People reported that Netflix has declined to renew its contract with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. The much-hyped deal for the Sussexes to produce shows and films for the platform was said to be worth an eye-watering $100 million. But the promised content was thin on the ground and failed to ignite audience’s interest. Meghan’s lifestyle show With Love, Meghan did well at first but was lambasted by most critics. A documentary series on the world of polo came and went without much attention. The British press is, of course, having a field day with this story, citing it as yet another example of the couple failing in their attempts to be Hollywood bigshots outside of the Royal Family. Then again, the tabloids on this side of the pond would find a way to make every minor movement of their lives into a signal of the apocalypse. But it’s also become increasingly hard to ignore, even for the Sussex die-hards, that Meghan and Harry seem rather lost in this high-stakes world of celebrity where one is expected to have a brand that works.
It’s not just the Netflix show, of course. The couple’s equally expensive Spotify deal fizzled after one podcast exclusive that struggled to carve out a niche in a highly saturated market. Meghan now has a new podcast on a different platform called Confessions of a Female Founder, but its online footprint is weirdly small and nobody seems to be talking about it. Meghan also has her own product line, As ever, which sells things like wine, crepe mix, and apricot jam. They are mostly sold out on the company website and fans have been complaining about the wait time for them to return to stock.
I think it’s only fair to note how much it must suck to have to restart your life in your mid-30s and then reinvent your image for the masses so that you can profit from it because there aren’t a lot of other options available to you. And to do it with the traumatic weight of the world’s press braying for your blood with every minute choice you make? I’d simply crawl into the sea. When the Sussexes left the frontline of the Windsor firm, they came out swinging. There was the Oprah interview, Harry’s very successful book deal, and a slew of big business signings. They had so many new routes open to them. But as time has passed, it’s tough to ignore the sense that they either don’t have much to offer or they’re so confined by their own timidity that they won’t allow themselves to branch out.
Let’s look at what they’ve done so far, what’s worked and what hasn’t. Spare worked because it was raw, revealing, and juicy. It was the first-hand account of a cloistered world that people were eager to consume. Harry didn’t burn every bridge but the whole thing still felt like an exorcism for a man who’d been screaming out for one for decades. Their first Netflix project about themselves also tapped into that frustration they clearly felt and one that audiences sympathised with. But these were also works that were about them and the royals. They were, if not personality driven, then certainly inextricably connected to their statuses as members of the elite.
But their new stuff is stuck between their old and new worlds. Do they become full-on rich people, GOOP-style, or do they become #relatable? With Love, Meghan tried to straddle those lines with aspirational wealth combined with accessible domesticity, but many found it to be sorely lacking. I felt the show was perfectly inoffensive, but isn’t that also a problem? Where’s the urgency to engage with it? I didn’t disagree with negative reviews that noted how none of the Martha Stewart cosplay came naturally to Meghan. I’m sure she likes to cook and make candles – I do too – but you don’t watch the series and think about how she’s dedicated years of her life to the craft like Martha or Ina Garten. On her pre-marriage lifestyle website The Tig, Meghan was great at collating content. Being the figurehead of it, and for TV, is a far taller order.
Being seen as a creator is a different skill set. We have different standards for showrunners, authors, podcasters, etc (well, maybe not podcasters, but you get my point.) We expect talent, a unique perspective, and the ability to appeal to an audience. I’m not sure the Sussexes can or want to do any of that. They didn’t go out and promote their Netflix or Spotify work, assuming their names were publicity enough (which wasn’t untrue but it’s not a long-term plan. Even Beyoncé had to do interviews and red carpet bits for a long time before she accrued the power to bypass that process.) If you’re going to act so above it in the marketing then the content has to be undeniably good. And it just isn’t.
Meghan and Harry were such a big deal while in the royal fold because they seemed so much more charming and appealing than the Cambridges, who felt stuffy and old-school by comparison. But being the most charismatic royal is a very low bar to clear, and in the world of celebrities, influencers, and the attention economy, the standards are different. Surely this pair is capable of some vulnerability or inquisitiveness? They’re clearly trying to follow in the footsteps of the Obamas, whose Higher Ground Productions has offered us Oscar winners and critically acclaimed films, TV shows, documentaries, and podcasts. Of course, the Obamas are also once-in-a-generation personalities with an insurmountable legacy. But they’re also hard workers with a wide reach in the worlds of politics and culture. Higher Ground has a huge range of offerings, including stuff you probably didn’t know was even connected to the Obamas. They used their clout to elevate things they believed it. More crucially, they’re not the faces of every show or film. They don’t need to be because the work speaks for itself.
Is this what the Sussexes should be doing? If they want to be a power couple then they need to show some real power. They need to throw their weight behind things they care about. It’s obvious that issues of philanthropy and public service are what they’re most passionate on. That’s not a for-profit enterprise (or at least it shouldn’t be, but celebrity charities have a mixed reputation for a reason.) But why not put more focus on others through your platform like the Obamas? Produce documentaries or put your weight behind underseen creators in these many mediums you have such incredible access to.
I can’t help but wonder if the Sussexes are getting bad advice or just think their own names is the work itself. Right now, a couple of Netflix shows, two podcasts, a book and some jam is not an impressive or sustainable output for celebrity. They’re not creators or great business people or personalities of their time. They’re not experts on much beyond themselves.
But what makes this all the more frustrating is that these bad decisions make sense from their perspective. They wanted more control over their lives without having to be beholden to a cruel media system that has been intensely racist, sexist, and xenophobic towards Meghan and unreasonably nasty about their kids. Wouldn’t you be a closed door under those circumstances, too? I imagine remoulding yourself into a Montecito influencer who makes jam and wears cashmere in someone else’s house was alluring for many reasons. But being a celebrity means you have to engage in a system you dislike. It requires massive commitment and a give-and-take relationship, as well as being able to offer something that people want. Is there any there there beyond them being royals? Or are they just not willing to show that?
