Michael Sheen & Ruth Wilson to Lead 'A Very Royal Scandal'

Another round of Scandal is heading its way to Prime Video, and this time the anthology series will tackle a much more recent (and uncomfortable) story. The streamer is moving ahead with A Very Royal Scandal, a three-part drama that follows Prime Video's previous efforts, A Very English Scandal starring Hugh Grant (The Undoing) and Ben Whishaw (This is Going to Hurt) and A Very British Scandal starring Claire Foy (The Crown) and Paul Bettany (WandaVision). This latest series will focus on the bombshell 2019 Newsnight interview with Queen Elizabeth II's son, Prince Andrew, in which he disastrously tried to explain his "friendship" with the American financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Though Andrew is reported to have initially believed the interview went well before it was broadcast, it was an utter disaster, during which he failed to show any remorse for his friendship with Epstein, could not explain why he continued to associate with the man after his conviction for sexual offenses related to underage girls, or express things like basic sympathy for the victims. He also attempted to refute allegations that he himself had a sexual relationship with an underage girl who had been trafficked by Epstein, deploying a barrage of truly bizarre claims and excuses, including that he had been in a Pizza Express in Woking on the night the encounter with his alleged victim Virginia Giuffre was supposed to have taken place. (He also claimed he had a rare condition that meant he couldn't sweat, among other things.)

The Newsnight interview essentially ended Prince Andrew’s career as a working royal. He was banned from appearing at public events with the family, except in cases where he could appear as a private citizen (he was allowed to attend the funeral of his mother last year), stripped of many of his patronages, and barred from styling himself as “His Royal Highness.”