Running for six acclaimed seasons from 2016 to 2023, The Crown reigned supreme as TV's most majestic drama. Chronicling the life of the late Queen Elizabeth II and other members of the royal family, the multi-award-winning series famously refreshed its principal cast every two seasons, a daring move that showcased a new generation of talent alongside celebrated veterans.
Read on to discover which of the show's ensemble is worth the most and discover who truly wears the financial crown. All dollar amounts in US dollars.
A go-to actor for royal roles, Alex Jennings has portrayed King Ferdinand of Spain in a 1990s TV movie, Prince Charles in The Queen, the 2006 precursor to The Crown from creator Peter Morgan, and King Leopold I of Belgium in Victoria. In The Crown, he played the exiled Duke of Windsor in seasons one and two, briefly reprising the role in season five.
Away from screen royalty, Jennings is one of Britain's most esteemed and versatile stage performers, and the only actor to have won Olivier Awards across the drama, musical, and comedy categories.
Clancy Brown joined The Crown in season three's Margaretology episode as President Lyndon B. Johnson, who found himself regaled by Princess Margaret's filthy limericks.
The role was a natural fit for Brown, long known for playing commanding and authoritarian figures. A seasoned Hollywood character actor, he's renowned for his villainous turns, from Frankenstein's monster and the immortal Kurgan in Highlander to the brutal prison guard in The Shawshank Redemption. He's also an accomplished voice actor, lending his distinctive timbre to the likes of Lex Luthor and Savage Opress in Star Wars: The Clone Wars.
With a glittering career spanning stage and screen, Imelda Staunton brought serious acting pedigree to The Crown. Before being tapped to portray the late Queen in the show's final two seasons, the London-born actress was best known for her outstanding performance in Vera Drake, as well as her unforgettable turn as the tyrannical Dolores Umbridge in the Harry Potter films.
Staunton also appeared in Downton Abbey and numerous acclaimed stage productions. Now a Dame of the British Empire, she continues to add to her fortune with lucrative side projects, including voicing Lloyds Bank's long-running UK TV adverts.
Natascha McElhone joined The Crown in season five as Lady Penelope Knatchbull, Countess Mountbatten of Burma, a close confidante of Prince Philip.
Long before her royal turn, the Surrey-born actress had already built an impressive résumé with roles in Surviving Picasso, Ronin, and The Truman Show, as well as her outstanding performance in Californication. A former brand ambassador for Neutrogena, McElhone has continued to balance film, TV, and commercial work, most recently starring as Dr Catherine Halsey in the sci-fi series Halo.
One of two Australian actors to appear in major roles in The Crown, Richard Roxburgh portrayed Prime Minister Bob Hawke in season six. The other was Elizabeth Debicki, the show’s third Princess Diana, who incidentally has an estimated net worth of $4 million (£3.1m).
A multi-award-winning actor and director, Roxburgh has featured in Baz Luhrmann's Moulin Rouge!, Mission: Impossible 2, Van Helsing, and more recently, Luhrmann's Elvis biopic.
The heart of The Crown’s first two seasons, Claire Foy wowed critics and audiences alike with her Emmy and Golden Globe-winning portrayal of the young Queen Elizabeth, a role that sent her career into the stratosphere.
Foy, who first gained attention with her breakout performance as Anne Boleyn in the BBC's Wolf Hall, has since gone on to star in major films such as Unsane, The Girl in the Spider's Web, and All of US Strangers, as well as a slew of top-notch TV shows.
Matthew Goode played Antony Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of Snowdon, Princess Margaret's photographer husband.
Goode's other prestige TV roles have included Finley 'Finn' Polmar in The Good Wife and Henry Talbot in Downton Abbey, while his film credits range from Leap Year to The Imitation Game. In terms of side hustles, Goode has modelled for premium menswear brands such as Pal Zileri, Thomas Pink, and Hackett London.
Best known as Stannis Baratheon in Game of Thrones, Stephen Dillane brought his trademark intensity to The Crown's first season. In the episode Assassins, he portrayed artist Graham Sutherland, who famously infuriated Winston Churchill by painting an unflattering portrait of the wartime leader.
A respected screen and stage veteran, Dillane's résumé also includes noteworthy roles in The Hours, King Arthur, and Mary Shelley.
Sir Derek Jacobi has enjoyed a distinguished career across stage and screen, earning a knighthood in 1994 for services to theatre. Renowned for his Emmy-winning performance in I, Claudius, the storied thespian has long been one of the UK's most admired actors.
In The Crown, Jacobi portrayed the second incarnation of the cast-out Duke of Windsor, bringing characteristic gravitas to the role.
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The son of legendary Irish actor Richard Harris, Jared Harris built his own formidable career with standout roles in I Shot Andy Warhol and Natural Born Killers before earning widespread recognition as Lane Pryce in Mad Men. In The Crown, he delivered a moving performance as the ailing King George VI.
Since then, Harris has continued to impress with masterful turns in Chernobyl and Apple TV+'s sci-fi epic Foundation.
A household name in the UK thanks to his run as Doctor Who, Matt Smith brought wit and steel to his portrayal of Prince Philip in The Crown's first two seasons. His performance garnered international acclaim and set the stage for his current role as Daemon Targaryen in Game of Thrones prequel series House of the Dragon.
Off screen, Smith has boosted his fortune through high-profile endorsement deals with brands including Audi, Burberry, and Paul Smith.
Charles Dance portrayed Lord Louis Mountbatten in The Crown's third and fourth seasons, embodying the royal family's influential patriarch and Prince Charles' confidant with his signature screen presence and poise.
Dance first rose to prominence in The Jewel in the Crown and White Mischief, and later became a global name as Tywin Lannister in Game of Thrones. More recently, he has appeared in The Imitation Game and Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein, cementing his reputation as one of Britain's most brilliant acting talents.
Taking over from Claire Foy, Olivia Colman wore the crown in seasons three and four.
Before the Netflix series, Colman was most known for her comedic turns in The Office, Peep Show, and Green Wing, before moving into dramatic roles in Broadchurch, The Night Manager, and The Iron Lady. Since The Crown, she has won an Oscar for portraying another monarch, Queen Anne in The Favourite, and continues to enjoy the kind of career most actors can only dream of, with standout roles across TV and film.
Jonny Lee Miller made his mark in the 1990s with attention-grabbing roles in Hackers, Trainspotting, and Mansfield Park, and was half of a Hollywood golden couple with then-wife Angelina Jolie. He later carved out a successful career on both sides of the Atlantic, most notably playing a modern-day Sherlock Holmes in the hit US series Elementary.
In The Crown's fifth and sixth seasons, Miller brought quiet strength and subtle authority to the role of Prime Minister John Major.
Jonathan Pryce joined The Crown for its final two seasons as the third incarnation of Prince Philip.
By that point, the Welsh actor was already a revered stage and screen presence, having notched up award-winning performances in Hamlet and Miss Saigon, and major film roles in Brazil, Evita, Tomorrow Never Dies, and the Pirates of the Caribbean series. His TV work has been equally impressive, with appearances in Return to Cranford, Wolf Hall, and Game of Thrones.
Taking over from Josh O'Connor, Dominic West stepped into the role of Prince Charles for seasons five and six of the show, which depict the tumultuous breakdown of his marriage to Princess Diana and the events surrounding her tragic death in 1997.
Already lauded for wow-factor performances in The Wire and The Affair, West ascended to yet another career high with his sympathetic portrayal of the future king.
With a career spanning six decades, Geraldine Chaplin has appeared in classics such as Doctor Zhivago, Nashville, and Cría Cuervos. In The Crown, she portrayed the second incarnation of Wallis Simpson, the Duchess of Windsor.
The US-born actress is showbiz royalty in real life and a bona fide Hollywood heiress. Upon his death in 1977, her legendary father Charlie Chaplin left an estate worth the equivalent of around $400 million (£305m) in today's money. Geraldine later inherited a share but sold her stake, including lucrative merchandising and image rights, to one of her sisters.
A global star courtesy of his turn as James Bond, Timothy Dalton played 007 in 1980s movies The Living Daylights and Licence to Kill. He went on to avoid the usual Bond typecasting, opting for a diversity of roles in everything from Hot Fuzz and The Tourist to Penny Dreadful.
In The Crown's fifth season, Dalton appeared as Group Captain Peter Townsend, Princess Margaret's ill-fated first love.
One of the few American actors playing British figures in the show, Gillian Anderson stunned audiences as Margaret Thatcher in season four, nailing the former British prime minister's accent and mannerisms with uncanny precision.
Anderson first shot to global fame and serious wealth as Agent Dana Scully in The X-Files, eventually negotiating equal pay to her co-star David Duchovny and earning around $240,000 (£209k) per episode in later seasons, plus millions from the spin-off films. Since then, she has become a fixture of prestige TV and theatre, with stellar performances in The Fall, Sex Education, and Hannibal.
Like Gillian Anderson, John Lithgow was among the rare American actors trusted to play an iconic British figure in the show. A long-established Hollywood veteran with major stage, TV, and film credits, he joined The Crown already clutching multiple top awards. He went on to add another Emmy to his trophy case for his breathtaking portrayal of Winston Churchill.
Lithgow was the highest-paid actor across The Crown's first two seasons, according to co-star Jared Harris. Industry reports put his salary at around $100,000 (£76k) per episode. Meanwhile, Claire Foy is said to have earned around $40,000 (£30k), less than Matt Smith, which sparked a highly publicised gender pay gap controversy.
Born into an actual aristocratic family, Helena Bonham Carter first made her name in period dramas before shredding her posh image with Fight Club and a string of Tim Burton films. Her biggest payday is widely reported to be the Harry Potter franchise, where she played Bellatrix Lestrange across four movies.
In The Crown, Bonham Carter portrayed Princess Margaret in seasons three and four, earning widespread praise for her complex and nuanced take on the role.
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