“The only person I could see wasMeryl Streep.
“It was Meryl and my table.”
Illustration by Rachel Idzerda
THE AWARDIST: You were born in Paris, right?
Luther Ford as Prince Harry, Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana, and Ed McVey as Prince William on season 6 of ‘The Crown’.Netflix
But did you still live in Paris at the time of Princess Diana’s death in 1997?
ELIZABETH DEBICKI:No, I was in Australia by then.
We moved at the end of 1995.
Illustration by Rachel Idzerda
So yeah, so I was in Australia.
I don’t think so.
It never really occurred to me that that was informing anything because Paris was very foreign to her.
Khalid Ahballa as Dodi Fayed and Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana on season 6 of ‘The Crown’.Daniel Escale/Netflix
It wasn’t a place that she frequented often.
So that definitely happened for us.
We didn’t shoot a lot of it in Paris, to be honest with you.
Elizabeth Debicki on ‘The Crown’.Daniel Escale/Netflix
Do you remember when you got the call to come back around for season 5?
I can’t really remember, but I’m pretty sure I knew what it was for.
And there was a lot of diary books around and Royal family books around.
Elizabeth Debicki and Khalid Abdalla on ‘The Crown’.Daniel Escale/Netflix
I was very nervous.
I don’t know why.
So I guess I wanted to make the right impression.
I feel like I’m going to lose the job just from being myself.
So I was very nervous.
They were very nice to me and quite serious about it.
Jharrel Jerome in ‘I’m a Virgo’.Pete Lee/Prime Video
I guess they had already made up their minds.
And then I thought, ugh, I shouldn’t have taken it.
Anyway, it was awkward and he was very nice about it.
Nathan Fielder and Emma Stone in ‘The Curse’.Richard Foreman Jr./A24/Paramount+ with SHOWTIME
That was the meeting.
Diana’s life in many regards is exemplifies the saying, you couldn’t write it if you tried.
This is also one of those roles that I feel like actors crave to play one day.
Devery Jacobs on ‘Reservation Dogs’.Shane Brown/FX
I’m curious if that was the case for you.
Were you hoping one day for something like this?
Yeah, absolutely this was the kind of thing I dreamed of being asked to do.
To create or to recreate?
To emulate or to make it your own?
So it was a wildly wonderful and challenging job.
Netflix; FX; ABC
And then at times it felt like this sort of endless stretch of material…
So that was such a different experience having Khalid there.
I never felt lonely or really overwhelmed.
Yeah, no, no, no, I didn’t want to.
[Being there] was not necessary for either of us.
But when all of you heard this, was it good for a laugh?
Maya Rudolph on season 2 of ‘Loot,’ hosting ‘Saturday Night Live’ in May 2024, and her ‘Big Mouth’ character Hormone Monster.Courtesy of Apple TV+; Will Heath/NBC via Getty; COURTESY OF NETFLIX
Was it eye rolls?I didn’t fullynotexpect it.
But I actually think those scenes work really well.
I think they’re keeping in tone with the show itself.
Jon Hamm on ‘Fargo’ and season 3 of ‘The Morning Show’.Michelle Faye/FX; Apple TV+
But I didn’t completely not expect it.
I think I thought, okay, yeah, here we go.
It works with some people, it doesn’t work for other people.
Donald Glover on ‘Mr. & Mrs. Smith’.David Lee/Prime Video
And I’m curious, that makes you feel…how?
Fill in the blank.
I’m proud of that work.
Lisa Ann Walter, Quinta Brunson, Chris Perfetti, and Sheryl Lee Ralph on season 3 of ‘Abbott Elementary’.Gilles Mingasson/Disney
I feel peaceful about that.
So yeah, I would be thrilled if that was the case.
It’s the kind of job you want to come along, and then you do your best.
Kristen Wiig on ‘Palm Royale’ and hosting ‘Saturday Night Live’ in April 2024.Apple TV+; Will Heath/NBC via Getty
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Listen to Debicki’s full interview onThe Awardistpodcast, below.
While the 2024 Emmy nominations announcement delivered some delightful surprises (Reservation Dogs!The Traitors!
Richard Gadd in ‘Baby Reindeer’.Netflix
The voters couldn’t even rewardthe mind-blowing finalewith a nod in the Outstanding Stunt Coordination category.
(Congrats, however, to Lead Actor in a Comedy Series nominee D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai!)
(He, too, was snubbed!)
Jonathan Pryce on season 6 of ‘The Crown’ and season 3 of ‘Slow Horses’.Justin Downing/Netflix; Apple TV+
Did we mention that Jacobs made their directing debut this season as well with an episode called “Wahoo!
“, about the spirit of Elora’s late mother, Cookie (Janae Collins)?
Well, they did.
And yet, Devery Jacobs received not a single nomination.
To that we say, “Wa-huh?”
Read more of Kristen’s snub and surprises.
Henry Winkler during his win at the 2018 Emmys.Kevin Winter/Getty
Emmys Flashback
Kevin Winter/Getty
I wrote this 43 years ago.
And tonight, I got to erase the table!
“HENRY WINKLER | SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES, 2018 |BARRY
