During their exit, the couple vowed to become financially independent entrepreneurs and world-renowned thought leaders. Photo: TNS
A new documentary by German filmmakers is set to offer a less-than-glowing review of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's efforts to establish them as extremely wealthy global influencers and philanthropists since they departed royal life nearly five years ago.
"Harry and Meghan set the bar very high," Ulrike Grunewald, the director of The Lost Prince, told The Daily Mail over the weekend.
The documentary was set to air in Germany on Tuesday (Dec 3). "They want to be global benefactors who bring about tangible change. So far, they have not lived up to this image at all."
For the 45-minute film, Grunewald wanted to look into whether the Duke and Duchess of Sussex succeeded in "finding freedom" by leaving Britain and moving to the United States. During their exit, the couple also vowed to become financially independent entrepreneurs and world-renowned thought leaders.
To answer questions about the couple's post-"Megxit" life, Grunewald said she did reporting in the couple's new hometown of Montecito, looked into the work of their Archewell Foundation and Harry's involvement in the Invictus Games and examined recent reports that they've "separated" – at least professionally.
"I was interested in whether Harry and Meghan's strategies for an independent life are working," Grunewald said. "After four years, the results are very mixed."
"Now they mainly appear separately, as they were unable to create a functioning image together," Grunewald said. They have come down to earth."
On one hand, Harry may have found a new sense of personal freedom by leaving the confines of royal life.
"To be fair, from his point of view Harry wanted the best for his own family," Grunewald said. "And sure he has now gained valuable experience in California and learned what it means to have to stand on his own two feet. He would never have been able to do that in the close circle of the royal family."
But Harry now has to decide for himself what he has to offer to the world, Grunewald said.
On one hand, Harry may have found a new sense of personal freedom by leaving the confines of royal life. Photo: AP
Sure, he still carries "the glamour" of being the son of King Charles III and of the late Princess Diana, Grunewald said. "But in the tough atmosphere of the Hollywood industry," this allure can wear off, she said.
Grunewald is likely referring to the couple's struggles to become Hollywood media moguls.
In late 2020, Harry and his American TV actor wife signed multimillion-dollar deals with Netflix and Spotify, saying that they planned to create "impactful" content "that informs," "gives hope" and "unlocks action."
But the couple notoriously parted ways with Spotify in 2023, after Meghan only produced one 12-episode podcast and they were branded "grifters" by one of the platform's executives and star podcasters, Bill Simmons.
As for Netflix, they starred in Harry And Meghan, their blockbuster 2022 blockbuster docuseries about their acrimonious departure from royal life.
But they also began to lose some public good will in both Britain and the United States, due to the perception that they had gone too far in publicly criticising Harry's royal relatives in the docu-series and in interviews.
While lovers of royal gossip also turned Harry's 2023 memoir, Spare, into a global bestseller, it also became clear that some people started to become uncomfortable with Harry's choice to reveal family secrets.
"People have long memories and few revelations can be more damaging to their image than the private details that Harry and Meghan have made public themselves in the last few years," Grunewald said.
Meanwhile, their Netflix partnership has gone "somewhat downhill," The Times UK also reported.
Harry's documentary about his work with the Invictus Games failed to make Netflix top 10, and there's still no sign of Meghan's Netflix cooking show, which is said to have been finished over the summer.
Next week, Netflix releases Polo, a documentary series that the couple co-executive produced.
But neither Harry nor Meghan appear in the series, which happens to be about an elite sport that most people probably don't care about.
The trailer also tries to market the documentary as a Bravo-like reality TV show about "dirty, sweaty boys... riding" – hardly "impactful" content that "gives hope" and "unlocks action."
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle during their wedding service, conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby in Windsor, Britain, May 19, 2018. Photo: Reuters
Former British friends of Harry reportedly were left in "appalled hysterics" over the "tacky" new series, while a Hollywood executive cautioned that the couple were "running out of last chances" to prove they can make compelling TV that is not about themselves, the Daily Beast reported.
The Daily Mail preview about the new German documentary doesn't address whether it looks into Meghan's other commercial endeavours, including the premiere of her Netflix cooking show which could coincide with the launch of her new life-style brand, American Riviera Orchard.
But Meghan's company has been the subject of numerous reports about bureaucratic difficulties with the US trademarks office and questions over whether she has the business savvy to get her line of strawberry jam and other products ready to sell.
Harry and Meghan also may be struggling in other areas of their post-Megxit life, according to The Lost Prince.
For one thing, the couple don't appear to have "integrated" themselves into Montecito's elite social circles, Grunewald told the Daily Mail.
"The cultural life is very lively, but everything often takes place in closed circles and Harry and Meghan rarely take part in these activities," Grunewald said. "They seem have isolated themselves a lot."
In the past four years, Harry and Meghan, together or separately, have turned up at a few star-studded events in and around Montecito and Santa Barbara. For example, in 2023, they attended Kevin Costner's annual star-studded fundraiser for local first responders at his estate near Santa Barbara.
More recently, they appeared at the September launch of a new book store near their Montecito home, owned by celebrated literary agent Jennifer Rudolph Walsh and cosmetics mogul Victoria Jackson, said to be a good friend of Meghan's. Their Montecito neighbours Oprah Winfrey and Ellen DeGeneres also joined the party, though DeGeneres has recently left California and established a new home in Britain.
Nonetheless, Grunewald's documentary suggests that Harry and Meghan don't spend much time in Montecito.
A neighbour, Richard Mineards, told Grunewald that the couple haven't set out to "put down particularly deep roots" in the area. Every once in a while, they're seen at the local market or on walks – always with security guards in tow.
"Sometimes you will see her at the farmers' market or with a dog, but generally you don't see her and you just don't see much of him," Mineards said.
As for the Archewell Foundation, Grunewald argues that the nonprofit, launched with great fanfare in 2020, doesn't seem to be effectively organised, while the Invictus Games appears to be a bright spot in the couple's portfolio – even if the filmmaker said that Harry is little more than "a figurehead."
Harry founded the International sports competition for wounded veterans and service people. Jack Royston, the royal reporter for Newsweek, is reportedly interviewed for The Lost Prince and says, "I believe that Invictus is genuine and authentic work. Harry is completely devoted to it." – MediaNews Group/Tribune News Service
