Netflix’s co-CEO, Ted Sarandos, couldn’t resist showering Meghan Markle with praise, speaking as if she were the undisputed queen of cultural influence. With a straight face, he declared that Markle is underestimated in terms of her impact on culture.
An interesting take, considering her most notable influence seems to be making high-end products instantly sell out—from exorbitantly priced Hermès blankets to those infamous shoes that vanished from stock overnight. It’s not about storytelling or artistic brilliance; it’s a masterclass in product placement and merchandising. And just like that, Sarandos reduces cultural influence to retail trends, a far cry from the bold, innovative content Netflix was once known for.
What was once a hub for groundbreaking storytelling has become a bargain bin of mediocrity, sporadically peppered with international hits. And yet, somehow, Ted believes that aligning Netflix’s brand with Meghan Markle—a woman whose most notable skill appears to be playing the perpetual victim—was a strategic move. That must have been quite the pitch. Did she appear in his office, tearfully lamenting the cruelty of the world? Given her well-documented habit of crying on strangers' shoulders, perhaps that was all it took for Ted to hand over a £100 million check.
Let’s talk numbers, shall we? If Meghan is the cultural powerhouse Sarandos claims, why did her Netflix series Live to Lead barely scrape together 2.6 million views worldwide? In contrast, a random teen drama, My Life with the Walters, managed to pull in over 24 million views in just four days. And then there’s her lackluster Instagram following—2.5 million. That’s influencer territory, not global icon status. If she truly had the kind of cultural sway Netflix wants us to believe, brands would be clamoring to work with her. Instead, it’s radio silence, save for a single overpriced lifestyle venture that barely registers on the public’s radar. If everything she touches flies off the shelves, where are the lucrative endorsement deals? Where are the multimillion-dollar partnerships? The numbers just don’t add up, and neither does Ted’s enthusiastic defense of her so-called influence.
Sarandos may be publicly championing Meghan now, but let’s not forget how Netflix had no qualms about letting comedian John Mulaney roast the Sussexes at one of their own events. That wasn’t an accident. The streaming giant is well aware that their royal gamble hasn’t paid off. Sarandos is simply trying to salvage a failing investment. From the start, Netflix’s deal with Meghan was a sinking ship. They poured an astronomical sum into her brand, only to watch it fade into irrelevance. Even Netflix’s other co-CEO, Greg Peters, led the charge to cancel a behind-the-scenes miniseries for Live to Lead due to lack of interest—a decision that, unsurprisingly, has left Meghan feeling “betrayed.”
Netflix had likely envisioned a Real Housewives of Windsor spectacle, hoping Meghan’s presence would eventually lead to a royal reality TV goldmine. But they severely miscalculated. Camilla, Catherine, Sophie, Anne, and Zara have no interest in degrading themselves for attention, leaving Netflix with nothing but an expensive disappointment. Now, Sarandos is left grasping at straws, trying to convince the world that Meghan is still relevant. One has to wonder—does he truly believe his own words, or does his wife roll her eyes every time he’s forced to feign enthusiasm for Meghan’s dwindling star power?
Meghan Markle’s Netflix journey has been a cautionary tale of overhyped investments and misplaced expectations. The platform believed they were securing a cultural game-changer, but instead, they got a master manipulator skilled only in spending other people’s money. Sarandos may continue to publicly defend the deal, but behind the scenes, Netflix executives are undoubtedly kicking themselves for ever thinking this was a good idea. The Sussex experiment is coming to an end, and frankly, it’s long overdue.
