Lead Actress Claire Foy Made Less Than Co-Star Matt Smith On 'The Crown'

Common sense would dictate that if you play the lead in a TV series, you should get paid the most. Well, if you are Claire Foy from Netflix’sThe Crown,” then, infuriatingly, that isn’t the case.

While speaking at the INTV Conference, “The Crown” producers Andy Harries and Suzanne Mackie, dropped a few budgetary nuggets about the acclaimed Netflix series about Queen Elizabeth II. First, Harries had some foreboding words about the repercussions of Netflix’s latest spending spree on the budgets of their current TV series, including “The Crown.”

“We’re victims of our own success, but so is Netflix,” said Harries. “The Ryan Murphy deal is a problem for us all.” The deal in question could potentially pay out $300 million to Murphy.

The producers went even further, breaking down the cost of each episode of the period drama. Apparently, according to Harries, each episode cost upwards of $7 million and shot for 22 days. “We put that money on the screen,” said Harries. He also noted that a lot of money went to star Claire Foy’s wardrobe, which consisted of 120 costumes just for the second season.

Speaking of Foy, the biggest shock of the discussion came when the question of cast salaries came up. The producers admitted that Matt Smith, of “Doctor Who” fame, made more money on the series than the star, Foy. However, in the future, this wouldn’t be the case.

“Going forward, no one gets paid more than the Queen,” said Mackie.

Unfortunately for Foy, that doesn’t mean much. The series is jumping forward in time for the upcoming season 3 and replacing many of the actors. Guess that’s good news for the unannounced incoming actress that will play an older Queen Elizabeth and tough luck for Foy.

There is a lot of anticipation for the third season. With the time jump, the series is set to introduce many members of the modern royalty, including a young Princess Diana. “Those are going to be extraordinary, those episodes,” said Mackie.