Michael Sheen has opened up about his portrayal of Prince Andrew in the new Prime Video series A Very Royal Scandal and why he found the role so "compelling".

On November 14, 2019, inside Buckingham Palace, BBC Newsnight journalist Emily Maitlis made history with a "globally impactful" interview with the Duke of York.

Maitlis grilled Prince Andrew with questions about his friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and allegations from Virginia Roberts (now Giuffre) which stated she was coerced into a sexual relationship with the duke when she was 17. 

This interview shocked the world.

Now, nearly five years on it has been turned into a Prime Video series - A Very Royal Scandal - starring Sheen (Good Omens, The Twilight franchise) as the Duke of York and Ruth Wilson (Luther) as Maitlis.

Michael Sheen reveals what it was like playing Prince Andrew

Ahead of the release of A Very Royal Scandal this month, Sheen, speaking to PA Media, revealed what it was like to step into the Duke of York's shoes and what compelled him to take on the role.

The Welsh actor said: "Any character that I’m presented with the possibility of playing, I will only play that character if it excites me, if it interests me, and if it challenges me.

"And obviously, I, like everybody else, was aware of the story, what it was based on, but I, like everybody else, only knew certain bits of it.

"I’d seen the interview when it came out, I knew the controversies around it and the reactions to it, I knew a little about Prince Andrew, having grown up in this country and knowing his reputation and the public profile and all that kind of stuff.

"But then, in reading the scripts, part of what is so compelling about it, is lifting the veil on what’s going on behind-the-scenes."

Michael Sheen stars in A Very Royal Scandal alongside Luther star Ruth Wilson.Michael Sheen stars in A Very Royal Scandal alongside Luther actress Ruth Wilson. (Image: Courtesy of Prime Video)

Sheen added, for him, the new Prime Video series was a story about the dangers of privilege and entitlement and the far-reaching effects it can have.

He said: "The more we’ve been working on it, it’s become clearer and clearer to me that it’s a story about the dangers of privilege and the dangers of entitlement, both for the person who has that privilege and entitlement but also for the society that is the context for it.

"And how easy it becomes to exploit people and situations, and to feel justified in doing that somehow. Or to not even think about it too much because you don’t have to, and the injustice in that.

"And when that happens, it is very difficult for people who have very little privilege and very little power or voice to confront that and to get people to listen."

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Sheen concluded by saying: "So, I hope that an audience will come away from this having had an experience of that and seeing the far-reaching effects. Not only for within this story, but within our culture."

When to watch A Very Royal Scandal on Prime Video

All three episodes of A Very Royal Scandal will be available on Prime Video from Thursday, September 19.