The View Co-Hosts Sound Off About Dame Judi Dench's Reaction To The Crown

"The Crown" Season 5 is almost upon us, but already the hit Netflix show is generating a surprising amount of controversy. Royal watchers believe Season 5 of "The Crown" will have King Charles shaking in his boots, and for good reason. The show is tackling a tumultuous period for the royal family in the early '90s. In particular, Princess Diana's crumbling relationship with then-Prince Charles will be excavated in excruciating detail, per People. 

In fact, Variety suggested 1992 could be a major focus since that was the year three out of the queen's four adult children separated from their partners. Likewise, Windsor Castle was heavily damaged by a fire, so the period is rife with drama. One person who won't be tuning in to see how it all pans out, though, is Dame Judi Dench. The actor wrote an open letter to The Times, which was shared on Twitter by royal author Omid Scobie, decrying the show. 

Dench requested that Netflix include a disclaimer clarifying that "The Crown" is fictionalized, in case viewers are unable to separate fact from fabrication. She argued, "The closer the drama comes to our present times, the more freely it seems willing to blur the lines between historical accuracy and crude sensationalism." The actor even described certain storylines as "both cruelly unjust to the individuals and damaging to the institution they represent." On the latest episode of "The View," the co-hosts wondered whether Dench was right, or simply underestimating the show's viewers. 

During the October 20 episode of "The View," discussion turned to Dame Judi Dench's recent comments about the upcoming season of "The Crown." In response to the legendary actor decrying Season 5's salacious storylines about, among other things, Princess Diana's controversial "Panorama" interview, which will reportedly take up an entire episode, Whoopi Goldberg wondered aloud whether viewers know the show is "historical fiction." 

Sara Haines replied, "I think if you put too much truth, in there, true storylines, I think it confuses people." Haines added, "I think a disclaimer is the least they could do for historical accuracy," which was Dench's main issue with Netflix, since the streaming giant has opted not to do so, at least thus far anyway. However, Joy Behar pointed out that "The Crown" is meant to be entertainment first. "It is not a documentary," she stated firmly. 

Behar continued, "If you have a brain, you can figure out that the writers have used history, and if it's documented history then we can believe it." She pointed to intimate conversations that happened behind closed doors, which the filmmakers weren't present for, reasoning nobody would believe those were wholly accurate since they couldn't possibly be. Sunny Hostin, meanwhile, reiterated a disclaimer should be included, just for posterity. 

Season 5 is already teeming with controversy, with The Sun reporting even crew members are concerned that certain elements, including Diana's untimely death, aren't being treated with the requisite care.