Elizabeth Debicki Says ‘MaXXXine’ Role Was A “Medicinal Palate Cleanser” After Playing Princess Diana In ‘The Crown’

Daniel Escale/Netflix/Courtesy Everett Collection/Justin Lubin/A24/Courtesy Everett Collection

After taking on the tragic tale of the people’s princess, Elizabeth Debicki found just the part to shake things up.

The Golden Globe winner opened up about going from her critically-acclaimed performance on Netflix‘s The Crown to starring in MaXXXine, the concluding chapter of Ti West‘s X horror trilogy that is now playing in theaters.

“I shot this quite soon after wrapping on The Crown and I found it to be a very medicinal palate cleanser,” Debicki told Forbes.

She previously won a Golden Globe for her performance as the late Princess of Wales in seasons 5 and 6 of The Crown after taking over the role from Emma Corrin.

In MaXXXine, Debicki plays director Elizabeth Bender, who gives Maxine Minx (Mia Goth) her big break in the horror sequel The Puritan II. While fulfilling her dreams, the young starlet must outrun her sinister past while the Night Stalker preys on 1980s Los Angeles.

“I have no idea why this came my way, except that when I read the script it felt symbiotic and I felt really connected to the role,” she told Forbes.

“It’s a really interesting ride being an actor. It’s not really my job to see myself in certain ways, it’s my job to become the thing that people need me to become,” explained Debicki. “So, part of the joy of the job is when I get a phone call where someone says, ‘I really think you should play the part and will you read the script?’ and you think, ‘Huh? It’s really interesting how you see me and it’s accurate.’ There’s definitely some Liz Bender in me.”

Debicki also explained that “there is some Ti in Liz Bender” as she mirrors his initial struggle in Hollywood to make the trilogy, which also includes X and Pearl (both 2022).