With a little over a year remaining on Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s reported five-year, $100 million deal with Netflix, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have announced the impending release of two upcoming limited series with the streaming conglomerate. Once a Hollywood mainstay through her role as Rachel Zane in the beloved legal drama Suits, Markle is reclaiming her place in the spotlight with what appears to be an unscripted, non-fiction and potentially docu-style series focused on Markle’s moves in the lifestyle sector.
The first of two new projects will see Markle “celebrate the joys of cooking, gardening, entertaining, and friendship”, with plugs to her recently-announced aspirational brand, American Riviera Montecito, no doubt woven throughout. The patent application for the label reveals Markle’s intention to peddle tableware, cookbooks, textiles, as well as edible items like jellies, marmalades, and fruit preserves, so the premise of the show will presumably see Markle recreating a recipe at her Californian estate with one of her celebrity friends. Serena Williams for snack plates and glasses of Tignanello, anyone?
Executive showrunners include a producer on Selena Gomez’s reality cooking show Selena + Chef, with Michael Steed from Anthony Bordains’ transcontinental culinary expedition set to direct the episodes. (Details regarding the series’ title, episode amount or duration has yet to be revealed.)
The second show, which has Prince Harry written all over it, is said to lift the veil on the realities of professional polo. “The series will explore the world of the sport, which is known primarily for its aesthetic and social scene,” Deadline reported, adding it will “pull the curtain back on the grit and passion of the sport, capturing players and all it takes to compete at the highest level.”
The show-runner previously worked with Ryan Gosling and Rob McElhenney on chronicling their purchase and revival of the Welsh football club, Wrexham A.F.C., in Welcome To Wrexham. Netflix’s demonstrated track record of converting audiences into tangible fans of a sport was proven in the overwhelming success of the Formula 1-focused Drive To Survive.
Given this, it’s not hyperbolic to predict the lavish society Prince Harry is so ingratiated in to have a new crop of supporters following the release. (As reports point out, Prince Harry “has been known as a keen polo player and is often photographed playing internationally.”)
The new content will be released under the couple’s Archewell Productions banner, the same company that released Harry & Meghan, Netflix’s most-watched docu-series of all time. With over 81.55 million hours watched in the six-part series’ debut week, it’s clear each party is operating under the guise of “more content the merrier.”
