‘The Crown’: Amir El-Masry Cast as Young Billionaire Mohamed Al-Fayed

Award-winning British-Egyptian actor Amir El-Masry (The One) has been cast in The Crown as the young Mohamed al-Fayed, the billionaire ex-Harrods owner whose son was romantically linked to Princess Diana.

As reported by Variety, El-Masry will share the role with Salim Daw (Oslo), who will play the older incarnation of Mohamed al-Fayed in the fifth season of the hit Netflix drama. Mohamed was the father of film producer Dodi Fayed, who died in a tragic car crash with Diana in Paris on August 31, 1997.

The role of Dodi will be played by Khalid Abdalla (The Kite Runner), while Tenet star Elizabeth Debicki is set to portray Diana. Other cast members announced for Season 5 include Imelda Staunton (Trying) as Queen Elizabeth II,  Jonathan Pryce (Game of Thrones) as Prince Philip, Lesley Manville (Magpie Murders) as Princess Margaret, Dominic West (The Wire) as Prince Charles, Olivia Williams (The Nevers) as Camilla Parker Bowles, and Jonny Lee Miller (Elementary) as Prime Minister John Major.

El-Masry was born in Cairo and raised in London and began his career in small roles in British mini-series such as The Night Manager and The State. He would go on to star in recurring roles in the BBC drama Age Before Beauty, Amazon Prime Video’s Jack Ryan, and the HBO series Industry. In 2020, he played a Syrian asylum-seeker in Ben Sharrock’s film Limbo, which earned him a BAFTA Scotland acting award.

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'The Crown' Begins Casting Teen Prince William, Prince Harry for Season 6

While The Crown Season 5 is set to premiere in November 2022, the popular period drama has already been renewed for a sixth and final season. Scheduled to begin filming in August 2022, Season 6 is expected to cover the life of the royal family in the early 2000s, which would feature teenage Prince William and Prince Harry.

The Crown, Season 5, Netflix, November 2022.