am beyond thrilled to be reunited with partners from film, theatre and television for this epic project and delighted to be working for the first time with Netflix."

Although only one season has been ordered to date, the network explained that each additional season will feature a decade of Queen Elizabeth II's reign. Season one will commence with Elizabeth as a 25-year-old princess "faced with the daunting prospect of leading the world's most famous monarchy while forging a relationship with domineering Prime Minister Winston Churchill."

Said said Cindy Holland, VP of original content at Netflix, "'The Crown' is storytelling that lives somewhere between television and cinema from Britain's foremost chroniclers of modern politics, class and society. We are enormously proud to be the exclusive home of a series from Peter Morgan and Stephen Daldry that promises to fascinate and entertain audiences around the world."

Added Harries, "Peter is a writer at the height of his powers and Stephen Daldry is one of the most entertaining and original film directors in the world. The series will be hugely ambitious and surprising, and perfectly captures the changes and complexities of a post-war world."

No casting details have been revealed as of yet. Helen Mirren took on the role of Queen Elizabeth II in the stage drama.