Prince Harry and Meghan Markle seem like lovely people. Despite some harrowing experiences in their love story, they seem to have good intentions and they have two very cute children. Overall, they're…okay. They are also incredibly famous. But this combination of decency and notoriety doesn't necessarily lead them to become great businessmen or media moguls, as companies have spent millions of dollars on them with mixed results, as evidenced by the mixed results. isn't it.
Netflix announced on April 11 that two new shows from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are in the early stages of production. The first is a series “curated” by Meghan that, according to the vague logline, “celebrates the joys of cooking, gardening, entertaining and friendship.” The second is about professional polo and will be filmed at the Florida championships. A film crew followed Harry as he played in a polo match this month.
The works are part of a deal the pair signed with the streaming platform in 2020, reportedly worth $100 million. That has led to some hit works, be Hit: Harry and Meghan, a multi-part documentary about the couple's romance, royal dalliances and emigration to the United States. It became the most-watched documentary debut on Netflix. (For those who haven't seen it yet, in my opinion, the early episodes are very good, but they drag until the end.)
There were also some setbacks with H&M's deal with Netflix. Netflix withdrew the animated children's series Pearl, created through Meghan and Harry's production company Archewell Productions, before it premiered. Netflix executives reportedly went with the idea because they thought kids wouldn't care who made the show, even if she were the Duchess. Two other documentary series they released on Netflix, “Heart of Invictus'' and “Live to Read,'' did not become big hits. The Wall Street Journal reported in 2023 that Netflix had rejected at least two TV proposals from Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry, and the company was unlikely to renew its contract with them in 2025. Netflix did not respond to a request for comment on this matter.
Despite its misfires, Netflix is having a better time than Spotify. The audio streaming company reportedly signed a deal worth $20 million with Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan in 2020. After a long period of silence on the radio, the couple finally announced a show called “Archetypes” in 2022. It's a 12-episode podcast hosted by Duchess Meghan about women and the “labels that try to hold them back.” In 2023, Spotify and the royal couple announced that they have agreed to part ways. The pair reportedly didn't pay the full $20 million because they couldn't produce enough content.
As WSJ points out, after four years out of the royal family's official orbit, the only seminal work Harry and Meghan have produced is a documentary and Harry's memoir, Spare. It's hard not to look at all of this and say, “Okay, Harry and Meghan seem like nice people, but if I were running a company, I probably wouldn't do big business with them.''
$100 million seemed like a good idea at the time, but who would have thought that the two would turn out to be such bad people in front of the cameras?
Spotify has already backed away from the Sussexes, but Netflix is still trying to work with them. Michael Pachter, a managing director at Wedbush Securities who has been in film, entertainment and technology for 20 years, said that's because they still have $100 million in deals. did. This is one of many deals Netflix made with celebrities such as Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Ryan Murphy, and Shonda Rhimes as it sought to establish itself and gain attention. It is.
“$100 million seemed like a good idea at the time, but who knew they would turn out to be such bad people in front of the cameras?” Pachter said.
It's possible that one or both shows could take off like a personal documentary about them. There are still mysteries surrounding Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry's story. Netflix may be hoping for a halo effect from Suits, the 2010s legal drama starring Markle that recently hit Netflix.
The currently proposed programs are likely to be relatively inexpensive to produce. It doesn't cost a lot to pay a photographer to film Prince Harry playing polo or Meghan Markle cooking something in the kitchen (if that's her show).Productivity prospects may be better because Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry don't actually have to do so do Most of the extra stuff other than existing as such. Harry doesn't have to come up with a podcast concept, which he reportedly had trouble with at Spotify, he just has to ride the horse. And it might be worth it just to stay on good terms with the Sussexes in case more drama erupts in the royal family. Perhaps Prince Harry will decide to return to being a member of the royal family and document it. A public breakup between Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry could also be a mess that Netflix doesn't want to deal with.
But unless there's some compelling new development or a sudden turnaround in viewer interest, Netflix may decide to throw in the towel, but unlike Spotify, the streamer won't be able to recoup $100 million from the Sussexes. Maybe.
“Netflix can cancel this at any time they want and just pay the amount owed,” Pachter said. “And if they keep fiddling with the formula and don't find anything, they probably will. If no one is looking, they're not going to waste their time.”
The question of what to do with Meghan Markle and Prince Harry also illustrates the broader point that celebrity-driven media is a tough business. Many people are famous for one thing, such as acting, singing, being good at a sport, or being born into a very wealthy English family that owned lots of land and jewelry, but then they choose to do something else. I'm having trouble applying it. It feels like almost every celebrity has a podcast, but only a handful of them do so, including Jason Bateman of “SmartLess,” Will Arnett, Sean Hayes and Joe Rogan's show. Masu. The list of stars who failed to become talk show hosts is long, including Magic Johnson and Chevy Chase.
It's difficult to determine which celebrities can cross over, and there's no clear formula to guarantee success. If there was, everyone would do it.
The media company founded by Reese Witherspoon and LeBron James has had some success, but a factory hit is not guaranteed. In the 1990s and early 2000s, many of the so-called “vanity deals” between Hollywood studios and celebrity-backed productions failed or were canned, including stars such as Alicia Silverstone, Nicolas Cage, and Demi Moore. It became. These days, the Obamas haven't hit a ton of commercial home runs, but they've won multiple awards for some of their work. Just this week, CNN canceled a fairly new talk show with Gayle King and Charles Barkley.
It's difficult to determine which celebrities can cross over, and there's no clear formula to guarantee success. If there was, everyone would do it.
Despite their trials and tribulations, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry continue to persevere. Archewell Productions will continue to exist. Meghan has started something of a lifestyle venture called American Riviera Orchard, and so far she's mainly been running a website and an Instagram account. She has filed a number of trademark applications that suggest she plans to move into skincare, cosmetics, yoga mats, pet accessories, and more. The former actor has experience in the lifestyle field, and in a previous life she ran a blog called The TIG. This week, the brand unveiled her first product: 50 jars of jam to send to Meghan's friends. Is Meghan Markle the new JM Smacker? Of course, that way she could show everyone how she made that jam on the hit Netflix show.
emily stewart As a senior correspondent for Business Insider, he writes about business and economics.
