Entertainment
Queen Elizabeth II
This film predicts the reign of King Charles will inspire a sex scandal, violent protests, and Princess Di’s ghost
this giant penis do the talking—there’s no denying the historical nature of the new King of England’s crowning.Especially after Queen Elizabeth II’s 70-plus-year reign, it feels hard to even imagine what the future of the British monarchy looks like under Charles’ rule.But “imagine” is exactly what playwright Mike Bartlett did when he wrote King Charles III in 2014—a play staged well in advance of the Queen’s passing—which attempted to predict what would go down when Charles ascended to the throne. And guess what? Things get messy fast.In 2017, Bartlett (known for writing the infamously titled Cock) adapted the play to film for The BBC—featuring most of the original cast—and it would later air in the US as part of PBS’ Masterpiece series.