‘The Crown’ Season 3 Cast Rumors: ‘Avengers’ Star May Play Prince Philip

UPDATE: Jan. 25, 1:01 p.m. EST — Paul Bettany will not play Prince Philip. TVLine reports that scheduling conflicts prevented the actor from officially signing on.

Original story: “The Crown” Season 3 is recasting all the major roles as the characters age, and that includes Prince Philip. Matt Smith is on his way out, but it looks like a movie star will replace him on the Netflix drama.

Paul Bettany is reportedly in negotiations to play Prince Phillip in “The Crown” Season 3 and Season 4, Variety reports. Though the deal is not done yet, it looks like he is the top choice right now.

Variety reports that Bettany would need to block off six months of time for Season 3. Scheduling longterm projects is difficult for any actor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The British actor plays superhero Vision in the “Avengers” films, but luckily, “Avengers: Infinity War” and “Avengers 4” filmed back-to-back and wrapped earlier this month. With few Marvel films announced beyond the fourth superhero team up, it seems like Bettany might have room in his busy schedule.

“The Crown” would be Bettany’s second TV series based on true events in recent years. Last summer, the actor starred in “Manhunt: Unabomber” on Discovery Channel. Bettany played Ted Kaczynski, a man who had been sending bombs through the mail for 20 years before getting caught.

When Bettany spoke to International Business Times in July for the Discovery series, he revealed that he’d been searching for the right TV role. “I’ve been looking for something to do that was sort of more long form … There’s more time and lots of nuance,” he told IBT.

It isn’t clear how long Bettany, 46, has been in talks to replace Matt Smith, 35. In December, Smith hinted that someone was in negotiations, and he seemed happy with the choice.

“I maybe know,” he teased during “Late Night with Seth Meyers.” “I don’t know if I know. I’m not meant to know, but I do maybe know… He’s brilliant. If it’s the person I think it might be, he’s incredibly handsome as well.”

It isn’t clear if Smith was speaking about Bettany.

From the beginning, “The Crown” has been clear that the cast members are temporary. “Broadchurch” star Olivia Colman is confirmed to take over Claire Foy’s role as Queen Elizabeth II. Princess Margaret actress Vanessa Kirby is reportedly being recast with Helena Bonham Carter. While Netflix has yet to confirm that, Kirby seemingly confirmed the news on her Instagram.

“The Crown” Season 3 is expected to be released in late 2018.