Netflix, once the undisputed leader in streaming with its gripping dramas, chilling thrillers, and Emmy-winning masterpieces, now finds itself in a costly predicament—one entirely of its own making. The company gambled on Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, believing their brand would translate into groundbreaking content, only to be left with an £85 million debacle.
Instead of producing compelling material, the couple delivered With Love, Meghan, an eight-part yawn-inducing series where Meghan, in her self-proclaimed wisdom, teaches the world how to set a table and host a dinner party. The result? A dismal 33% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes and an even harsher 20% audience score, proving that even the most devoted Sussex supporters struggled to feign interest. The show failed so spectacularly that it vanished from Netflix’s top 10 in under a week.
Now, Netflix insiders are scrambling to contain the fallout. Reports indicate that the streaming giant deeply regrets shelling out £85 million for what is essentially a glorified Instagram cooking reel with a royal-sized price tag. Paying £4.6 million per episode just to watch Meghan demonstrate napkin folding has left executives fuming. Not only did With Love, Meghan flop harder than a fish out of water, but the entire Sussex deal has become a never-ending money pit of disappointment. To put it into perspective, The Crown, a critically acclaimed series about the British Royal Family that audiences actually want to watch, costs around £56 million for an entire season—far less than what Netflix poured into Meghan and Harry’s projects.
Now at a crossroads, Netflix must decide whether to continue pushing Meghan-centric content onto an uninterested public or cut its losses and walk away. The latter option is looking increasingly appealing. Just when the backlash seemed at its peak, Meghan attempted to salvage her dwindling credibility by announcing that With Love, Meghan had been renewed for a second season. However, Netflix swiftly clarified that no such renewal had occurred. The so-called second season had merely been filmed back-to-back with the first, making Meghan’s grand announcement nothing more than a carefully spun illusion. Once again, she manipulated a technicality into a triumphant comeback narrative, a move that has become all too familiar.
Netflix executives are now learning a hard but valuable lesson: when you sign a deal with professional victims, you're bound to get burned. The streaming service is quietly but urgently looking for ways to distance itself from the Sussex soap opera as gracefully as possible. If Netflix hopes to salvage its reputation, the best course of action would be to publicly sever ties and issue a polite farewell—perhaps something along the lines of “Best wishes on your un-Sussex-ful future endeavors.”
Ultimately, Netflix bet big on Meghan and Harry, only to realize that public interest in the couple doesn’t extend beyond their royal controversies. Viewers aren’t interested in watching Meghan bake cookies while lecturing about mindfulness; they crave scandal, drama, and insider revelations. If Netflix failed to anticipate this, the blame lies squarely on them.
