As Meghan put it in typically syrupy fashion while promoting her Archetypes podcast last year, she and husband Prince Harry are “like salt and pepper — we always move together.”
And yet, as her media empire implodes following the termination of her Spotify contract, it seems like those special spices somehow ended up on completely opposite shelves in the pantry today.
Fresh off her management deal with ultimate Hollywood agent Ari Emanuel at WME, Meghan is still exploring creative and commercial opportunities. It was a solo deal – not her and Harry – and a colossal coup.
Meanwhile, Harry is said to be returning to charity and campaign work and planning a return to Africa to film a documentary in the footsteps of his mother – an endeavor that will see him traveling to the continent alone. Their ambition to become a global humanitarian power couple appears to be on hold, at least for now.
What’s expected next for Meghan is a slew of commercial endorsements in areas important to her, like food, wellness, fashion and therapy.
Harry, 38, and Meghan, 41, are a couple who rarely seem to think about the consequences of their actions for others. They are convinced that their downfall had nothing to do with them
Prince Harry and members of the Household Cavalry take part in educational games to warn local children about the threat of AIDS before a 2008 ‘Kick 4 Life’ football match at Thoseo center for disabled children in Lesotho, Africa
Prince Harry plays rugby in 2004 with orphans including Mafusi Maqhoane, 11, (in pink) and members of a youth group at Mants’ase Children’s Home near Mohale’s Hoek, 106km outside the Lesotho capital Maseru
I heard there will be a book, most likely with a feminist angle.
Most urgently, however, the WME team will look to bolster – or should revitalize – Meghan’s rather damaged credibility in the entertainment industry following the embarrassing end of the Sussexes’ £18million deal ‘by mutual consent’ earlier this month.
So far, the negativity has focused on Meghan, with talent agent Jeremy Zimmer noting, “It turns out Meghan Markle wasn’t a huge audio talent, or necessarily any talent.” You know, just because you’re famous doesn’t mean you are are great at something.’
Those familiar with the situation say the real disappointment for Spotify was the lack of content, not the podcast ratings.
Incredibly, however, Harry, 38, and Meghan, 41, are convinced their downfall has nothing to do with them, although the couple rarely seem to think about the consequences their actions will have on others.
I’ve been told that both feel they’ve had “repeated bad luck” in other world events. Attempts to establish themselves as global philanthropists, free to monetize once they’ve relieved themselves of royal duties, have been severely impacted by the pandemic that followed just months after their January 2020 Megxit announcement.
Her deal with Netflix coincided with a major and painful “correction” in the streaming economy — as did her deal with Spotify. Both companies don’t have that much cash left to splash around with.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are said to feel they have been “repeatedly unlucky” in efforts to host other world events
Prince Charles holds up a traditional Zulu shield and spear gifted to him by the locals as his son Prince Harry looks on in confusion in the village of Dukuduku in 1997
Prince Harry with young orphan Mutsu Potsanse, 4, after they planted a peach tree together at Mants’ase children’s home for orphans near Mohale’s Hoek, some 60 miles south of Maseru in Lesotho
Prince Harry with a child from one of the projects supported by the Lesotho Fund
Prince Harry and members of the Household Cavalry take part in educational games to warn local children about the threat of AIDS before a 2008 ‘Kick 4 Life’ football match at Thoseo’s center for disabled children in Lesotho
Other incredibly unimaginable incidents of so-called bad timing include the release of Meghan’s podcast – promotion of which was marred by the death of Her Majesty the Queen – and her explosive and grossly insensitive Oprah interview, which I’m told the couple felt was wrong overshadowed by the deteriorating health of Prince Philip, who died soon after.
Compassion will be in short supply. But a source in LA tells me, “They say they think they’re really unlucky.”
By the way, Meghan is a big believer in fate. I was told that at the suggestion of one of her “Suits” co-stars, she consulted a celebrity psychic, Mama Fay, and was told she would meet a man who was “like royalty” — and that she was going global would be famous, to boot.
But luck aside, the big question is how long will it be before Harry turns his back on the show business life he’s clearly not suited for and seems utterly uncomfortable with? He and Meghan were expected to produce multiple podcasts as part of the Spotify deal. Meghan reached out to friends, including tennis player Serena Williams, to appear at Archetypes (and wrote a letter to singer Taylor Swift, who declined). But Harry was completely ineffective in that area.
In fact, according to news site Bloomberg, ideas like interviewing Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump and Mark Zuckerberg about formative traumatic experiences came to mind.
As if that wasn’t ridiculous enough, there was also the idea of doing a podcast about fatherhood – and possibly interviewing the Pope for it. It almost sounds like a mean joke, with Harry as the punch line.
Netflix is also reportedly planning not to renew the Sussexes’ contract when it expires in 2025. Pictured: Harry in Cape Town in 2019. It’s understood he wants to return to Africa for a solo project
Prince Harry during his visit to southern Africa, where he is helping with an operation to dehorn a rhinoceros to deter poachers in 2015
Prince Harry and Prince William pose with a rock python during a visit to Mokoloda Conservation Area in Gabarone, Botswana in 2010
Prince Harry and a forensic team visit a crime scene of a rhino killed by poachers in Kruger National Park as part of his 2015 trip to South Africa
In truth, Harry never really wanted to be a podcaster or TV executive. He didn’t want to be the “pepper” for Meghan’s “salt”.
As he said at a conference in San Francisco earlier this year, “For me personally, there’s a lot to be gained from helping other people.”
“Being in the service of others is what drives me and gets me out of bed every day.”
During that bombshell interview in 2021 he had even told Oprah: how he only signed the £79m Netflix and £18m Spotify deals because his family had ‘cut him off’ and he needed it to pay for security (not to mention the £11million Montecito mansion they bought four weeks after the Netflix deal was announced).
Last year, while the couple were filming their riotous Harry & Meghan documentary, Meghan mused about the experience in an interview: “It’s interesting.” “My husband has never worked in this industry.”
After the release of that documentary and the advertising campaign for his best-selling memoir, Spare, which he did alone, questions were asked about how long Harry would stay in the spotlight.
On the one hand, he is heavily involved in the fight to right supposed wrongs of the past. In the UK he is involved in several lawsuits against newspaper groups over allegations of phone hacking and illegal information gathering, all of which have been dismissed.
In America, today’s homeland, you rarely see him.
A documentary about his military charity, Heart Of Invictus, has been commissioned by Netflix and is nearing completion.
Meanwhile, Meghan and her team at Archewell will continue trying to get the green light for movies and TV shows from Netflix until the deal expires in 2025.
New agent Emanuel will connect her with the key creative talents she needs to make her new career as a TV producer a success. Actress and model-producer Tracy Ryerson has now joined as script content director. She is assisted by Nishika Kumble, the senior vice president of scripted television. The two women have a lot to do.
Sources at Netflix say Archewell has “general” suggestions for script content.
In addition to the previously reported spin-off Great Expectations, TV sitcoms and movie romcoms are also in the pipeline. They face various hurdles – not least the current writers’ strike, which means that nobody is working on the scripts. When the strike is over, there will be a backlog of work and the best writers will be stuck at work for months, if not years.
Perhaps with the help of experienced power broker Emanuel, Meghan can break through and put an end to her losing streak.
She takes inspiration from her old boss, Bonnie Hammer, an NBC executive who got her big break with Suits.
But as she makes her way to bigger and more lucrative media ventures, her husband’s concerns center on the environment and mental health.
He was hired in March 2021 as chief impact officer at a company called BetterUp, which he says offers the fastest access to mental health coaching and is an app he often uses on his phone.
He said at a conference this year, “I never thought I’d be sitting on this stage and saying, ‘Therapy is good and coaching will change your life,’ or ‘Both will change your life.'” And the more people we can achieve with it, the better. “What we’re trying to do now – the goal – is to democratize coaching to make sure we can bring it to the masses.”
His other passion is the sustainable travel coalition Travalyst. Founded in 2019, the company has grown into a truly impressive company that now includes some of the biggest brands in travel, including Tripadvisor, Google, Booking.com, Visa and the Expedia group.
All have joined an environmental sustainability rating system. CEO Sally Davey says of Harry, “He understands the complexities of sustainability and knows there’s a broad spectrum of issues that are influenced by a number of factors.” She says he has a five-inch thick report on the subject in Commissioned and read “on every page” and made notes.
Prince Harry plays with children during a visit to Phelisanong Children’s Home December 6, 2014 in Pitseng, Lesotho in 2006
Prince Harry watches a group of women singing during a visit to the village of Phororong in the northern mountains while on a return visit to Lesotho in southern Africa
The Prince of Wales and his son Prince Harry leave their mark in cement at the Dukuduku village school in South Africa in 1997
One can’t blame Harry – who is very sensitive to reports that suggest he’s not smart – for wanting to spend his time focusing on good works that have a proven track record of impact and meaning, rather than ideas for Propose comedy shows or animations.
Plus, the couple has young children every day – Archie, four; Lilibet, two – drawing their focus. A report in the Telegraph suggested some perfectly normal tensions in their five-year marriage.
A friend told the newspaper that the couple were “like any parent of young kids – exhausted,” adding, “They’re really happy together, living this idyllic life in Montecito, which is essentially a massive gated community of multi-millionaires. “But at the end of the day, they’ve been through a lot and I think they both felt pretty drained from it all. “They are like any married couple, even after five years.”
It has been suggested that Harry occasionally stayed alone at a leading hotel chain in Montecito and that he also stayed at the San Vicente Bungalows when he visited LA as an “escape spot”. A spokesman for the couple simply said, “That’s not true.”
Socially, Harry is involved with a group of friends who play polo – the Los Padres team in Santa Barbara. Old friends in London complain that he’s gone from their lives. Guy Pelly, a key member of his gang, danced with Prince William in London this week. Given the complete rupture in relations between the brothers, it was a fascinating sight to say the least.
Meghan has managed to hold on to her “pre-Harry” friends, like yoga teacher Heather Dorak and Soho House CEO Markus Anderson, who both came to visit her for Archie’s birthday in May and went hiking with her the following day.
Harry, who had just returned from the coronation of King Charles, was not with them.
They may still be very much married, but Harry seems happiest on the edge of the limelight – a few steps behind his wife.
