Diana's brother: Stewart was incredible, Spencer was terrible
Princess Diana's younger brother Charles Spencer says Kristen Stewart gave an "incredible" performance as Diana — but calls the film around her "terrible."
He offered the blunt split verdict during an interview with Tina Brown at a McNally Jackson Books event. The conversation helped launch his memoir, Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, Variety reported on 8 October 2026. Spencer is Diana's younger brother, speaking about his sister's life on screen.
He watched it on a plane. Spencer said he first saw Pablo Larrain's 2021 film Spencer during a flight, with no cinema build-up and no crowd around him. Stewart does not really look like Diana, he told the audience, but she caught his sister's spirit, according to Variety. That was his praise. The film itself left him cold.
Spencer is a cinema retelling built around Diana, with Stewart in the central role. Larrain directed the 2021 release. The performance earned Stewart an Oscar nomination for best actress, one of the top honours in the US film industry.
Spencer said he has drawn the line at other screen versions. He told Brown he has never watched The Crown, Netflix's long-running drama series about the British royal family. In that show Diana is played by Emma Corrin in season four and by Elizabeth Debicki in seasons five and six, Variety noted. He gave no further reason for staying away.
The bookshop talk is part of a wider outing for the memoir. McNally Jackson Books hosted the evening as a launch for Swan Song with Spencer in conversation with Brown. During recent publicity around the book, Spencer has also discussed the difficulties of marrying into the British royal family, Yahoo Entertainment reported on 30 September 2026. He spoke at Westminster Abbey in September 1997 after losing his sister Diana, McNally Jackson records.
What makes this stand out is the clarity of the divide. Strong praise for the performer, no warmth for the picture. For viewers meeting Diana again through actors, it is a reminder that the same role can land very differently at home and on screen.
