It’s no secret Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been having a tough time finding their footing in Hollywood.
When they first escaped the royal family in 2020 and found a home in Montecito, California, things were looking up when they signed massive deals with Netflix and Spotify. Plus Harry’s ever-explosive book deal for Spare. But now those deals are vanishing amid poor results, and well, things are seemingly spiraling in their relationship as they face divorce rumors. It ain’t good!
In a new cover story for Us Weekly out on Wednesday, a source put it plainly, saying, “It’s been a challenging time” for the couple. No s**t!
Related: Royals Trying Stop Prince George’s Siblings From ‘Writing A Book’ Like Harry
Despite all the doom and gloom in the headlines, several confidants expressed a belief that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are going to be just fine. A second source insisted:
“They’re a united front. As far as they’re concerned, it’s Harry and Meghan against the world.”
Against the world is right! Not only have they continued to face criticism from the general public, but even colleagues are calling them out. Take Bill Simmons, for example. He’s the head of podcast innovation and monetization at Spotify and he called the couple “grifters” when the Suits‘ alum’s podcast Archetypes came to an abrupt end. There was also United Talent Agency CEO Jeremy Zimmer who said Meghan “was not a great audio talent, or necessarily any kind of talent.” Damn!!!
It’s got to be a punch in the gut to have industry pros doubting their abilities! And in the face of them already losing deals, it’s bad for business! Coming to their defense, an Archetypes production source also claimed the couple wasn’t set up for success at Spotify, telling People in another cover story about the royals:
“They were given no formal lay of the land to kick things off, so they were already on unsteady footing even before the ink was dry.”
You mean to tell us no one on their Archewell team knew how to help them produce a podcast?! Seems like a simple hiring mistake to us! Half the world has its own podcast, it shouldn’t be that hard, all things considered! Once again blaming the audio company, the source said the stars “have a lot of ideas and did pitch them,” but “things moved very slowly on both ends.”
Per the first Us source, Meghan and Harry try to ignore the haters as best they can:
“Harry and Meghan can’t keep track of the negative things people say about them. It’s relentless. They do their best to rise above it, but of course it gets to them — how could it not?”
According to Joe Quenqua, a senior media strategist, via People, he believes these headlines reflect “serious growing pains” for the pair’s company Archewell. But he’s not surprised since “there wasn’t necessarily a five-year plan” when they left the UK. Another top Hollywood insider also speculated Harry and Meghan’s initial deals were “inflated” due to the drama surrounding them at the time of Megxit:
“The royal element and, in some ways, the drama around them inflated the price, deals and expectations.”
Now, that they haven’t lived up to high expectations, it’s biting them in the ass! To combat this, they’re keeping calm and carrying on — which is something they’re very accustomed to, the second Us insider noted:
“So much of Harry and Meghan’s time together has felt like overcoming strife from all sides. They just do it together. They rely on each other for strength and always have.”
That said, H and M can’t just will the drama away — it IS affecting their work opportunities which is only making their estrangement from Harry’s UK family and friends more painfully obvious:
“There’s not too much work right now for either of them, so that does cause some issues of feeling isolated. Back home, his summers were full of travel and weddings and exploring. Harry’s made friends in California, but they’re not like his London crew.”
These days — probably because they’re so estranged from everyone — they “are together 24/7.” And if the amount of breakups we witnessed during the COVID-19 lockdown was any indication, that much time with a spouse can prove problematic for a relationship. Just saying!
While the Deal or No Deal alum has a strong support system nearby, thanks to her momma Doria Ragland and bestie and Suits co-star Abigail Spencer, Prince Haz is further and more disconnected from his close pals. Not to mention his feud with Prince William and King Charles III, whom the second source said he does “not communicate [with] often,” adding:
“William and Charles want Harry to stop unveiling family secrets.”
To fill the void, Harry and Meghan spend their time keeping a low profile:
“They go on hikes with the dogs, work out together and [hang out] in the garden with the kids.”
They also go on “regular” date nights at members-only hot spots like San Vicente Bungalows (where they were seen in March) and Soho House. Through all of this, they are 100% trying to figure out their way back into the industry:
“Harry and Meghan are regrouping. They want to figure out how they can best expand the entertainment side of things.”
To do this, the actress is contemplating restarting her lifestyle site The Tig and the Archewell founder will be traveling to Africa soon for a Netflix documentary. They are also both set to go to Germany for the Invictus Games in September and “looking for a house” in Malibu to get a fresh start.
Related: Stephen Amell Criticizes SAG Strike With Controversial Comments
But just because they haven’t released much via their streaming deals (and had shows canceled mid-production or get released to little fanfare, such as their Netflix doc Live to Lead), some experts told People they are just being held to a higher standard than most, insisting,”very few other production companies are measured by what’s actually hit the airwave.” Another source revealed there are “plenty of things that are in different phases” under their company’s umbrella. So, they’re not out of the game entirely.
As for the divorce rumors? Well, don’t expect them to comment on the chatter anytime soon, the first Us source explained:
“Harry and Meghan believe that feeding into that false narrative only gives it more attention. Sure, their relationship has challenges, but they are 100 percent committed to making their marriage work.”
People‘s insider also noted they are focused on raising their kids, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, saying royal life “wasn’t a world they wanted for their family,” which is part of the reason they’re trying to make things work in Cali. The royal confidant said:
“Everything else flows from that, for whatever time period it takes.”
So what does this mean for the future? Hopefully, this is just the beginning of a success story, an industry exec told People:
“Has their final chapter been written? Absolutely not. Hollywood loves a comeback.”
They sure do… but they also love to bash Harry and Meghan, so we’re not sure which is going to win! Thoughts?! Sound OFF (below)!
Related Posts
