‘The Crown’ Sets Tobias Menzies as New Prince Philip

The Crown has found its new Prince Philip.

Outlander and Game of Thrones star Tobias Menzies has been booked to take over the role from Matt Smith for the upcoming third season of the hit Netflix series.

According to Deadline, Menzies has signed on for the next two seasons and will begin shooting this summer in the UK. Paul Bethany had been rumored to play the role before Menzies but backed out before negotiations ended for unspecified reasons.

Menzies is known for his roles as Edmure Tully in Game of Thrones and the dual roles of Fran Randall and the sadistic Black Hack Randall in Starz’s Outlander. The actor most recently wrapped playing the Duke of Cornwall in King Lear alongside Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson. He’s also currently starring in AMC’s The Terror.

The actor will take over the role Matt Smith, who starred in the first to seasons algonside Claire Foy in the series following the reign of Queen Elizabeth II. Olivia Colman will take over the role of Elizabeth and Helena Bonham Carter will be playing Princess Margaret, replacing Vanessa Kirby.

The Crown recently made headlines after it was revealed that Foy made significantly less money for her role on the show than her co-star Smith.

Foy addressed the controversy Friday.

“I’m surprised because I’m at the center of it, and anything that I’m at the center of like that is very, very odd, and feels very, very out of ordinary,” Foy said. “But I’m not [surprised about the interest in the story] in the sense that it was a female-led drama. I’m not surprised that people saw [the story] and went, ‘Oh, that’s a bit odd.’ But I know that Matt feels the same that I do, that it’s odd to find yourself at the center [of a story] that you didn’t particularly ask for.”

Left Bank Pictures, the production company behind the series, issued an apology regarding the wage gap an the INTV conference in Jerusalem after the story broke.

“We want to apologize to both Claire Foy and to Matt Smith, brilliant actors and friends, who have found themselves at the center of a media storm this week through no fault of their own,” the statement read. “Claire and Matt are incredibly gifted actors who, along with the wider cast on The Crown have worked tirelessly to bring our characters to life with compassion and integrity.”

“As the producers of The Crown, we at Left Bank Pictures are responsible for budgets and salaries; the actors are not aware of who gets what, and cannot be held personally responsible for the pay of their colleagues,” the statement added.

Executive Producer Suzanne Mackie revealed at a press conference that going forward, the actress who plays Queen Elizabeth will be the highest-paid performer on the series.