When Prince Harry and Meghan Markle signed a $100 million deal with Netflix, they promised to create television shows that would inform, but also offer hope through a relatable perspective.

However, except for the first documentary Harry & Meghan (2022), the following projects Heart of Invictus (2023) and Polo (2024) have not created a buzz or commercial success. Even Harry & Meghan attracted a lot of viewers but was not highly appreciated for its quality. Experts say that people only watch it out of curiosity about the British Royal Family.

For nearly a year, the media has been reporting that Meghan is creating her own show tied to the American Riviera Orchard lifestyle brand that the Duchess of Sussex launched in March. It is described as a show that celebrates the joys of cooking, gardening, entertaining and friendship.

However, there is no indication of a release date for the show. On December 16, a Netflix source told Mail Online that Meghan’s project may not air. In addition, following the failure of Polo , the streaming giant is said to have no other deal with the Sussexes.

“There may be some individual collaborative projects but that’s it,” the insider stressed.

Netflix has yet to comment on the news, but it’s clear that 2025 is shaping up to be a rocky year for the estranged royal couple.

Polo ‘s unenviable failure has put a lot of pressure on Meghan’s cooking show. Some are calling it the former actress’s last chance to salvage her lucrative Netflix deal. After all, it’s her and her husband’s main source of funding after being dropped by Spotify.

“It’s a make or break thing. People are saying Netflix is ​​burned out. There’s a lot of work to be done with her, but frankly the payoff doesn’t seem worth the effort,” the industry source said.

Meanwhile, another source believes Meghan’s show would have to be a huge hit to convince Netflix to change its mind and restore the Sussexes’ reputation in Hollywood.

According to multiple sources, the cooking show could debut in the first quarter of 2025. However, it turns out that it’s not on Netflix’s January schedule. If the reports are true, viewers will have to wait until at least late February, after Harry’s Invictus Games event in Whistler, Canada.

Timing is also a concern for Harry and Meghan. Their five-year deal with Netflix ends in the fall of 2025, and Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos wants to see results.

In the best-case scenario where the cooking show is a success and Netflix renews the deal, Hollywood sources say the new deal won’t be worth the same $100 million because the pair haven’t come up with anything compelling.

Outside of documentary projects, the Sussexes have not produced any television or film. They have used Barack and Michelle Obama as models, but Archewell Productions’ work has not been as convincing as the work produced by the former US President’s Higher Ground. In 2023, the Obamas had the blockbuster Leave the World Behind and the critically acclaimed Rustin project .

Previously, at a Netflix promotional event in Hollywood in February, Bela Bajaria, Netflix’s chief content officer, told The Times that the Sussexes were working on several unscripted projects (believed to be documentaries) along with a film and a TV series.

No specific information about the above projects has been released. However, the film may be related to the plan to adapt the novel Meet Me At The Lake , which Harry and Meghan bought the copyright for more than 3.8 million USD.

While Meghan’s “brainchild” is unlikely to air, the response from the audience is not very friendly: “It doesn’t matter when it’s on Netflix, it will fail”, “I don’t understand why Netflix is ​​so behind. We don’t care about shows by Harry or Meghan. They need to find another job”, “The Sussexes have an amazing ability to leave no impression”, “The Sussexes failed because unlike real royals, they don’t have the charisma of a star or the noble aura that comes from a centuries-old institution”, “When she announced her move to California, she declared that she would only work on A-list films, with A-list actors, directors and scripts. The strange thing is that it never happened”…