Inside Harry & Meghan’s last ditch bid to rescue ‘ticking time bomb’ £80m Netflix deal with ‘unscripted’ shows & film
PRINCE Harry and Meghan Markle are said to be making a last-ditch bid to rescue their £80million Netflix deal.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are planning “unscripted” shows and a film after experts dubbed their deal with the streaming giant a “ticking time bomb“.
Harry, 39, and 42-year-old Meghan signed a deal with Netflix in 2020, but rumours have been swirling that it had been a flop.
The couple then last week headed along to a film premiere for a Paramount Pictures film – the streaming giant’s opposition – with experts claiming they were “desperate to be seen“.
However, a Netflix boss has now said the Sussexes “actually have a bunch in development”.
The Times reported chief content officer Bela Bajaria said the new projects were linked to Archewell, and included “a couple of unscripted things”.
She was speaking at one of the streaming giant’s promotional events when she added Harry and Meghan were also working on a film and a series – which are in “very early development”.
Last year the couple’s six-part soul-baring series was the streaming giant’s most-viewed documentary.
But Harry and Meghan are believed to have been paid only half of their reported £78m contract.
It was said they will get the rest only if they produce content of real interest before the end of 2025.
Last month comedian Jo Koy roasted the pair at the Golden Globes saying they were “being paid millions by Netflix for doing nothing”.
At the time royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams said the couple could lose everything if they don’t knuckle down and get producing before their contract ends.
He told The Sun: “It’s important also to remember the Netflix contract goes on to 2025.
“Netflix is no longer producing The Crown, and from that point of view it may well be, if the Sussexes, don’t produce what they want.
“If they lost that, they really would be losers in every sense.”
The couple launched their documentary Harry and Meghan last year, offering an insight into their relationship.
Released in two parts, the explosive docuseries lobbed bombs at The Firm – seeing it torn apart by royal experts.
But, despite the attention it drew, it didn’t even rank in the top 200 most-watched Netflix shows from January to June.
Months later Harry’s series Heart of Invictus about the Olympic-style games he started for wounded ex-service competitors flopped.
And Meghan’s animated series Pearl, about a girl inspired by historical female figures, was dropped while still in the development stage.
Harry and Meghan's business flops
- Meghan had her upcoming animated series Pearl chucked out by Netflix while in the development stage
- Then 42-year-old was said to have been “uncharacteristically quiet”, following the loss of her £18million Spotify deal in June last year
- While Spare initially sold a staggering number of copies demand soon dwindled and a year on its popularity has plummeted with major retailers slashing prices in half
- Meanwhile, their Netflix documentary also took a hit and the duke and duchess are believed to have been paid only half of their reported £78million contract
- The pair were poked fun at by comedian Jo Koy at the Golden Globes for “being paid millions by Netflix for doing nothing”
- Harry’s series, Heart of Invictus, shedding light on the Olympic-style games he started for wounded ex-service competitors also flopped
- Archewell figures in December last year revealed a hole in the accounts after it received almost £9million less in donations than in a previous year
Last year the couple faced a public split from Spotify.
Their Archewell company’s £18million deal with the platform was ended by mutual agreement after Meghan, 41, produced only 13 broadcasts in two-and-a half years.
It comes as royal experts yesterday claimed the couple were clutching at straws by trying to cosy up with Paramount’s boss.
They said Harry and Meghan were “blatantly” after a deal with the media giant just as one of Archewell Productions key members quit.
Bennett Levine – who worked on the flop docuseries Harry and Meghan – confirmed he was quitting, after less than two years in the role.
The Archewell Foundation operated at a £536,357 loss but kept in the black thanks to earlier donations.
A single donation of $10m — 77% of Archewell’s total 2021 income — came from one unidentified wealthy donor.
Archewell claimed it is not unusual for donations to drop off after the first year and say they have $8m in the bank.
Mr Fitzwilliams told The Sun: “I don’t think this is good news at all.
“The fact their manager is leaving, very clearly Archewell you could say is not so well, its accounts for 2022 were singularly unimpressive.”
The Sussexes much-hyped foundation Archewell, revealed a hole in the accounts in December last year after it received almost £9m less in donations than in a previous year.
